I’m not sure what to be searching for, 'cause everyone I’ve called isn’t interested in property damage only; they only want bodily injury cases.
Short version: idiot hit ‘n’ runned my parked car over Labor Day weekend. Totalled to the value of ~$7100ish. We have the plates, name/address/insurance info of the registered owner, police report and a witness willing to testify, as well as pictures of the damage to our car and her car the next morning. Police are investigating the hit and run as a criminal dealio, but I really need the money. Our insurance company sucks and gave us less than half of what they valued the car at and invited us to suck their…I mean, go after the Other Guy’s insurance company for the rest. Their insurance is stalling and looks like they’re going to refuse under some pretext or another (exactly which pretext varies from day to day). I’d like to find a lawyer to deal with this, even if it means losing some of the money, 'cause I’m bored now.
Chicago, if you happen to have a specific name/number.
I am so switching back to State Farm when this is all done. Elephant (mine) and Safeway (theirs) suuuuuuuuck.
I…have no idea. Really, it doesn’t make any sense to me at all. Which is why I’m looking for help.
Jessicaaaaaa!
Ugh. That’s what I was afraid of. Yeah, we’ll probably have to do just that. Does that mean we have to wait until they officially deny the claim?
New twist: The owner of the car is lying her butt off to her own insurance company, saying she was the driver at the time (she wasn’t, it was her drunk son, which she already admitted to me in person and which is part of the witness statement on the police report) and that she left a note on our car (which, she didn’t, not being in the car at the time.) Ugh again. So now they’re holding things up because “we’ve got conflicting reports about what happened.” This looks like it’s going to get ugly. :smack:
So what’s the exact status? You made a claim with your insurance company for the full amount, and they agreed to pay only part of it? Did you accept their offer?
Did your insurance cover damage to your own car caused by your own mistake?
We were asleep at the time, in our beds - absolutely no way any fault of ours. The car was parked out front on the street. The neighbor heard the crash, saw the car rearranged ours, noted the licensed plate, watched a couple of allegedly drunk young men swap seats and drive off. Neighbor called 911, police showed up, wrote a report…all while we continued to sleep. Apparently, we can’t hear our doorbell with the air conditioner on in our bedroom. :smack:
Next day, neighbor knocks on my door and hands me the police report, at which point I look out the window and see the car. Since the name and address of the registered owner were on the police report, and it’s not far, we (my SO and I) went over to her place where her car was in her garage all smashed up (not just on the end that hit my car, mind you, but also the other end that was undamaged when they left the scene at my place - they hit something/someone ELSE on the way home.) Took pictures, got her insurance info, gave her my card. She told me then that her insurance wouldn’t pay if they knew her son was driving (wouldn’t be specific about why), and would I tell them it was her? I said no way, I’m not committing insurance fraud, but on the other hand, I did not witness the accident and wouldn’t claim I had. If they talked to my neighbor, that was out of my hands. (And even that I felt shady about, to be honest.)
Got home, called our insurance, gave them her insurance and contact info. * About a week later, they sent out the guy to take pictures and look at the car and it was declared a total loss, valued around $7100. They wrote a check for $3200 and told us that was “their portion” and we’d have to get the rest from the other insurance company ourselves. Came and towed the car away a few days later.
Yes, we cashed the check, so I believe that counts as “accepting their offer”. That was probably a tactical error, but I don’t have cash reserves enough to buy a new (used) car without it, and I do home health care and couldn’t work without a car.
We’ve made daily phone calls to her insurance company, and it’s been a litany of excuses. They had the wrong address and the claim form was returned to them (no, it wasn’t, it showed up in our mailbox later that day). They didn’t get the claim form. They were waiting to talk to her. They were waiting for the police report. The faxed police report wasn’t sufficient, they needed a paper copy. They were waiting to talk to her again. Now it’s the “conflicting story” excuse. Apparently they have a more complete police report than I got, and it includes statements from the officer who responded and our neighbor’s witness account, and so the cat’s out of the bag as far as the driver being a young man, not a middle aged woman. Whoops!
I know this is small potatoes, but it’s over a month’s income for me, and we’re just getting back on our feet after three years of very tough times. My mother was gracious enough to loan us $4000 which, with the $3200 from my insurance company, was enough to buy a new (used) car and put decent tires and new wheel bearings on it. She’s letting me pay her back over time with no interest, but I’d really like to get a check from The Other insurance company so I can pay her back and be done with it.
Missy2U, thanks again, but they ended up being another personal injury law firm.
*ETA: Called her company the same day.
Call your insurance company and ask for the contact information for the agency in your state that regulates insurance companies. Tell them you need to information to inquire about what constitutes bad faith in your state. That should get their attention.
If you have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage then the hit and run should be covered by your insurer. It is up to them to subrogate against the other carrier.
Let the claims department at your insurer know you are contacting the DOI.
Okay, hang on a second here. You don’t need to be talking to the other guy’s insurance. On no planet is it ok for an insurer to *arbitrarily *reduce the amount of a total loss settlement to their own insured. Your insurance company does not appear to be operating on the up-and-up. Did they even offer to put you in a rental car while you shopped for a new one?? (assuming you paid for rental coverage, of course) Further, by not paying you the full amount at which your vehicle was valued, **your insurer is breaking the law **unless they itemize, in writing, the reasons for any deductions taken from the valuation (see below for specific excerpts from the IL DOI website). You can PM me with any specific questions. I work at an insurance company in the western 'burbs of Chicago (NOT Elephant or Safeway). I’m not an adjuster, but I know several. I take claims all day long, myself. If I don’t know the answer, I can find someone who does. =)
When you file an automobile insurance claim, your insurance company has three options:
[ol]
[li]Replace the damaged or stolen property;[/li][li]Repair the damaged property; or[/li][li]Pay for the loss in cash.[/li][/ol]
If the insurance company elects to make a cash settlement for your totaled vehicle, they must first determine its retail value. Companies normally use guidebooks or computerized data marketed by various sources. If your vehicle is not listed in one of these sources, the company can use written dealer quotes.
If within 30 days of a cash settlement, you can prove that you have bought or leased another vehicle, the company must pay the applicable sales tax, transfer and title fees in an amount equivalent to the value of the total loss vehicle.
The insurance company is allowed to make deductions from the retail value if your automobile has old, unrepaired collision damages. There is no limit to the amount of the deduction. The insurance company can also make deductions for wear and tear, missing parts and rust, but the maximum deduction may not exceed $500.00. All deductions must be itemized and specified as to dollar amount.
If you cannot purchase a substantially similar vehicle for the market value determined by the company, but you have located a substantially similar vehicle that costs more, the following procedure(s) shall apply:
[ol]
[li]** The company shall either pay you the difference between the original settlement and the amount of the substantially similar vehicle which you have located or attempt to purchase this vehicle for you**; or[/li][li]The company shall locate a comparable vehicle for you at the market value determined by the company at the time of settlement; or[/li][li]The company shall conclude the loss settlement as provided under the appraisal section of the insurance policy.[/li][/ol]
**Your insurance company must give you written notice of this procedure once your vehicle has been determined a total loss. **The value of your automobile may differ if certain options are not listed in a guidebook or if your automobile has excessive wear and tear or old unrepaired damage.
Iggy, good advice about the DOI. BTW, I promise I composed and sourced my post entirely before I read yours! However, this loss would initially be covered under collision and not UM/UIM, because the driver’s identity is known and the other vehicle is insured. There’s a big but, though (hehe, I said big but). If, as I suspect, the driver’s son is listed as an excluded driver on his mother’s policy (why else would she have said what she did to WhyNot?), then the claim reserve/payout coverage type might be changed from collision to UM. Because in that case, the son would have effectively been driving without insurance. My guess is that he’s uninsurable due to age/accident history/past DUI conviction, but mom lets him drive anyfuckingway. In that case, your insurance company can hold him personally liable for the damages and secure a judgment against him in small claims court. None of this entails that **WhyNot **get a lawyer, though. It just requires that her insurance company stops being a bag of douche, settles her claim like a big boy, and pursues subrogation against Safeway themselves.
Of course, this does not change the fact that **WhyNot **must still be paid the full amount for her total loss by her own insurer. It may affect whether she does or doesn’t get back her deductible, is all. UM coverage does not generally carry a deductible, whereas collision does.
If I were you, WhyNot, I would not bust out the phrase “bad faith” just yet. It sounds like they did negotiate in bad faith, but save that for when you need the big guns.
Ok, forget the hypothetical. I didn’t have UM coverage on the ex-vehicle. Do have liability and Collision. Could that be what the problem is? They said it was covered under Collision… Could they gulp demand the payment back if it’s determined an Excluded Driver was the one who hit my car?
Thank you thank you for that info, by the way. I’ve already placed a call asking for written itemized information on how they determined the payment - already have itemized valuation and deductions (only deduction was for the deductible, all the others mentioned were specifically $0) showing the final value to be twice what the check was written for.
This is definitely bullcrap. They owe you the full check for the value of your vehicle that the paperwork indicated. They are the ones who have to pursue recovery from the other insurance company, not you! All it should take is a phone call (or email or letter) to your adjuster quoting the state insurance code, honestly. If that doesn’t work, ring the bad faith bell.
Even if you don’t have UMPD (uninsured motorist property damage) coverage, your insurance company is *absolutely obligated *to pay for your damages under your collision coverage. Worst-case scenario, you are only out your deductible. They just won’t be able to subrogate compensation to Safeway if the kid is an excluded driver. And, not that this concerns you, but in that case they would likely hold the driver or his mother personally responsible, including a small claims judgment and/or garnishment if necessary. And IF mom let him drive the vehicle despite him being excluded on the policy, Safeway would probably drop her unless she reported the car stolen to the police.
To be on the safe side with all this information, though, maybe someone could page Inigo Montoya to opine on your situation? I know he’s an adjuster, although I’m not sure whether or not he’s licensed in Illinois.
This sucks. I don’t know much about insurance, but I do know that you can find a lawyer that is willing to work in your behalf for property damage.
I’ll call my junkyard pitbull tomorrow and ask if he can suggest a lawyer for you. My lawyer took my case when I only wanted about a thousand for property damage.
From what I understand, and insurance is different in different states…unless the Mom is willing to say that her kid stole her car and presses charges…Mom is still responsible for the damage.
Its wonderful that your neighbors were able to get the plate and even better that you were able to take pics of her car. Your lawyer will drool happily to see pics and have a good witness.
I’m so happy that you were asleep and not in the car when it happened.
