I’m driving my daughter to school this morning and I have to take a left. There are two cars in front of me and the first one is taking the same left. People have to take lefts sometimes and they have to wait for cars to clear before they do. I am sitting completly stopped waiting my turn and WHAM!!!
The girl who hit me crumpled the hood of her car and tore up the front bumper of her little RAV. My Expidition (yes I am one of those annoying people who drive giant Expiditions) barely got a scratch on the back bumper. I first check on my daughter and Mr. Baby who are both scared and crying but OK, then get out to check on her. She hasn’t even gotten out of the car yet but seems to be fine. She is mexican and can barely speak English. I tell her I’m going to call my husband and the cops and she seems to understand me. I am on the phone with the Highway Department when she comes to my window saying that she has No license and NO insurance and could she just give me her phone number and we take care of this ourselves. I was already on the phone with them and said I couldn’t do it.
Sooo after a few minutes she asks if her husband can get here before the cops would I say that he was driving? I did kinda feel bad for her and I said I would because once someone did that same thing for me and Mr. V when we were young and stupid. So her husband gets there and we are explaining to the cop what happened and he gives him some crap about how the brakes didn’t work! The cop looks at the line of skid marks on the road and the car is a NEW RAV which has ABS brakes and said it looked like they were working fine. This kinda made me ill because I was doing them a favor and he is trying to weasel out of it. So the cop fills out the paper work and charges the man with the accident and sends us on our way.
Thier insurance company calls later today and asks us where we want to go and have my car repaired and then asks me what happened. I told her my version of it and she says that she had talked to the couple earlier and they said that the car in front of them had come to a sudden stop! That is wrong too because I didn’t come to a sudden stop, I came to a normal stop and had been stopped before she slammed me!!! GRRRR
Ok the point of the whole post is that thier insurance company basically hinted that if I or my children needed to go to the doctor, or if we were sore or anything just let them know and they would be real willing to help us out with the bills and whatever else might come up. Now nobody really got hurt. We were all in seatbelts. My neck and shoulders are just a little sore but I really think it is more from the tenseness of the day than anything else. So should I get some money from them or just leave it alone? What would ya’ll do? Would you at least go to a doctor just to make sure or trust your instincts? Need answers from the teeming millions.
Boy I hope no one takes that subject line the wrong way…
Well, Darby, my advice is to get checked out. And, just because you don’t hurt today, doesn’t mean you won’t hurt tomorrow or the next day.
I am saying this from the viewpoint of having been plowed into by a car who ran a red light, back on June 22. I am sitting here at the 'puter still having back problems, and my neck and left shoulder are only just feeling really healed up. Well, my neck is mostly healed, it has twinges now and then if I move suddenly.
Anyway, my point is you can’t tell for sure if there’s any injury or not. Let the docs decide that. I felt fine until the next evening, a little over 24hrs later. And, it’s now been almost 2 months since, and I’m still not completely myself again.
As to take the money…well, they were not honest with you, they have tried to go back on the deal and hurt you, after you had agreed to let the man take the rap, instead of the actual driver. So, I’d say take it. I’m about ready to negotiate my bodily injury settlement with the insurance company of the lady who hit us (my son was in the accident as well, but he’s just fine, thank God). I am thinking about seeking legal advice first though.
Hope this helps you. Take care, and I hope that no one has any injuries that show up later. Btw, we were both wearing our seat belts too.
And also, get someone to take a look at the truck. You may not be able to see anything, but there could be serious damage to the bumper or the rear structure in general.
My personal experience: my Jeep Cherokee got rear-ended by a tiny pickup truck going less than 5 mph. The front of his truck was basically shredded, but my Jeep’s bumper seemed fine…until I crawled underneath the vehicle to take a look and noticed some things seriously out of line. A local body shop confirmed this–the mounting bracket for the bumper was damaged. The bumper itself had a fair amount of damage on the underside.
(I’m not trying to get you to waste money or anything–it’s just advice from someone who has fallen in love with their vehicle.)
A point of insurance here, if I may. Depending on the state you live in of course, most insurance policies are written to insure the vehicle itself, it usually lists named drivers, but it is the vehicle itself that carries the insurance. In a few states, the driver is insured, and the car is merely listed as the primary vehicle. Watch the wording of your state insurance requirements.
Why I’m mentioning this? Well, even if the woman had no license and was not on the policy, the vehicle is probably insured and thus the insurance co would have to carry the liability of whatever accident the vehicle was at fault in, especially if the driver was a principle family member with access to the vehicle. Ha, they would actually get a lot of grief from the insurance co for not listing the wife, as well as her driving without the license.
I’m really glad you and the kids are alright Darby, but while I can see your point of view about letting the woman off the hook, it is kinda disturbing that she might be a really lousy driver and that’s why no license. I would hate to think that her next accident might resolve itself with a fatality.I certainly wouldn’t want her anywhere near me or my kids while I’m on the road.
Go to a Doctor. Now. I’ve been hit twice, and the second time was a mere tap, and my neck was in severe pain for three weeks. I had a severe case of whiplash, sprained neck, whatever you want to call it. You won’t feel the symptoms until after your body calms down, but when you do, you may not feel like going. I barely recall the week after I got hit the first time.
According to my insurance manual (which I just received yesterday because my insurance is due to be renewed this month), my insurance will only cover licensed drivers. If I let a friend drive the car and that person wrecked it, as long as that person is licensed, then the insurance will cover it just fine. If that person was unlicensed, however, I would be left with a wrecked car and no way to get it repaired because I don’t have that kind of money. It doesn’t even matter if the accident was my friend’s fault or the other driver. If my friend is driving and is unlicensed, the insurance is basically null and void. (the only exception to this rule that I know of is if your car was stolen and the thief had no license. As long as you reported it stolen, then any damage inflicted to it should be covered)
Of course, I have absolutely no idea if all insurance companies have rules like this.
yea, go to the Doctor. that pain you feel is probably whiplash, and you could use some muscle relaxers etc. and get baby checked too since he/she can’t tell you if his neck hurts.
I’ve been in 3 such accidents (all the fault of the other drivers, I’ve never gotten cited - not that it makes me FEEL any better)
insurance laws are different for every state, so if you have questions, call the insurance commission in your state.
You are correct. If an unlicensed driver wrecks your car, you have few options. Fixing the car will usually be at your own expense. This is the “comp” and “collision” coverage on your car, if you have them listed on your policy.
Well, that covers getting your own car fixed or not, but what about the person who got hit, or the fence that got mowed down, or other damager caused by the unlicensed driver.
The liability on that car is still carried by the insurance co. They would have to pay any damage caused by that car. Regardless of who drove, unless you reported the car stolen and had a police report filled out. Liability is liability, and the insurance co. of the vehicle that hit her is liable for any damages that the vehicle causes, regardless of driver.
Insurance is made of coverages and although it boring stuff, it’s actually a good thing to know what the coverages are and what they can and cannot do for you.
Aenea
Well, I did! :p: (“Hey, someone on the SDMB tried anal sex!”)
It was a nice thing you did. It sounds like that couple aren’t too familiar with how insurance companies operate, if they thought they could say it was someone elses fault when they were the ones cited!
I hope this serves as a warning to not fabricate a story concerning a car accident. Darby, you tried to be nice and now they’re trying to bite you like snakes. If you have comprehensive insurance when you get hit, don’t agree to anything funny suggested by the other driver. There is no benefit to you, and insurance fraud is a serious crime.
Of course, I’m not talking about a solo lying job to cover your own ass. That’s much more doable. I also might agree to state something other than the facts if the other driver involved was a close friend or family member.