I’m not asking for legal advice. I just really want to know if this can actually happen. I had a car accident back in August. My fault. I sideswiped a guy. He said he wasn’t hurt. Just wanted his old truck fixed. My insurance company totaled it, gave him a good chunk of change and we all went our merry way. He has cashed the check and the claim is two days from being closed. Today my agent gets a call from a personal injury attorney who says she is representing him and wants to file a claim. My agent tells her a claim has already been filed and paid out. She seemed surprised but just gathered her info. There was only one claim filed. The guy didn’t ask to separate the claim into collision and personal injury. He just took his money and we thought that was it. Can this actually be done at this point? I would assume the insurance company has something that says if you get your money and you take it its considered full and final. Wouldn’t you?
Your insurance company paid for damage to his truck. Personal injury is a separate matter. He may have signed away his right to claim personal injury when he took the check for the value of the truck, or maybe not. The insurance company should know what they agreed to. I have heard of personal injury claims being pursued after insurance settlements for property damage but as you know anybody can be sued for anything.
Could be a scam. An ambulance chasing lawyer or someone trying to drum up business.
I was thinking he might not have told her that he had already filed and been paid.
Ask your insurance agent, they should know. If they don’t, I’d be looking for a new insurance company.
Yep. They typically demand a release when they settle a claim, but they may have left the personal injury section open. Only they will know. Ultimately, it’s their problem. (assuming the claimed injuries do not exceed your policy limit).
I think it’s most common to leave open the possibility of future injury claims. Injuries don’t always manifest themselves in the time it takes to get a car repaired and paid out.
I had an almost identical thing happen to me several years ago. Six months (a year?) minus one day after the incident, a new claim was filed for injury. I had the same thoughts - the other party said they weren’t injured at the time. But whatever, it wasn’t my problem. The insurance company handled it.