by sta_all » Wed Jul 23, 2008 07:49 pm
After the insurance company had already tried two times to draft my insurance premium from my checking account, they sent me a notice of cancellation. I went in the day after the policy cancelled according to the date of this letter and tried to pay cash for my premium. They refused to take it and said that they were attempting a third draft and that they couldn't take any cash until the draft was returned. I asked them why they were attempting a draft when the policy was already cancelled and they couldn't give me a definite answer. Well in the meantime of waiting for the draft to come back, I was involved in an accident which was the other drivers fault and my car was totaled. Now the insurance company doesn't want to pay my claim because when the draft came back and the policy cancelled. If they would have taken my money to begin with none of this would be a problem as the car would have been covered. Do I have a case if I get an attorney. The driver who hit me that was at fault did not have any insurance.
Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 09:30 pm Post Subject:
This situation is almost identical to a recent post.
Who does not want to pay your claim... your own carrier? Makes sense... your policy was never in-force. But as the other party was responsible, why not simply file the claim under their policy? The only reason I can think of not to do this is if your in MI or a 'No Pay- No Play' state, such as LA.
BTW- Just as a note... you knew your policy was not in-force and were driving anyway... without insurance. I understand that we all do what we need to do but it appears that you also knew the 3rd attempt to collect from your bank would be denied (hence, wanting to pay cash). As it appears the 2 prior attempts to bill your bank as agreed were not possible, you put yourself in a bad situation of driving without valid insurance.
OH...! I just read the last part of your post. The other party did not have insurance. Doesn't it suck when people are driving around and are not financially responsible for any losses they may cause? I think they call that ironic. Yes, you will need to pursue the other party directly. You will probably need to do this through the court system or if there was a police report filed, make sure the other party gets a citation for no proof of insurance and report this to the state. They may suspend the person's license until the person can show they settled your loss.
Sorry OP but I have to laugh a little when someone driving without insurance gets hit by someone without insurance. It's almost poetic justice.
Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 09:55 pm Post Subject:
Did the draft not go thru for insuffient funds? If so they can automatically cancel or non-renew the policy for this...it's EXACTLY the same as writing them a bad check...and depending on the company's underwriting rules, this could certainly be a deal breaker and why they wouldn't let you pay cash, would've been a smarter move to deposit that money into your account before it ran thru again, I don't know how many attempts they must make but apparently it's three in your case...How many days went by between attempts?
Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 04:46 am Post Subject:
Did the draft not go thru for insuffient funds? If so they can automatically cancel or non-renew the policy for this...it's EXACTLY the same as writing them a bad check.
Just the thought that have crossed my mind too....quite likely that the OP hasn't enough fund both the times the insurance company has tried collecting the premium from his account. And non payment of the premium, in most cases, voids a policy.
I guess you only have the option to sue the responsible driver, as he too was without coverage at the time of accident.
Regards,
Juanita
Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 05:25 am Post Subject:
sta_all
This is a bad situation.
After the insurance company had already tried two times to draft my insurance premium from my checking account, they sent me a notice of cancellation. I went in the day after the policy cancelled according to the date of this letter and tried to pay cash for my premium. They refused to take it and said that they were attempting a third draft and that they couldn't take any cash until the draft was returned. I asked them why they were attempting a draft when the policy was already cancelled
I think what happened is that you received a notice informing you of the pending cancellation (so you still had coverage). They would not take your cash because the banking had already been set up (there is a few days lead time required). You should have deposited your funds into your account before the third draft to keep the policy in force. Sorry to give you bad news!
Well in the meantime of waiting for the draft to come back, I was involved in an accident which was the other drivers fault and my car was totaled. Now the insurance company doesn't want to pay my claim because when the draft came back and the policy cancelled
Do you mean that your third draft didn't clear? Was this before or after your accident? If the third draft didn't clear and then you had the accident your policy would be void due to non pay.
You can always try a lawyer. But I would be very surprised if you had a case against the insurance company.
You should go after the other driver for damages.
Good luck with it. I hope you are physically okay and the damage is minor.
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