Is an insurance company responsible for the time I have to t

Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 02:55 pm Post Subject:

Do you have that offer in writing in hand? If it is verbal only, it carries little promise with some companies. Have you ever tried to deposit an insurance settlement check before and have your bank tell you, "the funds really will not be in your account to spend for up to ten business days."

I would try to hinge my settlement and rental expiration when the funds are available to be spent to purchase another car.

I find it amazing that if a settlement offer has to be there absolutely overnite, fed ex shows up on your door step with the offer in a vanilla envelope. But if you need a check to get your car out of the body shop, they make all kinds of excuses why they can not overnite you a check to pay for your repairs.

Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 03:03 pm Post Subject:

Legally they can end the rental at the same time the offer is made. But this is a blanket statement. If you choose not to accept that offer and can show that it was not reasonable/correct, then you should be entitled to additional rental. But the carrier may feel that their initial offer was correct, that they simply made a concession and won't pay any more rental. Ultimately you may need a judge to determine if additional rental is owed. But usually if a carrier is shown that their offer was incorrect they will agree to extend the rental. Probably not very long though.

With all that said, 3 days a typical, but low) amount of days that a carrier will pay for rental after the offer is made. Many times I've seen 4 days offer. I always try to take the person through the weekend as I agree, most people work and its hard for them to get out to look for a vehicle. Of course, there are several hours after work.

Have you asked the adjuster if they would be willing to extend this through the weekend? If they say no, have you spoken to the person's supervisor? Sometimes a little squeak will get you some grease.

Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 03:33 am Post Subject:

Thanks for the replies everyone!
This whole situation is very frustrating. I work hard, pay my bills, take care of my car to keep it nice and one irresponsible kid takes it all a way in a second. Then the insurance company says it doesn't matter that I just spent $700 on new tires, $250 on a new battery, $215 on OnStar upgrade, $100 on new floor mats, $270 on new brakes, and $200 to have the front end aligned,......."that's nomal maintenance on the car and is to be expected",..yeah,..but I already did it,..I shouldn't have to pay for it again!
Then he tells me by the way you only have 3 days to find and purchase a replacement car with money I don't even have yet,..and we are going to give you about $2500 shy of what it will take to actually buy that replacement car, and you'll have to take off work to go find the car!
When I discuss this with an attorney he says,..."you should have let them take you to the hospital in an ambulance,...then we'd have room to play with" REALLY??? How is any of this fair?

Okay I'm done ranting,.....thanks for the tips everyone!

Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 03:41 am Post Subject:

If the tires were bought in the past 6 months they should add some value. After that, they are "used tires"... as would come on any vehicle you buy. $250 on a battery... $200 on a front end alignment? I'm not sure where you are shopping but that is much more then the going rate. $250 Onstar... if it's hardware, they should consider this. If it's for service they should not (I'm betting you can transfer it to another Onstar system).

Have you reviewed the documentation that they used to determine the value of your vehicle? Is it correct?

You can call the adjusters supervisor and see if they will give you a couple more days. It's not unheard of.

Attorneys only get paid when there is an injury. Most don't care about much other then the money. If there is no injury, they won't help you (unless you pay them directly).

Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 03:53 am Post Subject:

The car in question is a Cadillac CTS, the work was done at the dealership. The OnStar was actually upgrading the hardware to digital from analog.
I have yet to see anything in writing, this has all happened over the phone.

Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 08:27 am Post Subject:

I just went through the same thing. I owed 21k on my vehicle 2009 dodge journey sxt. The insurance first offer was 19k I immediately told him I was going to appeal and asked for the evaluation form. Once I received it I saw the discrepancies on the optional features. I typed up an itemized list of the optional features that were not included in his evaluation and sent him for sale listings of my vehicle using autotrader.com. He used Nada for a estimate on my vehicle so I pointed out how Nada has limited optional features and that the value was not truly accurate because of this. It took over 3 hours to settle but I did. $24k! stick with it but be prepared to have your documention don't just talk it it worked for me.
I have found another journey just waiting on the insurance settlement check now. Good luck

Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 03:10 pm Post Subject:

They owe you for the value of your vehicle....period....as to the rental, I'm with T on this most carriers will allow 72 hours or so after an OFFER of settlement...sorry Mike it doesn't have to be in writing....that being said, there is some play, I too extend rental dependent upon the situation. As to the additionals, t (of course :wink: ) is correct about the tires, why when where or how you'd pay 200 bucks for a battery is beyond me...someone took advantage of you. If this is some type of 'special' battery (for a cadi? :? )...take it out, plop a used battery you bought for 20 bucks in it...they'll let you do that...same with the tires if you can't get any added to the acv.

Have you ever tried to deposit an insurance settlement check before and have your bank tell you, "the funds really will not be in your account to spend for up to ten business days."

I would try to hinge my settlement and rental expiration when the funds are available to be spent to purchase another car

Posted: Mon Nov 02, 2009 11:12 am Post Subject:

Hi Jeani, I got your note..

My question is this,...is it fair to expect the insurance company to pay for that day off since I didn't see a doctor? My brother in law attorney keeps telling me I need to go get checked out, then have them pay the medical bills, my time off work and pain and suffering (he was talking $2-3000!). That seems excessive to me,..but I do think I should get my missed pay. Am I wrong here?

Posted: Wed Nov 04, 2009 03:32 pm Post Subject:

Hello all,..thanks so much for the words of wisdom. I went to the doctor,.had the xrays,..no broken bones,.just sprains/strains/contusions, said I should be as good as new in a few more weeks. He did give me medication which is helping quite a bit, but now I'm told I can't work while taking the meds!!
The adjuster who was handling the claim has informed me that he now needs to transfer my claim to another adjuster! I've left messages for the new adjuster but haven't heard back from her. Are these things always so complicated? I was hoping to skip all the drama!
Thanks again for the replies,...hopefully this will all be over soon.

Posted: Thu Nov 05, 2009 12:00 am Post Subject:

Are these things always so complicated?

I was hoping to skip all the drama!

Thanks again for the replies,...hopefully this will all be over soon.