by tslroper » Fri Nov 27, 2009 08:58 am
Ok, in April of this year I bought a 2001 Ford Focus SE used off the lot at the local Ford dealer for cash. The car had 72k miles and was in great shape. Its run great since with 0 issues what-so-ever. on October 13th I was rear-ended in the turn-around lane by a Ford Econoline van doing about 20mph. The guy who hit me had State Farm Insurance. The damage to the vehicle appeared to be all body damage though there was a barely noticeable vibration and grinding noise that could barely be heard coming from the drive-train. Following the accident I drove the vehicle home and parked it. It then took 2 weeks of fighting with State Farm to get a rental. I told them multiple times about the vibration and noise and that I did not feel safe driving the vehicle. Finally they gave in and provided a rental. I drove my vehicle from home to the rental shop and back with only a slight increase in the volume of the grinding. The car then remained parked at my house for another week until State Farm got an adjustor there to look at it. I was not home when he looked at the vehicle but he was notified that when I was rear-ended I was bumped into a curb and the car had a vibration and grinding noise coming from the drive-train. I was told the adjustor did a cursory glance under the vehicle but did not mark anything on the estimate. I then drove the vehicle to the body shop, during which time the vibration and noise continued to get worse. I notified the body shop of the issues it was having. Upon picking up the vehicle from the body shop 2 weeks later I was told there was some kind of power steering issue (the body shop is run by a trusted family friend who does strictly body repairs) but they did not have the ability to diagnose it. I drove the vehicle less than a quarter of a mile down the road before I had to stop. The overdrive indicator light on the dash was flashing on and off repeatedly and there was smoke pouring from the hood. I had to have the vehicle towed home and then notified State Farm the next day. State farm had the vehicle towed to the dealership it was purchased from and then took another week to send the adjustor back out to look at the vehicle. I was told 2 of the transmission solenoids need to be replaced, along with a wheel hub and the rack and pinion and NONE of it is related to the accident and they will not cover repairs. I was left to pay for the tow, the diagnostic and now have a vehicle that is completely undrivable. Granted the car only has a blue book value of approx. $4000 and the body damage alone totaled $2412. I spoke with the State Farm rep. on the phone at length for a while and was told that these were maintenance issues not caused by the accident and likely failed at the same time as the accident by coincidence. I'm a tad frustrated at this point, as i said, the vehicle was in great condition prior to the accident and had zero issues, now its completely undriveable. I didnt even have possesion of the vehicle when it became undriveable! I spoke to an attorney who informed me that its not surprising, State Farm already paid for almost 60% of the value of the vehicle and is trying to deny the additional damage because they made a mistake and should have totaled the vehicle initially. However, he said I dont have many options given that State Farm refuses to total OR repair the vehicle at this point and considers the claim closed.
Sorry, I realize thats a bit long-winded. As you can tell I'm quite frustrated at this point. I went from having a great daily commuter to no vehicle at all and am being told theres nothing they can do even though I wasnt even at fault! I guess my questions are:
1) Can the solenoid, hub and rack & pinion issues be related to the accident? Or did my transmission just miraculously happen to fail at the exact moment i was hit? And yes, I understand the whole "it wasnt like that before" claim is bogus 9 times out of 10, but in this case my car went from being perfectly driveable to completely inoperable.
2) Do you guys agree with the attorney's stand-point that im essentially SOL?
3) Do I have any other options I'm unaware of?
Thanks for your time guys, I appreciate it.
Sorry, I realize thats a bit long-winded. As you can tell I'm quite frustrated at this point. I went from having a great daily commuter to no vehicle at all and am being told theres nothing they can do even though I wasnt even at fault! I guess my questions are:
1) Can the solenoid, hub and rack & pinion issues be related to the accident? Or did my transmission just miraculously happen to fail at the exact moment i was hit? And yes, I understand the whole "it wasnt like that before" claim is bogus 9 times out of 10, but in this case my car went from being perfectly driveable to completely inoperable.
2) Do you guys agree with the attorney's stand-point that im essentially SOL?
3) Do I have any other options I'm unaware of?
Thanks for your time guys, I appreciate it.
Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 12:56 pm Post Subject:
1) Can the solenoid, hub and rack & pinion issues be related to the accident? Or did my transmission just miraculously happen to fail at the exact moment i was hit? And yes, I understand the whole "it wasnt like that before" claim is bogus 9 times out of 10, but in this case my car went from being perfectly driveable to completely inoperable.
Which, hub/bearing is it? you say you were knocked into a curb after impact? Is that reflected in the police report, or minimally in your first statement to state farm? Did they replace the wheel/and/or wheel cover for the tire/wheel(s) that hit the curb? Did your car go up and over the curb or simply hit it?2) Do you guys agree with the attorney's stand-point that im essentially SOL?
Well, maybe..it depends on the answers to my above questions..3) Do I have any other options I'm unaware of?
Do you have collision coverage on this vehicle?Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 01:35 pm Post Subject:
Merely bumped into the curb, and the fubar hub is on the opposite side so likely unrelated to the accident, was just listed in the report given. The only repairs that have been done is the body work on the back end. (bumper, both rear quarter panels, trunk, both tail lights, et cetera) There was no police report done as the damage seemed to be minor at the time. But yes, in my initial statements to State Farm I told them about the noise and vibration. In my initial recorded statement to USAA (my insurance) I did not mention it though because that claim was filed at the time of the accident, thus i had not driven the vehicle yet. Unfortunately, no collision coverage. Being a college student I tried to be a little prudent and figured full coverage was overkill on a $4k car as it was. /sigh I'm kicking myself now. At this point I'm being told (by the mechanic at the dealership) that there is no first or second gear and the car has issues remaining in park. So somewhere between dropping it off at the body shop and now its gone completely fubar.
Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 02:16 pm Post Subject:
Based on the information provided, I highly doubt the transmission problem stems from this collision, and I agree that they are merely coincidental. I rarely come across transmission problems/damage from collisions, even collisions more severe than yours. Your tranny problem is an internal problem which screams non-releated. Just because you think your vehicle is in tip top shape, doesn't mean that problems can't appear in the most puzzling places. When was the last time you had your transmission serviced? People need to start think about their vehicles like light bulbs. You need to maintain them so that they will perform. However, one day something can and will go wrong. I understand your frustrations, believe me. I was in the collision repair business for several years and have had many clients in your situation.
I disagree with what your attorney said. Because at that point, SF has no proof that the problems were related to the accident. If I was the adjuster and you brought these problems to my attention, I would have informed you that because the problems at the moment do not seem to be related, it would be your responsibility to have the problems checked out (which would be an out of pocket expense for you) and if later it was determined to be related, then that would be dealt with at a later time.
Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 07:57 pm Post Subject:
I agree, I can not imagine anyway to relate these..(I was really hoping you smacked a curb hard in the front)...the rack is way up front in your vehicle...a rack damaged by a collision will have well an impact..minimally you would have other susp/steering damage..I've replaced racks from collisions but NEVER without either damage directly to it, or horrific susp/steering damage...sorry
Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 09:41 pm Post Subject:
hmmm ok. Kind of disappointing really but i appreciate it. The transmission was last serviced about 1500 miles prior to the collision and like i said the car was very well maintained. The lawyer also wants to go after SF for personal injury. I had a prior medical condition that was worsened by the accident however i already had surgery scheduled so the prognosis didnt change at all. Not sure thats really worth it nor ethical, though I could be wrong. I didnt notify SF about the injury because it was something that i already had. Keep in mind, this is my first accident.
Posted: Sat Nov 28, 2009 12:29 am Post Subject:
If I were you, I would take it back to where you had it serviced and see what they say (not get second opinion, but what might have happened). As far as your prior injury, that is going to be tough as I am sure your attorney has already advised or should have. Good luck.
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