by moroccogoat » Wed Apr 04, 2012 05:47 am
My new car was rear-ended in a parking lot six months ago. I called 911 at that time but the police didn't show up (it happened on Sun), so I don't have the police report. We exchanged the info and then left. The driver was fully responsible for the accident and I have an independent witness.
I filed a claim with the other party's insurance company, but one month later they denied my claim stating that their client refused to cooperate with them (never picked up phone calls; ignored all letters). Then I filed a new claim with my insurance company. I paid $500 deductible and my insurance company covered the rest ($1500) to fix the car. They also contacted the other party's insurance company and the responsible driver, but it was not successful. My claim adjuster passed it to a subro pro and later he passed it to the collection department/agency.
No results so far. They can't guarantee I will get my money back. I feel like it's gonna take forever and I don't believe the driver will give any responses in the future. Under this situation, should I seek help in small claims court? Or any other effective solutions? I'm really disappointed and desperate...
I filed a claim with the other party's insurance company, but one month later they denied my claim stating that their client refused to cooperate with them (never picked up phone calls; ignored all letters). Then I filed a new claim with my insurance company. I paid $500 deductible and my insurance company covered the rest ($1500) to fix the car. They also contacted the other party's insurance company and the responsible driver, but it was not successful. My claim adjuster passed it to a subro pro and later he passed it to the collection department/agency.
No results so far. They can't guarantee I will get my money back. I feel like it's gonna take forever and I don't believe the driver will give any responses in the future. Under this situation, should I seek help in small claims court? Or any other effective solutions? I'm really disappointed and desperate...
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 05:50 am Post Subject:
BTW, I'm living in TX.
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 01:02 pm Post Subject:
but one month later they denied my claim stating that their client refused to cooperate with them
They denied their insured coverage... kind of two different things.Under this situation, should I seek help in small claims court?
The other carrier needs to confirm the facts of the loss... any way possible. That almost always means speaking to their insured. But in this case you state you have several independent witnesses. I question why the carrier could not bypass their inability to speak to their insured and confirm the facts of the loss with those witnesses. I'd file a complaint with your states Dept of Insurance and point this out (as long as the other carrier had access to those witnesses. If the other carrier won't pay the claim, confirm with your carrier that you be allowed to pursue your deductible amount. If that is okay, file in small claims court for your out of pocket expenses (deductible and court costs). You need to have the other person server... which you may not be able to do at this time as you need to have someone hand the paperwork to him/her. You can try. A police officer can be used but this may cost another $150 or so.
Welcome to my world of boneheads. The other person is such an idiot that he/she can't even pick up the phone in order to obtain the coverage from their carrier that they were paying for. How those people have a brain large enough to live, I don't know. Once they are sued they all of a sudden wake up and start answering questions. You may want to fill out the small claim paperwork and send it certified mail and regular mail to the other person. Put some amount on it, like $5000. This is not official and is not service but it may scare the other person enough into calling their insurance company. Don't send anything but the suit... let them try guessing what is happening.
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 05:33 pm Post Subject:
TCOPE, Thank you very much for your detailed reply!
When I spoke to the claim adjuster from the other party's insurance company, I told him all info about the independent witness that I had (name and phone #). However, in the denial letter, they state that there is not a known independent witness to verify the facts of the loss. I'm wondering if they ever call the witness or make any contact attempts... Do I need to ask permission from my insurance company if I'd file a complaint with Texas Dept of Insurance? Or I can just go ahead...
For the small claims court, I did a little homework online. The county I am living in sets the fee to be charged for services of the Sheriff and Constables. A fee of $65 is charged for service of process in a Small Claims case.
The other driver is really disgusting. When she hit my car, she didn't admit it and said "we do not collide with each other, please move..." that's why I called the police. She knew she was fully responsible. She intentionally refused to pick up the phone or give any responses becuase (I guess) she's worried about potential increases for her insurance premiums.
I think the small claims court may be my only option...
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 05:47 pm Post Subject:
You don't need permission to file a complaint. In the complaint point out the witnesses and that the carriers letter states no witnesses. Also point out that it does not appear the carrier is making a good faith effort to contact their insured as there is no indication anyone went to their insureds home.
The carrier is simply denying the claim as they then keep the premiums and don't pay on the claim.
Id first send the completed suit to the other drive. Many times this will get them to call their carrier. Put some big amount on it so the other person thinks they are getting scammed and calls their carrier.
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 02:05 am Post Subject:
Hi tcope, thanks again for your reply and suggestion!
You mentioned the completed suit - paperwork/form I can find from a small claims court. So I can fill it out and send it to the other driver before I really submit it to the court, correct? Can I assume those forms are freely available in a small claims court without actually filing a claim?
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 08:35 pm Post Subject:
So I can fill it out and send it to the other driver before I really submit it to the court, correct? Can I assume those forms are freely available in a small claims court without actually filing a claim?
Nothing wrong with "scare" tactics. As tcope has said, send the idiot a filled in Small Claims complaint form with you as plaintiff, her as defendant, and include a note (no names, no signatures, just nicely typed/printed and stapled to the paperwork) that says, "Must be filed with the Small Claims Court and filing fees paid within 15 days, or contact your auto insurance carrier at ____________ (insert Claims Dept phone number) to report the collision within 7 days to avoid Small Claims Court action."
And like tcope recommended, place the value of the claim at $5000 or more just to get their attention. The forms are either available online or at the courthouse -- no charge for the filing forms. As I'm thinking about this, include in the note, "Mail form with filing fee to: ________" (insert address of the Court Clerk)
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 09:05 pm Post Subject:
Hi Max, thank you so much for your reply!
I will take action asap following your suggestions. I really appreciate all the help from insurance experts like you and tcope!
Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 05:22 am Post Subject:
Let us know how this turns out. I'd be interested to hear that the idiot paid the filing fee to be sued by you. That would be sweet revenge, indeed . . . because the filing fees would be paid a second time by her to you as part of the judgment. LOL!!
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