Auto Insurance Claims: Are there laws about delay?, choice no-fault

Question
QUESTION: I was struck by an unlicensed driver who did not speak English. He was from Guatemala  The car is insured but the insured party was not in the car at the time. In dealing with the other insurance company, the adjuster says that they have not yet been able to contact the insured and they do not know if the driver had permission to drive the car.  Is there any law that instructs the insurance company that they must make their determination in a certain amount of time?  The reason I am concerned about this is that I want a rental car, and I want it to be paid for by the other insurance company.  In this case, to me justice delayed is justice denied

ANSWER: Nancy, I am sorry for the delay.  Unfortunately, there is probably not a law that applies in this situation.  The other person's insurance company has no contract with you, and they owe you nothing until their policy holder complies with the terms of their policy.  If you tell me the State where this occurred, I can answer decisively, but without the State information, the best I can do is say that 99% of the time, if a person causes an accident, and then does not provide a statement or cooperate in the settlement of the claim, then their insurance company can refuse to protect them.  You will likely need to put pressure on the actual responsible party.  Find the person that caused your damages.  I hope this helps.

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QUESTION: I live in Pennsylvania,and that is where the accident occurred.  The insurance company of the other car might accept the police report as proof of my claim.  Must an insurance accept the police report?

Answer
In PA, the option to purchase a tort policy or a no fault policy exists.  The only other state that is like that is NJ, I think.  This makes answering your question a little more difficult.  I need to know what type of insurance each person has in order to give you the best information.

Nevertheless, your question about the police report can be answered . . .

The insurance company does not have to accept the police report.  Unless the police witnessed the accident, then the police report is primarily hearsay.  The police report could be used to show approximately where and when an accident occurred, but it could not be used to show how the accident occurred.  I hope that makes sense.

Sincerely,
JP