Auto Insurance Claims: Unfair Conclusion to a, auto accident fault

Question
QUESTION: A year ago I got in a car accident leaving the parkinglot of my workplace. I was entering the next building's parking lot when an SUV turned to enter the parking lot I was exiting, and hit the left corner of my Dodge Neon. Her SUV left passenger door was scraped at the bottom. I had no insurance so I just exchanged the standard info like license# and she provided hers and insurance info. When I arrived home and made the claim with her insurance co. I stated it was her fault since my car was still. She had made a small turn towards my left side causing damage to my vehicle. Since there were no witnesses it was basically my word against hers. Since she was the only one with insurance, her insurance co. had made an "investigation" which they never sent someone to see my damaged car. They basically evaluated her vehicle and came to the conclusion that it was my fault. She claim i wasn't looking and she honked repeatedly which was a lie. They informed me i had to pay for her damages, which i think is unfair since a thorough investigation wasn't made.  Her vehicle was fixed and mine is still damaged. It turns out that her insurance company is now threatning to sue me after a year that this accident happened if i don't pay her damages. My question is, is there anything i can do to avoid this? I refuse to pay for an accident that was her fault. It is unfair that they take her word against mine because since i was 18 at the time, they claimed i didn't hear the honking due to my "loud,blaring music" which is a lie, my stereo didn't even worked.  I just want someone to hear my side of the story and actually investigate it, and not just assume that I'm lying because I'm younger.


Please advice, I'm very stressed about this, since I rather have them never pay my damages but to just leave me alone!!!. Thank you so much!!!!!!

ANSWER: Hello Maddy,

I don't think it's a question of your word against hers or your age or if your music was loud.

It's a question of what parts are damaged on each car. For the SUV to have right side door damage and you to have left front damage, it would appear that you ran into her. If your car was sitting still, then the SUV would have to have skidded sideways into your car. Does that make sense? And to have skidded, that would have to have had major damage to both vehicles. Was there snow and ice on the road or was it dry. If the road was slippery, then you might have a better argument.

Now my observations are only from common sense, but I think if you hired an "accident reconstruction expert", they would say the same. Call a local independent adjusters office like GAB or Crawford and ask who they use for "accident reconstruction". Call the reconstructor and see if he will just give you his opinion free of charge on the phone. If he can help you with your situation, then it might be worth paying him $75.00 for a short report.

Adjusters make conclusions based on the most common occurrences in accidents. For example, in a "rear ender", it is always assumed that the car in the back was at fault. But if you can prove that the other car backed into you (like in a parking lot), then you are not at fault.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Is auto insurance cases always this unfair, if only there were any witness, but we both had none.  If i get sued what would be my outcome, like let's say what would happen since we have no police report or witness to back either of the stories? We both left the scene without calling the cops. If i refuse to pay what would be my outcome, that is if i was found guilty? I'm really scared since it was my first car accident, i don't know who to turn to. I had no insurance, but i got it the day after the accident. It's funny because it is the same insurance company that i have that is threatning to sue.

Thank you so much for everything!!!

Answer
If you get sued, the burden of proof is on the person suing you. If the person suing you has pictures showing where the vehicles were damaged, then you might lose. If the damage was under the small claims court limit for your state, then you can represent yourself and tell your story. Lawyers are not allowed in small claims court, so you don't have to worry about lawyers. Don't make the mistake of not showing up for court. If you don't appear, the judge will automatically rule against you. Small claims court can be kind of fun since you get to hear everyone elses problems.

If the suv driver wins in court, then she has to try to collect the judgment. They can "garnish" (take money from) your bank account or your paycheck through your employer. They can also hire a collection agent to harass you. And a judgment will also show up on your credit report.

Having insurance with the same company that is trying to sue you will make it easier for them to collect their money, if you lose in court. They will already have a lot of info on you.

You may want to put an el cheapo disposable camera in your car, so if it happens again, you can get pictures. And its also a good to have a note pad too so you can both write out a description of the accident together, and sign it there (many people would do it, some not. But its worth a try).

Good luck.