QuestionMy question is this.I rear ended some one back in May/June. We exchanged information. I told him about a week later that i wanted to pay out of pocket and not go through the insurance (due to minimal damage.) He had called me and told me the estimate was 896.00 dollars. I told him to send me a copy of the estimate and i would go to the shop and pay for it. That was the last time i heard from him and never received his estimate. Until last week.
He informed me that he was sorry blah blah.. he's had family issues. I asked him to send me the estimate and he wanted to know how i wanted to go about any extra costs that the garage was going to charge him if after the get under the car they find more damage? I somehow feel that he is taking me for a ride. How would they find "extra damage", if they already gave him an estimate. What do you think? Should i call my insurance Co. and just file a claim? i hate to have my ins. premiun go up.It just sounds weird to me. We were at a stop sign when i hit him so the damage was minimal. I just don't want his 896 $ estimate end up being 2000$. Is he allowed to that?
AnswerHi Lisa,
You better believe he was going to take you for a ride, with the boarding pass costing $896.00 and more to be paid before you were able to get off the ride. Not only will he want more money for the damage, he possibly has spent the last 4 months seeing a Doctor or Chiropractor and will hit you with an Injury Claim.
If an accident is for damage only, no death or injuries, most states demand that you make a report to your insurance company within 10 days and that your insurance company provide proof to the state that you were insured at the time of the accident. For injurys or death, that time frame drops to 24-48 hours. There is also legal wording in your own policy that requires you to make a 'timely' report to your Insurance Company.
Contact your insurance company immediately and make a full report. It is now 4-5 months post-accident date. You will be making a 'delayed' report of the accident. Many states will allow your Insurance company to totally deny the claim because you failed to make a timely report of the accident.
Let's hope such a law doesn't apply in your state.
If he is truly the scam artist he appears to be, he has been receiving medical/Chiropractic treatment and, depending on your state laws, has 1-3 years to hit you with a big lawsuit for injuries that you can't disprove after the fact because he is now recovered and has the Medical bills to prove treatment. If your insurance doesn't deny your claim for a delayed report, they will learn if he is treating and immediately demand an IME (Independent Medical Examination) to verify his injuries. Who knows how much more damage that his car has incurred in the past 4-5 months that he will attempt to blame on you.
You are not going to know anything until your insurance company and gets all the facts.
Until your insurance company agrees to step in and cover this loss, remain Very Very Afraid....If they deny coverage and he has built a scam case, this could easily cost you $25,000.
In the meantime, learn the following mantra and chant it to yourself if you ever become involved in another accident.
NEVER, EVER ADMIT FAULT and NEVER NEVER , EVER EVER OFFER TO PAY OUT OF YOUR OWN POCKET.
I trust my answer has been of help, please write again if I can provide more assistance.
Your feedback to my answer will be appreciated.
Sincerely,
Bennie
San Francisco Bay Area 10-27-07 9:12 PM PST
