Auto Insurance Claims: What do we owe?, payment arrangement, insurance info

Question
Thank you for taking the time to read this-
My fiance was parking in a parking lot when he hit the Suburban in front of him. No one was hurt and he called the police, filed a report and did all the right paper work. He gave the other person his insurance info and we waited to hear what was going to happen. To make a long story short, we found out his insurance lapsed and they will not cover it. Their insurance totaled the vehicle and they gave us a bill to cover the down payment on the car, loss of work, rental car, and the rest of the loan on the car plus tags and registration. They had just bought this car and were upside down in it.
We understand we are at fault but they have not given us any info on the adjustment report or any estimates to have the car fixed. They have only given us a hand written letter of what they owe and a copy of the car loan.
We said we would fix it or buy it for the value it is worth.
They have said their insurance is giving them a settlement. Do we now not owe the insurance company now? I think they are trying to double dip. Have their insurance company give them a settlement and have us pay for the fact that they were upside down. This does not seem right to me.
They have not given us any info and have been very rude? What are we responsible for and who should we pay?
Thank you for your help-

Answer
Hi Jackie,

You need to be very careful not to agree to anything yet.  You do not owe them for the balance of their loan, only the value of the car plus sales tax & title transfer fees. In addition, you may owe for some rental expense but not past the time thet their insurance company issued them a check.

If thier insurance company did pay, it would have included the sales tax, title transfer, etc.. and maybe some rental if they had that coverage on their policy.

You need to contact their insurance company to see if they will provide you with an accounting of what they paid.  You will then work out a payment arrangement with the insurance company for what they paid out.

Again, You do not owe them for the balance of their loan. That is a seperate contract that has nothing to do with this situation.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh