QuestionA month ago I was rearended.pushed into the car in front of me.The driver that hit me didnt stop but state police caught her and cited her for Hit And Run and reckless driving. I contacted my insurance,and her insurance.I told my insurance I didnt want to file a claim wih them just report the accident. Her insurance is stil telling me they are not excepting liability until they are through investigating.
In the meantime my insurance has sent me a check that is about 900.00 less than my estimates.500.00 is my deductible.
Do i have to except their check? The check is made out to me and my finance company.I havent been told I needed to contact them.Was I suppose to do that? And how much time does the other insurance have to make their decision if they are going to except liability for this? Thanks so much for any help.
AnswerYou failed to tell me what State you are in and who the at-fault's insurance company is as well as your won carrier...
You further failed to advised the year, make and model of your car.
You NEED to determine the basis for your carrier's payment... ask them for that information and ask them to provide you with a copy of any appraisals that they had done.
Did the car that you got pushed into stop and id themselves and did they confirm your version of the accident and more importantly the order of impacts? Reason I raise that is that you might find that the at-fault's carrier will try to only pay for your rear damage and NOT your front damage claimimg that you struck the lead car BEFORE you were read-ended... you need to find out.
If your car is older then you may have a Total Loss situation where the cost to repair the vehicle exceeds the Actual Cash Value (ACV) of the car.. some people refer to it as the "book value". Reason I raise this issue is because of your advising that payment was made to you and a finance company.. that is highly unusual unless the car is a Total Loss and there is a lender involved... find out....
The finance company is named on the check because they are probably listed on your policy as an "Additional Insured" for and up to their equity interest in the car....
You do NOT have to accept your carrier's offer... you can opt to proceed against the at-fault party and his/her carrier.
Your State probably has a Fair Claim Practices Act (or something similar) on the books and that law establishes guide-lines (time-frames, etc) that carriers have to follow. Ask your State Ins Dept for a copy... That should tell you how much time the at-fault's carrier has before pulling the trigger/making a liability decision. The hit & run nature of this accident make the eventual decisio a near no-brainer unless I am missing something (stolen vehicle, non-permissive use, etc).
Get you insurance agent involved and have him/her earn their commission.
If you feel that the at-fault carrier is jerking you around you can file a complaint with the State Ins Dept... carriers hate that and it normally get them "off their dime" and digging deeper into their pocket.
If you do proceed under your own COLLISION coverage and through your own carrier (subject to your deductible)... your carrier would then go after the at-fault carrier (the process is called Subrogation) in an effort to recover their payment and your deductible.. this process may take from a few weeks to several months...
You are usually better off collecting from the at-fault's carrier in a situation such as this UNLESS they jerk your around, etc...
Try and force the issue by threatening to file a complaint with the State Insurnace Dept.. you might also suggest to the at-fault carrier that they are not dealing with you in GOOD FAITH.... that might be the final straw needed to get you what you need or at least a lot closer than you presently are.
Neither your own carrier or the at-fault carrier have to pay your estimate/appraisal if they have a reputatble shop that they can refer you to and who will do the necessary repairs for what the carrier is willing to pay and then quarantee the work for as long as you have the car.. if the car is a Total Loss then your legal damages are limited/capped at the car's Actual Cash Value (ACV).
Hope and trust that the above answers your question(s) and provides some direction..
Feel free to get back to me with any further issues/questions relative to this matter.
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Thanks
