Mitsubishi Repair: car towed with e-brake on, brake pads and rotors, wheel drive car

Question
My fwd 1993 Mitsubishi Eclipse was towed with it's emergency brake on by a company hired by my insurance company. The brakes were on for about 10 blocks on the way to the garage. When I got the brakes checked, the front pads had 70% left but the rear pads were worn down to the indicators. The mechanics also recommended machining the rotors. I had a lifetime guarantee brake job about 2 years ago in 2001. I claimed the rear brake job from my insurance company, but they refused to pay saying that my mechanic claimed the e-brake couldn't have caused "even" wear to the rear brakes; it would've been more on one side. I'm dubious. On a front wheel drive car, aren't the front brake pads likely to wear faster than the rear brakes?

Thanks for your help.  

Answer
Polly,
I would see if you could go to the tow company and have them reimburse you for rear brake repairs.  I don't know what your circumstances were for needing your car towed, but the tow truck driver should have known not to tow the car with the parking brake on.

Your mechanic is correct to some extent when he said that your brakes would have worn more on side.  Since your rear wheels will rotate independent of each other, your brakes could wear unevenly if towed with the parking brake on.  Though your front brakes do most of the braking for your car, they are much bigger than rear brakes and typically last longer.  If all your brake pads and rotors were replaced and the same time on the front and rear wheels, they should wear evenly all around.  This also depends on your driving still and various road conditions.

You can go to another mechanic and ask for another opinion about your brakes.  If another mechanic gives a different diagnoses of your brakes, your insurance company may honor your claim.
Good luck!