Question
my yamaha
I was hit from behind while i was on my motorcycle.
so i called my insurance company and the one who hit me. I just have liability, my insurance claim was closed after the other party would not move the claim forward, without me being at fault, this other ins. company keeps saying they can not get ahold of their insured driver, as well as the witness...There was no police report, unfortunately. an appraiser came to assess damages, which led to the drivers insurance to say my bike is a total loss. what steps could i do now??
Answer Hello Paul,
A rear-ender is pretty much a no-brainer. The fact that the at fault insurance company is stalling your claim because they "can not get ahold of their insured driver" is completely bogus.
Yes, an insurance company should speak to their driver to get the facts of the accident, but their driver also has a responsibility to cooperate. If he chooses not to speak to them - because he is at fault - that insurance company does not have the option of just ignoring the claim. In a liability claim, it is their responsibility to "protect" their driver. If they just ignore the claim, they are not protecting their insured. Protecting means covering for at fault damages and minimizing the risk of lawsuits.
A police report should always be secured. In the future, make certain you always report all accidents - regardless of fault. However, having said that, you have no contractual obligation with this insurance company and, therefore, you are not required to have a police report. In a situation of questionable liability, it would possibly be to your advantage to have a police report, but, again, a rear-ender speaks for itself.
What should you do now? Take control of the claim! Obviously the at fault driver has liability insurance. His company is required to pay you for your damages. I suggest you send written correspondence to the adjuster and demand that your claim must be paid without further delay, whether they can speak to their driver or not. Failure to speak to their driver is not a valid reason to deny your claim, especially when the liability is obvious.
For more detailed information on how to correspond with the adjuster, I suggest you go to my website, http://SolutionsForYourInsuranceClaim.com and read some of my articles, I believe you will find them informative. I also have an ebook which goes into even greater detail if you are so inclined. Start with the articles. You can learn about negotiation and also about what constitutes a fair claim investigation - and what does not.
One other note - make certain you do your homework on your bike's fair value. Insurance companies will usually set your value somewhere between the dealer price and the trade-in value. But the key is that they also take other factors into consideration. Translated, that means if your car is not in "excellent" condition, subtract value. And if your mileage is high, subtract more.
Beware. The fact that they are delaying your claim suggests they are not only stalling payment, but they are also likely to lowball you, especially since the bike is a total loss. Not to say that this always happens, but you must be prepared.
Hopes this helps. Good luck.
Jane Pytel
http://SolutionsForYourInsuranceClaim.com
http://FloridaAutoInsuranceCentral.com
