Auto Insurance Claims: Dealing with insurance company, parked car hit, honda civic coupe, insurance companys

Question
Hello,

I apologize for the long story, but there are a few twists which will be noted throughout my case.  The case happened in NYC.

My car was recently hit on the front driver’s side while parked in front of my house (parking lane on the street) at midnight three weeks ago.  It was raining and the person that hit my car (hereon referred to as the “driver”) lost control, hit my parked car, spun around and the rear of his vehicle hit my neighbors car.  After hearing two loud noises (the two collisions), my brother looked out the window and saw the driver trying to drive away, but he wasn’t able to due to the damages.

We went outside to approach the driver, and he kept repeating and saying that “there were two Honda’s racing, then cut him off, causing him to lose control”.  We then asked if police was called, then he reluctantly called the police.  We woke our neighbor (the owner of the second vehicle that the driver hit), and then he came out and asked what happened, so the driver told him the same story again.  When asked how fast the driver was going, he claims that he was going under/at speed limit.  It should be noted that there was a 4th vehicle at the scene (note: it was apparently a red Honda Civic coupe), parked in front of my neighbors car (not directly involved in the accident).  The driver of that vehicle was apparently a friend of the driver of the car that hit our car.

Police arrived and said that they will handle the information exchange, so we only took a few pictures.  The police said that the car was not drivable, so they had to tow it away (they didn’t even let us call our insurance company’s roadside assistance).  This was basically the first part of the story of how things happened.  Now to the second part.

We called our insurance company, but since our car didn’t have collision coverage (only liability), they only filed a report, which means we had to go through the driver’s insurance company.   The information from the police only had the insurance broker’s information on it, so we called the broker, but they REFUSED to give us the insurance company’s name.  A plate run reveals that the driver’s plates were NOT VALID.  At this point we had no way of even finding the insurance information of the driver.  Luckily, my insurance company gave me a call, and somehow they managed to get the insurance information from the driver.

We also received a copy of the police report.  However, only at this time did I realize the driver changed his statement saying that a red vehicle STRUCK the left side of his vehicle, causing him to swerve to the right and hit my car.  He also claims his friend (which was actually the driver of the red vehicle mentioned above) was an occupant of his vehicle.  Note that there was NO visible damage to the side of his car.

We then filed a claim with the driver’s insurance company.  They took their time, and almost a week later we get our claim number.  Early last week, the adjuster went to inspect the car at the bodyshop, and declared it a total loss, according to the bodyshop.  I called the insurance company the day after, the representative also told me the car was a total loss, and told me the payout amount, the salvage amount, etc.  I specifically asked the representative if I can safely assume that they have assumed liability, and she said ‘yes, sir, you were a parked vehicle, sir’.  I felt relieved, or so I thought.  She also told me the release letters will be in the mail shortly, and the procedure of getting reimbursed for tow and storage.

Here’s where the twist begins.  The next day I went to the bodyshop to pay for the two and storage fees (about $500 total), and have the car towed away so that the storage fees won’t be accumulating.  In order to get reimbursed, the bodyshop needed to fax the paid receipts to the insurance company.  So the bodyshop called the insurance company for a fax number, and I’d thought I ask them a few questions about the reimbursement.  To my surprise, the representative tells me that they NEVER told me about any determination about liability, and that I ‘misunderstood’.  I told her about the phone conversation, and she said she never said that and that was another representation that I spoke to.  Basically now they are denying everything they said.  She then tells me that some blue forms are in the mail (claimaint’s statements), and I need to send them back so that they can investigate.  Left with no choice, I had to follow along, filled out the forms, and mailed them back.

I called them today, and they said they’re “still investigating”, and “waiting to hear back from their insured”  because an alleged vehicle was involved that hit the driver’s car (which I think does not exist).  So 3 weeks later, $500 in tow and storage, a total loss on the car, no car to driver, they want me to just wait because they are waiting on their insured’s response.  They claim that they can have up to 30 BUSINESS days to make a determination, and additional time (with a notice sent to me) if they needed.  Please also note that so far I still have not spoken directly to the adjuster, they claim that I have to go through their regular customer service (which consists of about 2 people).

My question is, what can I do at this point?  Shouldn’t they be more proactive in getting a statement from their insured instead of just sitting there waiting?  How can I speed things up?

It seems like they’re trying to use a non-existent car (that allegedly hit their insured’s vehicle) to make a case, as well as delaying the claim process.

Also, would I be able to get compensation for the loss of use of my car (I don’t plan on getting a rental car).

Thank you very very much for taking the time to look at this, greatly appreciate it!


Answer
Ken,

Why pay today what you can pay tomorrow? That seems to be most insurance companies mantras these days. Start writing letters to the insurance company telling them they are delaying payment of the claim in bad faith and they need to issue payment in this case. Also, do you have a copy of their valuation report (you can haggle with this number too)

All this being said, you should sue the driver of the car that hit your car and his friend (based upon the allegation that the friend hit him with the red Honda, causing him to then hit your car) if they don't pay within the 30 day time frame.

The laws of each state vary regarding your ability to obtain loss of use on the car. Generally, if the person that his your car has this coverage you can get loss of use (usually about $30 per day) even if you don't rent a car.

Best of Luck.

Marc B. Nussbaum, Esquire