QuestionI was taking my 6yo daughter to school. We are at a complete stop when we
were hit from behind... a few seconds later we were hit again. We are in an
SUV, the car that hit us was a Corolla, the car that hit her was a Cadillac.
The Cadillac driver claims his foot slipped off the brake which then hit the
Corolla then us. I have no idea why we were hit twice.
Damage to my SUV was minimal, some scratches and nicks on my trailer
hitch and rear bumper. I have received a $600 check for the damages.
Four days after the accident, I started to feel neck and upper shoulder area
pain with the occasional headache. My daughter and I did see our doctor the
day of the accident. My daughter has not showed any discomfort or pain from
the accident... I have been prescibed with pain killers and muscle relaxers...
they have helped most days.
The Cadillac driver has been found at fault. The Cadillac driver and I are with
the same insurance company (AAA), the Corolla was Farmers.
My question is... What should I do? See a chiropractor? Should I be worried
since the Cadillac driver and I have the same insurance company? They tell
me to do what I feel is necessary to recover and that since the Cadillac
driver and I have AAA, they will settle for pain and suffering, medical, and
time off work.
I have missed 1 day of work (day of accident, a Friday 5 weeks ago) but,
have missed a couple activities that I enjoy in my leisure, my medical bills
consists of copays for 2 doctors visits and for prescriptions.
Thank you for your time,
John
AnswerHi John,
It is normal that you felt two impacts. Since you were hit first by the Corolla, that impact would cause the Corolla to bounce backwards and then when it was hit by the Cadillac, come forward and hit you again.
I find it unusual that 100% fault has been placed against the driver of the Cadillac. The Corolla was at fault for the first impact and the Cadillac at fault for the second impact. A division of liability between the two cars is normally made in situations like this.
This is not the first case when a bumper hitch has saved a car from more serious damage. The bumper and rear sheet metal is designed to crumple inward and absorb the impact, but the bumper hitch is attached to the frame and designed to be stable for safe towing reasons.
Once your SUV is repaired, immediately do a trailer hook-up to verify that the hitch was properly repaired. I've seen many situations when the owner didn't do a hook-up for 6 months and then learned that there was damage and misalignment to the hitch, and had that claim denied due to the time factor that it could have been damaged in many ways after the accident.
The fact that both you and the Cadillac driver both carry AAA is not a relevant issue, except that AAA will probably hire an independent adjuster to deal with the claim to avoid any charge of bias by either driver.
You should have your Doctor write a prescription for Physical Therapy to help you recover from your injury. Treating with a Chiropractor will reduce the value of your claim by at least 50%.
You mentioned that you were only making co-pays for your medical treatment, which indicates that you are using your health insurance coverage. A large percentage of health insurance policies have a clause that requires they be reimbursed when you recover payment from a 3rd party. You need to learn if your policy has such a clause.
I hope that you have found this information helpful. Please write again if you feel that I can provide more assistance.
Sincerely,
Bennie
San Francisco Bay Area
