QuestionI was a passenger in a vehicle accident where my husband was driving down an alley behind our apt. heading south. The alley comes to a T (with garages on either side of us), and he honked his horn for warning and began to turn right to head west. As the front end of the car turned into the "T" portion of the alley to make the turn, to the left was a Ford Ranger with a cab top driving in reverse at an estimated rate of 10-15 mph. My husband did not have enough time to react, and the truck hit the driver's side door smashing the window and side mirror. We called 911, but the operator told us as long as nobody was hurt (which, we all agreed nobody was) and the vehicles are drivable (which in the roughest sense ours was), we could file a police report later, so no cops were called to the seen. We filed a report that evening, and I called my insurance (State Farm) and her insurance (Founders) to file claims. I only have liability insurance on the vehicle (a 97 Chevy Cavalier), and now we are waiting for her insurance company to get a hold of her for a narrative to establish liability. It is our belief that either insurance company is not trying hard enough or the person that hit us is deliberately not answering her phone. We were told that in our state of IL the insurance company has 60 days to investigate and after that only hold an obligation to send us a letter every 60 days to let us know the claim is still open. In the meantime, we are stuck waiting for our car to be fixed because I believe she was over 50% at fault and responsible for the damages. So, my questions are: 1) What can we do to speed things up with her insurance company? 2) What do we do if she is in fact ignoring them, and what is the insurance company's obligation if this is the case? 3) When would be a good time to consult a lawyer? Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated.
Answer
Failure to yield right of way
Other car speeding
Is speed a defense to failure to yield?
Backing up car speeding
Backing up car at fault
Failure to keep a lookout
Last clear chance to avoid accident
Smart buy automobile insurance
Tactic dealing with insurance adjuster
Relationships With the Insurance Injury Claims Adjuster
Dear Megan,
I take it that you have no other insurance available for either your car or any medical coverage for yourselves. Please do yourself a favor and think of some of the advantages to you and your family when you Buy Automobile Insurance http://www.settlementcentral.com/page8008.htm
The MOST IMPORTANT ones to protect are yourselves.
Here are the answers to your questions.
1) What can we do to speed things up with her insurance company?
Contact your state insurance commissioner http://www.settlementcentral.com/links.php and obtain the complaint form. Fill it out, but do NOT file it at this time. Instead, use it as a threat by sending an "advance" or warning copy to the adjuster's supervisor. Not sure how effective that will be since their obligations are modified when there is no response from the insured.
2) What do we do if she is in fact ignoring her own insurance?
Sue her ASAP. That gets their attention in the best way we know how.
3) What is the insurance company's obligation if this is the case?
They cannot and will not negotiate a settlement with you unless and until they get their insured's version of what happened. If she just will not cooperate, then they will give notice that she is in violation of the terms of her policy and they will not defend her if she does not cooperate. If that notice has no effect, you are stuck unless you sue her.
4) When would be a good time to consult a lawyer?
Just as soon as you show some signs of injury and consult a doctor. That could get a contingency lawyer interested in the bodily injury part of your claim. She might then do the property damage part on a reduced fee. If you do not have any injuries, then you are going to have to pay by the hour. Try #1 above, and if that does not bring the desired result, then see an attorney.
The question you did NOT ask is that of liability. YOUR husband has the duty to clear ALL traffic from that left side of the "T" before he pulls out. The fact that she was backing up did NOT all of a sudden make her truck invisible did it? Why didn’t he see it and yield to her, as is his duty?
Well, you answer, she was speeding. NO, speed is never a defense to failure to yield unless it deceives the viewer (i.e. you see the car you are to yield to for a glimpse, then your view is blocked by a hill or some bushes, and because of great, but unanticipated speed, it pops out a lot sooner than one would normally expect.).
So, as you kind of alluded to, your side is largely at fault. But what about her side? It seems to me that she is more negligent for three reasons, and I will give these to you so you can shoot them back at her insurance.
First, anyone backing up on a roadway has the duty to do so without causing damage. One must be in control of the vehicle and exercising due care and caution.
I would tell them that their insured clearly was not driving with due care and caution, OR ELSE SHE COULD HAVE AVOIDED THE ACCIDENT ENTIRELY. Thus, if she were backing up carefully, as a reasonable person would, she would have seen your husband pull out and she would have come to a stop.
So (and this is the fine point I want you to make with the adjuster), although you cannot use her speed as an excuse for not seeing her, YOU CAN AND MUST USE HER SPEED TO SHOW THAT SHE HAD THE "LAST CLEAR CHANCE" TO AVOID THE ACCIDENT, but she could not do so because of her negligence.
So, my vote—for what little it is worth—goes to her having more negligence than your side. Thusly armed with my analysis above, don't take any B.S. about more liability from her adjuster once they decide to contact you.
FINAL TOPIC: Effective communication with insurance claims adjusters. Establish Firm, Professional, and Positive Relationships With the Insurance Injury Claims Adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0059.htm
Always communicate with the adjuster in writing, showing your own analysis of value. It is OK I guess to have one call or so, but no more. Always have your information and ammunition in writing to give to the adjuster.
Let him know that you are FIRM IN YOUR RESOLVE to get what you are demanding (NOT "asking", since that invites a counter-offer, but instead "demanding" as fair and reasonable compensation) by asking him what the options are to resolve the matter fairly should he not agree to a reasonable claim value. In other words, let him know that you will go through with a court filing if need be.
Remember these tips, do your homework, print out your evidence, show resolve to get your fair settlement, and you will DO JUST FINE.
I trust that my extra time here has produced some information that has been of value to you, and thus I would respectfully request that you locate the feedback form on this site and leave some feedback for me.
Best Wishes,
Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
Http://www.SettlementCentral.Com
