Rear-ended this morning - need advice on handling

Socks

So I was rear-ended on the way into work this morning. Completely not my fault, in my eyes it's pretty open and shut. Was sitting at a stop and just got nailed.

I've never been in an accident before, so would love any advice you guys might have. While we were trading info, the guy seemed like an OK guy, but said that his insurance info was in his other car. He also offered to pay out of pocket so that his rates wouldn't go up.

I went and got an estimate - and keep in mind, it's a high level estimate. No damage to the frame, but the sheet metal was dinged through a bit and damge to the left and center mufflers is almost certain, while we can't tell right now on the right muffler. Estimate came in at around $1000 for parts, and when you add in labor comes out to about $2500. Of course the potential that this ends up costing more is there, especially if the right muffler needs replacing.

Now, I just spoke with the guy and he still says he wants to pay out of pocket to protect his (and my) rates. This seems pretty fishy to me - am I overreacting? At maybe $500 - $1000 I can understand, but $2500 seems worth it for him to call in his insurance comapny. I haven't called my insurance company yet, should I get on the horn with them ASAP?

Freakout · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:17 pm Post subject:

If he even has insurance.

Socks · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:23 pm Post subject:

So I just got a VM from the guy.

Turns out he has 2 cars and as he claims, the insurance papers were in the other car. Thing is, he says the coverage for the car he hit me with apparently has lapsed. So basically, he was driving an uninsured car.

I have uninsured motorist insurance, so I'm not too worried about me from an insurance standpoint. He says he wants to pay me directly but I don't see a way to do this cleanly without exposing myself to undue risk of him cheating me somehow. I hate that this might do him some damage, but I'm thinking I gotta go to the insurance company.

frijolero01 · Franchise Player Joined: 10 May 2005 Posts: 13324

id say let the insurance handle it. you don't know this guy and you can't really trust him. Do your rates go up even if it wasnt your fault?
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TACH · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:27 pm Post subject:

Unless the guy can give you a certified check today for the full amount,... I would get a police report and call the insurance company....

The_Lakers_Show · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:34 pm Post subject:

Your rates shouldnt go up if its not your fault. I'd call your insurance company, its gonna suck for him A LOT, but too bad. You dont know him anyways so no big deal.
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Omar Little · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:49 pm Post subject:

hig · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 11:00 pm Post subject:

Ziggy · Franchise Player Joined: 10 Feb 2005 Posts: 12725

I know someone that was in your position. He got the guy that hit him to sign a hand-written contract saying that the accident was his fault and that he did not suffer any injuries (so he can't come back and try to sue later). Of course, my friend had his own reasons for going this rout, which I can't tell (

).

But in your case, the only reason you'd be doing it this way is to do this guy a favor. There's nothing in it for you. I agree with everyone else, you should call your insurance company.

angrypuppy · Retired Number Joined: 13 Apr 2001 Posts: 32768

Mongo · Star Player Joined: 19 Jun 2001 Posts: 2585

You must file a police report, and you must file a claim with your insurance company in order to protect yourself. You can do the guy a favor by not reporting it but you are taking on all the risks.

What if you get it fixed but the guy thinks you tried to milk him? What if you have more damage to the car that is undetected? What if he's slow to pay or doesn't pay the full amount.

This is why you have insurance and why he's suppossed to have it as well.

I had a similar situation where I was rear-ended and the guy mentioned he wanted to pay out of pocket. Once I got home I realized that doing so put all of the risk on me as well as all of the hassle of getting it fixed. So, I reported it to my insurace company and they took care of everything, including a rental car to use while it was in the shop.

LarryCoon · Site Staff Joined: 11 Aug 2002 Posts: 11266

Since your options are 1) See if he will pay up; and 2) File a claim with your insurance, and option 2 is available even if option 1 fails, you don't really have anything to lose by seeing if he'll pay up. In his case, the incentive is there to pay you, since he was driving illegally.

But the point is also valid that there's nothing in this for you. In fact, you're required to report any accident with damage over a certain value (I think it's $500), so you're technically breaking the law by doing what he wants. Plus you're letting an uninsured driver get away with it, in some respects.

So if you want to be a nice guy and not report him, you can at least impose terms on him: 1) Immediately get a written statement from him stating the accident was 100% his fault, he's not injured in any way, he agrees to pay for all damages in lieu of it being reported to your insurance, and the procedure you will follow and the time limits. 2) Get an estimate from a mechanic YOU trust. 3) Get cash or a cashier's check immediately.

If he doesn't like those terms, then he should pick someone else to hit without insurance next time.

Also -- while being hit by someone else, with their insurance picking up the tab shouldn't cause your rates to go up, I'm not sure if this also applies to your using your uninsured motorist coverage to pay for damages. You might want to check, in an innocuous way.

MIMLaker · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 9:33 am Post subject:

Just off the top of my head, and this does NOT constitute legal advice in any way, and should NOT be treated as such:

(1) Make sure you have all the guy's personal info.

(2) Make sure you have the guy's insurance info.

(3) Start monitoring yourself and where and when you start feeling pain, dizziness, discomfort, etc.

(4) If you need to see a doctor for any reason today, go. If you don't, then don't, but make sure you go when you do. Don't put it off if you can avoid it.

(5) Call your insurance company if you haven't already. Follow their instructions.

(6) Call the cops to file a police report, if you haven't already. Better to call and be wrong than to not call and be wrong and have someone say you were hiding something.

(7) Keep a log/ journal of everyone you officially talk to and when re: the accident. (i.e. insurance co., mechanic, cops, other driver, etc.)

I'm not so sure about demanding a letter of fault from the guy^^^, since a lot of admissions at or shortly after an accident scene are inadmissible as evidence at a trial. Plus, if it IS clearly over $500.00 in damage, you have an obligation to report it, so threatening him over something you have a civic duty to do anyway is possibly illegal.

MIM
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LVLAKERFAN · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 10:44 am Post subject:

Your not in Vegas are you. My cousin was borrowoing my car the other day and a guy swerved in front of him and my cousin totalled my car. The cop told my cousin it was no fault on my cousin, but he thinks he said the same thing to the other guy. The other guy had a suspended license, but had insurance. HIs insurance called me and said that they just spoke with the other driver and he gave a different story than my cousin. THey said as of right now they are not claiming liability, but they are still waiting to see the police report. Anybody know how long these processes take and if there are any other actions I should take.
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Socks · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 10:49 am Post subject:

Thanks everyone for the advice.

I felt like an ass about it, but I decided to go the insurance route. Just too much exposure for me to do anything else. I thought about asking the guy to cut me a certified check by this morning for about $3500 just to cover any additional expenses that might come up, but decided if there was any undiscovered damage or medical issues in the future, this wouldn't be enough to cover me.

Fortunately for my conscience, the guy managed to get his insurance invoked retroactively, so he's covered. I called my insurance company this morning and got the ball rolling. Gonna call the cops, etc. next. I'm sure this will be a really fun process

.

Thanks again for all the words of advice!

LarryCoon · Site Staff Joined: 11 Aug 2002 Posts: 11266

Good -- going the official route is definitely the most prudent thing to do.

JasonLG was right -- people around here DO seem to be getting in more accidents this holiday season. Jason mentioned seven people that he knew. One person I know got hit in a head-on collusion by a drunk driver, with his family in the car. Now you. Makes me want to walk.

Socks · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 11:14 am Post subject:

^^^ No kidding. Makes me thankful my accident was pretty minor and my car is a tank. Pretty horrible about the head on collision and it just the drunk driver part just pisses me off. Hope people from that accident are relatively unharmed. But I'm with you - walking or taking the train seems more and more attractive all the time.

angrypuppy · Retired Number Joined: 13 Apr 2001 Posts: 32768

You made the right choice. When I didn't make a report, I had leverage. All I had to do was call his company, and he would have been fired as a truck driver. I may be nice, but I forgot to mention that I left myself an out... so I could turn vicious.

postandpivot · Retired Number Joined: 16 Sep 2003 Posts: 36822

NoMoreGame7s · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 3:52 pm Post subject:

frijolero01 · Franchise Player Joined: 10 May 2005 Posts: 13324

women drivers suck
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postandpivot · Retired Number Joined: 16 Sep 2003 Posts: 36822

999 · Franchise Player Joined: 19 Oct 2006 Posts: 20267

did you get a police report