Legal Advice Needed

[ladysprite]

Remember last month, when I was rear-ended by a semi?

It's turned into a big fat hairy mess.

In specific, there's over $3000 of damage to my car.  And the insurance company for the driver who hit me is refusing to cover any of it, because apparently the truck that hit me wasn't supposed to be on the road that day.

Their statement is that, according to company records, that truck was supposed to be parked in the Cape all day.  And the guy who was driving it didn't work for the company who leased it.  So the insurance company's claim is that, since that truck was supposedly in a parking lot at the other end of the state, it must not have hit me, and they're not responsible for paying anything.  They're claiming that the license plate on the accident report was a typo.

Unfortunately, while I took pictures of *my* car after the accident, I didn't take a picture of the truck that hit me.  And while I can look up the guy who hit me, I doubt he's going to be very helpful and supportive, and come up and vouch for the fact that, yes, he rear-ended two cars on the highway in a truck that wasn't his that he wasn't legally driving.

So.... any advice?  How can I go about proving that yes, this is the truck that hit me?  I really don't care who pays for the repairs, but I can't exactly afford it out of pocket right now.  And I'm guessing this is going to complicate any payment for the medical bills, given that I wound up at Urgent Care after the accident.  What are my recourses in a situation like this?

Please, and thank you, and all of that....

Comments

[laurion]

Does the license plate number on the report belong to a truck matching the description? i.e., is it likely there actually is a mistake or are they just being.... recalcitrant?

What does your insurance company say? Normally they'd be the ones on the hook for paying for the repairs and then trying to get payment from the other guy's insurance. Although that may depend on your deductible and coverage selections.

Beyond that I don't know. Claims court?

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

My guess is that this is where you simply need a lawyer - at least to write a letter that spells out the rights you're asserting and makes all the correct threats, without any accidental mis-statements that might muck things up later. I suspect they're just making a ploy - they're hoping you'll say or do the wrong thing or decide it's not worth the bother.

You might also want to talk to your state's attorney general office and inquire about what one does when hit by a truck not being operated within legal guidelines. The state or federal DOT might get involved - that might cause an investigation that might remove the need for you to prove anything about where the truck was.

[grum]

I don't suppose there was a police report that recorded the truck's identifying info?

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

Working on getting a copy of the police report, though the insurance company is so far still claiming that the officer on the scene got the truck's license plate wrong.

(And that the error just somehow managed to coincidentally match the plate of a truck of the same make and model, owned by the same company....)

[warinbear.livejournal.com]

My first thought was 'with that much damage, there should have been a police report,' which you confirmed. I don't know much about such reports in general or your state's procedures in particular, but I'd expect there to be more information identifying the vehicles involved than just the license plates, such as the VINs. On a related note, quite aside from the fact that the insurance company is claiming that an official state document is wrong -- something not likely to endear them to the officials who create and maintain such documents -- there's the fact that a lot of companies that operate semis keep real-time GPS records of their actual location, and there's a big difference between a) 'our records say it should have been over there' and b) 'our records say it was over there.'

My second thought was 'what has your insurance company said about the matter?' I haven't had to file a claim since moving, but every State Farm office I've dealt with in the past has been willing to go to bat for me in a dispute. I don't think it ever had anything to do with what kind of insurance I had (aside from the carrier, obviously), although I could be wrong. IMO, it's more likely to be a question of how long I have stayed with the same carrier.

I'm pleased to see that I'm not the only person who had these thoughts. I wish for you success in your struggle.

<sits back down, muttering unpleasantly about a company that seems to be defending inappropriate behavior in order to save a buck>

[gmkieran.livejournal.com]

Don't have any advice to offer that hasn't already been given, so *hugs* and I hope things work out for you quickly!

[ricevermicelli.livejournal.com]

Where is your insurance company in all this? What do they say?

[scifantasy.livejournal.com]

That's my reaction, yeah...this should be between your insurance and theirs.

[ricevermicelli.livejournal.com]

It is possible that what the opposing insurance company is trying to say is "this is not our problem." If they, just to theorize, sold this insurance policy with limitations - Insurance Company A provides insurance on company vehicles only when driven by authorized operators, and only when certain rules are adhered to (like rig/driver has to be off the road for a certain amount of time between shifts). I have no idea if that arrangement would even be legal. But it's possible that what the insurance company is saying is that they do not provide insurance for this event - unless, perhaps, this was a different truck, ma'am?

If that's the case, your insurance company is probably going to need to file suit against the trucking company. But they should still cover your loss in the meantime, no?

You really need your insurance company's involvement.

[scifantasy.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

What they're saying is "this truck couldn't have hit you, since it wasn't on the road that day, and you can't prove otherwise. Since the truck we insure didn't hit you, we are not paying." It's disingenuous in the extreme; I just need to figure out how to track down proof that the truck did, in fact, hit me.

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

Sadly, my insurance company's statement was "You don't have Collision Insurance, and this was a collision, so we have no further responsibility or involvement here. Have a nice day."

[scifantasy.livejournal.com]

...ah. Well.

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

Collision insurance is freaking expensive.

And given that in 23 years of driving I have never (yet, fingers crossed, knock wood, and all that) been at fault in a car accident, I figured it was an expense we could do without.

*sigh*

[vettecat.livejournal.com]

I also would say talk to your insurance company. Battle with forms is their department, not yours.

Do you have the name of the police officer who wrote the report? He should be able to back you up with a truck description.

[deguspice.livejournal.com]

I don't think they really believe their "it's a typo" defense will stand up. I suspect they decided to give it a try it to see if you'll go away if they throw up a barrier.

[pujaemuss.livejournal.com]

I agree. If it's on the police report, then they've got to categorically prove that an error's been made, not the other way around.

PJW

[mermaidlady]

There was a second car that got hit. Can you join forces with that person? At the very least a statement from them that no, really, it was that truck.

[pixel.livejournal.com]

Lots of useful advice already here, but here is my 2 cents anyway.

-Did you take your pictures at the scene? If so double check that the truck isn't in the back of one, or reflected in the car or some such. Even if the license plate isn't visible, if their logo on the side, or truck number or anything is visible they are on the hook no matter which of their trucks it is.
-Contact the police department that wrote the police report and state the company is claiming the office mis-wrote the license plate, see if someone there can help. The officer may have his original notes, or they may be able to pull a dash-cam tape that shows the truck or something.(this may have to wait til you get a copy of the police report)
-If you are *very* lucky, the police report may be the sort where the officer also copies the VIN of the truck. If this is the case, demand to know the VIN of the truck that was parked. If it matches the VIN on the police report, there is no way the office made two typos(VIN & plate) that both happen to perfectly match their truck.
-Demand proof that the truck was parked on the cape, such as security camera footage, etc. You have a police report written by an officer of the law that states the truck was in the accident, therefore they need to *prove* the truck was in that lot. Company records only prove that is where the truck was *supposed* to be, not where it was. Given the driver wasn't on their lease, the company may be using it for off the books jobs.
-Related, if they have company records, they should show daily mileage, demand a copy of the records they are referring to and see if there is a jump in mileage on the day it was supposedly "parked".
-Also related, demand photos of the truck to prove there is no damage to it, and maintenance records to prove no repairs were done after the accident.
-Another, was the semi towed? If so the police report may mention who towed it and that gives you another angle. Contact the tow company & see if they will send you a copy of the invoice. That wold be the ultimate in damning proof the truck was there.
-Make it clear that a truck insured under their policy by their company with a license plate the same or similar to this one hit you according to the police report, and that unless they are claiming the office got the plate number & and the policy number wrong in such a way that exactly matches their truck, that *some* truck in their fleet hit your car, and that therefore they are on the hook regardless of which truck it was.

If you haven't been already, start documenting every conversation with them. Get the person's name and phone number. Anything they say about why they aren't paying, ask them to put it in an email and send it to you. Get a paper trail going.
Sadly, this sounds like something that is likely to end up with your needing a lawyer. It is a fairly open and shut case once it goes to court given their license plate and policy info is on the police report, but you need a lawyer to make sure it goes to court properly if it gets that far.

You can also file a complaint with the insurance commissioner. I don't know if this is something they have jurisdiction over, but they can tell you that better than I.

If you can get more documentation out of them, I *might* be able to help more. I work with insurance claims professionally, but my area is the damage itself, and I have only tangential experience with liability(which is what this issue is).