meauxna

Well. ungh. Thank you everyone for your advice; I knew it didn't smell right but had just not heard of it.
I was not grossly injured but I know these things don't always show up in full immediately. The damage to my car will mostly consist of repainting the bumper.

The only detail I'm concerned about after reading this is that I did not go through my own insurer for subrogation. I'm not totally sure why right now. I'll speak with my agent (old contact) in a bit and make some more calls.

I'm really glad I asked; I'm not as paranoid as I thought I was (or you think I should be! ) -- thanks!

englishinfl

Yeah, you did the right thing by asking.

I was rear ended last year, didn't really hurt the car too much, and I didn't have an injury, neither did my passengers.

Progressive are my insurer, and they specifically told me at the time NOT to admit liability or to comment on my physical condition or any injury sustained to the other party's insurance company if they called.
Yes, the other driver's insurance did call, within an hour. They asked me how I felt, and how I was and all I told them was that the accident was their clients fault as the police citation ticket showed, and therefore it was not my problem. I then said that acting on advice from Progressive I was going to end the call here, and asked that they please direct any further phone correspondence to Progressive at the telephone number etc. I hung up. That was it, they didn't try again.
No of course I didn't have an injury, and you do, so it's probably different.

Like everyone else, I'd say what all the "injury specialist lawyers" commercials say on TV, never talk to the other persons insurance company without consulting a lawyer first. If you don't have one, and you have an injury, then get one, and make sure it's one that works for no cost if you don't get any damages paid out by the other persons insurance.

Hope your back and neck isn't too painful, keep taking those meds.

lansbury

If you have a fairly modern car with crumple zones that cushion the impact of a crash there maybe a good bit more damage than is visible. If you haven't already get a repair shop to look and estimate for the damage.♠

Bluegrass Lass

Yep. We got rear-ended last year, while driving our CR-V. It was probably less than 5mph, but enough to give us a bit of whiplash. There wasn't much visible damage, besides some scratches in paint. However, it did $2k worth of damages because the rear door frame was bent and there was a hidden crumple zone (or whatever) behind the bumper that needed to be replaced.

Tarkak9

There is no such thing as stupid questions, just stupid not to ask questions.

Don't automatically deposit any money from any insurance company as it could be regarded as settling... talk to your agent re that too.

Insurance companies hate to pay out money - If you are entitled to a rental from the other company... take it even if you don't need it as it all adds up on the overall payout; ie the longer they wait the more they're paying.

I wasn't rear ended but a few years ago I had to deal with State Farm over my car being written off - they took over 3 months to finally pay out an acceptable amount... silly games they play. They kept asking about my neck and back etc (sustained no real injuries imo but they didn't need to know that) and I kept saying 'lets resolve my car THEN we'll discuss my back'. The worst thing for them is having an open file...especially something which is potentially a huge payout for them. Once they have settled big matters per se, they'll wear the claim down until the individual caves in from tiredness regarding things like the actual car in question.

An adjustor gets bonuses the more money they save the insurance company. Them offering to meet with you is iffy; wouldn't be surprised if someone would be also video taping the (hypothetical) meeting to see if they could dispell any sort of injury and try to rebut and scare you with insurance fraud. (like dropping somethings and asking if you could be so kind to pick it up for them).

Like its been mentioned many times - direct all contact to the lawyers and your insurance company.

MsElui

im so glad I read this. I would have fallen for the trap hook line and sinker without knowing this.

RoadWarriorFromLP

To clarify an earlier point -

-If you don't want/ need compensation for pain and suffering, and there is no dispute over liability, give your insurer a right of subrogation and let them handle it.

-If you do want pain and suffering, then get a lawyer. Just keep in mind that your case has to have a dollar value large enough to make it interesting to a lawyer. If you don't have extensive medical costs, the likelihood of gaining that interest declines.

-If there is a dispute over liability, and you don't want to get pain or suffering, go to your insurer, but be careful. I wouldn't expect your insurer to immediately go to bat for you, you can presume that they will attempt to split the difference and find an excuse to find you 50% at fault so that they can raise your rates. In that case, I would anticipate a need to prove your case to them and to demonstrate enough understanding of the law so that they help you, lest you later be able to accuse them of bad faith.

meauxna

Thank you so much for breaking it down for me. What about this situation?

-Did not go thru my insurer (subrogation) for the vehicle; Progressive called me literally moments after I got home. It seemed straight forward at the time and I've done this in the past, everything went fine. I just want my car fixed.
got a claim number from them and they admitted liability same day verbally and then in their online claim tracking system. Their insured had called the incident in before I even got home.

-Later in the day, pretty much 100% of people around me said I should get to an ER or Urgent Care. I went to Urgent Care. This is after me talking to my own insurer who told me that the personal injury claim would have to go through them and for me to go take care of myself.

-Medical visit cleared me via xray & exam but suggested follow up PT or massage therapy or acupuncture. I haven't done any of that yet because it's a little confusing.

-There isn't enough of anything here to get a lawyer, but I'm having that panicked feeling like no one is going to help me here. I understand the urge to just crawl away and say 'forget it' and go get my own massage. I lost out a few days work, had the one doctor visit (tho it looks like there are a few more in my future--need one to get the PT referral..waste of $) and $26 worth of meds.

Still waiting for my agent to get to the office but can I /should I change course and simply ask my insurer to take over & subrogate? This is actually turning quite stressful for me.

meauxna

Don't we all!
I thought I already added this, but my car's been put into the shop and I do have a rental.

Sorry I lost my reply to you when the power cut out yesterday.. the Leif's guy did explain to me what is under the plastic part of the bumper and what they will check. If you're ever in need of a body shop, I do recommend them. I go way back with Leif's & they do a good job.

RoadWarriorFromLP

Check out the small claims limit in your state. If it's high enough to cover all of your costs and you don't mind slogging it out yourself without a lawyer, then use the small claims system to take care of it. If liability is not debatable, then you will win, the only issue will be the amount of damages.

To prove pain and suffering, you will need to quantify it and put a dollar amount to it. Your lost income will probably be the best benchmark for putting a price tag on it.

If this analogy helps, I had one accident in which I was clearly not at fault and in which I got hurt, with real, quantifiable losses. In that case, I never even contacted my insurer about it, they had no involvement at all and didn't even know about it.

Instead, I handled the case myself with an attorney (who I should point out was a friend of mine and who did a rotten job -- had he not been a friend, I would have sued him for malpractice!)

This is not an easy thing to do, mind you. You need a lawyer to get respect, and even that won't help. The tendency in this climate is for them to fight, fight, fight and stall, stall, stall. You can expect the case to take a year or two, from start to finish.

If you don't have the stomach for it, the budget for it (you won't get paid out straight away because you haven't settled the case), and the amateur legal skills for it, you will have a disadvantage. If the case is small and you have a friend who is an attorney who understands civil litigation, then ask for help, because you're going to want it.

lansbury

Having seen their advertising I was inclined to use them if the need ever arises, so thanks for the recommendation.

Redwing

I was involved in 2 cases where the insurance said they would pay, but kept putting us off. In the end, I told them if they did not send a check within 48 hours, I would file a complaint with the state insurance commissioner. In one instance, the check arrived 2 days later, in the other they were on the doorstep the next morning with the check.

meauxna

Little update: I had a nice chat with my *agent* (who is now an uninvolved-ish person) for some basic info. His suggestion is to tell the woman that our meeting now is premature as I'm still under medical care and we can reschedule for after the new year (btw, this is a good standard excuse for almost *anything* this time of year). He agrees that they want to settle now but doesn't see it quite as adversarial as I got worked up to thinking. They're doing their job and I'm going to do mine. I see this as a good way to keep it professional with her. Oh and he said there's no need to sign the medical record release yet because it's incomplete information--do that in January or when I am 'done'.
Time to call the acupuncturist.

Thanks again for all the input; I hope it's helpful for others too. These decisions always need making when you're least equipped to make them.

RoadWarriorFromLP

If it is clear that you have no liability, if you don't want pain and suffering and if your costs are modest, given the situation, they will want to settle. If you were injured and you don't want substantial damages, they are eager to settle quickly because they would prefer to get you to settle before new medical problems arise.

I would agree that there is no need to settle quickly if your treatment is ongoing -- you should avoid settling too soon for the same reasons that they want you to settle ASAP.

But I still don't see a point in meeting with them, for any reason. Your condition is what it is. The bills are what they are. If they are liable, they owe you some amount of money. They can simply mail you a check. Unless you're just dying to share a latte with an adjuster, you can pass on the meet-and-greet.