seafeye

Your insurance company can put pressure on the cops to at least inspect his car.
Tell them you are going to file a claim and the will be more responsive.
Then call the local cop shop and speak to a supervisor. Squeeky wheel gets the grease. You pay taxes. They work for you.

Epic2112

Hah, I feel like I've got a better shot of this guy's insurance picking up the tab than I do of my own waiving the deductible :P

Still, now that you mention it I'll certainly ask.

Epic2112

Ok, it turns out that the car is registered and insured. I'm insured by Geico, and so is the car that hit me. I don't know if this is good because either way they will pay out, so maybe they will do the right thing, or bad since they can't subrogate to makeup their losses if they pay out to me.

As far as I'm concerned, the fact that the ins. co. has some info about the guy that hit me is a plus, albeit a small one. Anyone have any thought about what else I might do to help my case?

Seattle944

Right now your insurance comp. should be contacting Geico to see what they are going to do about it. I would make sure they are doing that and stay on top of them. Right now, the cops shouldnt be worried about the damage more about the 'hit and run'. They should be trying to find fault and possible issue of a ticket. I think the nsurance company will pay out.

I had a smilar situation when I was 16..note to everyone...carry a throw away camera in your trunk.

968gene

http://www.dmv.ny.gov/foil.htm

Epic2112

Geico insures both me and the other guy, so we'll see what happens.

The cops, unfortunately, aren't going to do much. I can't really blame them, they have no proof that I didn't just pull over and call them about some prior damage.

944Ross

Personally, I think you're golden. I was involved in a crash with a car also insured by my company (Allstate) and so was my son. In both cases the settlement was totally hassle-free because as you say, they know they're going to pay one way or another.

Did the cops make an accident report? If so, get a copy of it and send it to your agent. They surely created some kind of paperwork, whatever it is, get it and file it. At least here, you can also go into a police station and file a report on your own. Get a copy of that.

Epic2112

Yup, I did get a police report. It takes a few days for them to "process" it, but once it's ready I'll be picking it up. The question is wether or not the other party admits that he hit me, and that he is responsible.

Epic2112

Ok, quick update, in case anyone is interested.

I filed a claim on the other guy's insurance policy. I took photos of the damage to my car and submitted them. I wrote an affidavit outlining what happened, signed it, got it notarized, and submitted it. My passenger did the same.

I made an appointment for their adjuster to come look at the damage. When he arrived he was a great guy, around my age, and he was really into the car. I told him that all I want is for my car to be fixed back to the condition it was in, it's just a piece of metal and I'm happy no one was hurt. He said something like "that car is more than just a piece of metal." I told him about the accident and mentioned that I was concerned the other guy is going to say there was no accident. He said that sometimes the trick is in how you say things. He said that he can see the damage is recent, and noted that in the file. He also said that it's very minor (this is correct, it's just a scrape), so he is going to contact the adjuster looking at the other guy's car and explain that if the other guy denies there was an accident it might be because the damage is very slight so he may not have known there was an accident. (He explained that he completely believes my version, but again, just wants to try providing an explanation of why I say there was an accident and the other guy doesn't where neither of us is necessarily lying.) He determined that the damage to the car is around $750, which I think is probably pretty fair.

After that there was a week or so of waiting for news. When I finally get it, the claims examiner tells me that they are denying the claim. Surprise. They say the other guy is denying that there was an accident, and that they couldn't find corresponding damage on his car (remember, the damage is likely to be little more than scraped clear coat, and this is a 10+ year old Lincoln Town Car in NYC- it's beat to ****).

So, there was another week or so of me taking up a ton of their time (and my own) on the phone with them, arguing. Politely, but firmly. They won't release the photos of the other car to me, and basically tell me that I need to have video of the accident in order to prove my claim. Ridiculous.

So yesterday I call someone I know, who happens to be an insurance attorney. He typically deals with huge-dollar items that involve someone getting very hurt, this is pretty below his pay grade, but I ask him for advice. He tells me he'll be happy to write a letter and that it won't be difficult to get this taken care of in my favor, which is good to hear. First, though, he tells me to call them and point out a few new things.

So I call them, let them know that I'd rather just have them do the right thing, but that I have an attorney who will work for free, and that he's not just going to want to get my car fixed, he's also going to want to be compensated for his time, go after punitive damages, etc. etc. I also point out that as soon as an impartial person, like a small claims judge/arbitrator looks at this, it's going to get laughed at because of how clear it is that I'm telling the truth. I remind them that I've been a Geico customer for 10+ years, and pay ~$150/month, and that they are risking losing my business over a $750 claim, which isn't the best business decision. The examiner apologizes, but tells me that they can't do anything, and that every decision has been gone over by the supervisor. I ask if I can speak to the superviser, and she says the superviser isn't in, but that I can request to be called back. I do, and that's that. I never hear back from the supervisor (surprise again).

In the mean time I call another attorney friend who handles DUI claims, and ask him to get me the guy's contact info so I can file in small claims.

Today I get a call from the examiner (I missed the call), and the voicemail message is that they are sending someone out to look at the other guy's car again, but that for now they are standing by their decision, and they will let me know if there is any news. I haven't gotten my attorney involved yet, but at this point I think I'm going to regardless.

I'll keep this updated, hopefully it'll work out to be a template for how not to get pushed around by insurance companies just because they think the claim is too small to warrant someone hiring an attorney...

NCporsche

Let us know if you make it to small claims court.

Spidey944

WOW, at least you are sticking to your guns and continue to persue this. Too many people would have just gave up. Good luck!

EliteThink

Good job keep at it.

CyCloNe!

good luck man that's messed up I bet if he had a different insurance they would have pursued it hardcore.

Chunkerz

Why not just track this guy down and kick his ***? Then steal his credit card or something and use that to pay for the repairs for your car.

szabon

yeah. That always works!

I hope the insurance company does the right thing. I had a semi side swipe me a few years ago and the damage was bad on my car, but his wheel was just scuffed. The semi driver bribed the cop right in front of me, and drove off. I had no police report and there was no proof this guy hit my car. I submitted a claim and had to pay my deductable and get the rest in a check. Luckily I was able to get my insurance company to pay me the money and I took it to a friend of a friend to have it finished up for less.

Needless to say, I would love to see you win this case, since I had no chance with mine. Good luck!