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Ouch!! Accident ME/car

12 years ago

Dropped DH at his cardic walking today, heading for grocery store. Waited for green arrow then went, slow and bam!!Car ran red light and crunch. Now dealing with insurance companies, repairs Yes there was a police report.

Called Onstar, and they took care of everything else. Hope every one else is ok.

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Comments (11)

azzalea
12 years ago
PLEASE call your lawyer. DO NOT try to do your own negociations with the insurance company. It's not worth your time, trouble and aggravation. And be VERY aware of your health for the next few days/weeks.

My DD was rear-ended a few years back--she'd stopped, as required by law, at an intersection to let pedestrians cross and a truck slammed into the back of her car. She was checked out at the ER that night, and there were no problems. Shortly afterwards she developed a herniated disk. The morning after the accident, we turned it over to our lawyer. He handled everything. We didn't have to talk to insurance representatives, nor look at medical bills or anything. And even with his fee, DD came out far ahead of where she would have if she'd dealt with it on her own. It's just NOT worth NOT letting your attorney handle this stuff for you--that's his business.

Hope you're okay! Hang in there, these things happen, and we eventually get through them.
kathleenca
12 years ago
I'm glad you're all right, Marie, though I know all the hassle is upsetting!
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What state do you live in? do you have insurance? More importantly, does the other guy have insurance? Was there a police officer at the scene? Hopefully, your husband got all of the necessary information from the other driver; name, address, license and registration, and name of the insurance carrier. If you have insurance....notify them and then ask them what the next step should be. They will liklely have an adjuster look at your vehicle and generate an estimate of what it will cost to fix. If the cost to fix is greater than the worth of the vehicle, they might find it to be a "total loss" and give a settlement check fotr the value of the vehicle. If the other guy truly ran a red light then the accident is his fault. His insurance company should cover all of your expenses to get the vehicle fixed. It depends on your insurance company if they will pay you first and the subrogate with the other company to get the money back. Otherwise, you will have to deal with the other company to get the money to fix your car. People get into accidents all the time. As long as no one was hurt the rest is just aggravation and nothing to get all worked up about. As far as trading with the repaired damage, well that's part of the game. Don't tell any prospective dealer about the incident, let them find out on their own and ....yes it will affect the value (even if it's repaired perfectly anyone looking to purchase it will use the fact that it has been in an accident to barter for a lower price. I know I would). It stinks but that's the way it is.
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As long as your policy carries liability for injuries to others, property damage for damage to other property and collision for damage to the rental vehicle you should be fine. That is unless your policy excludes rentals. Most policies don't but some companies won't extend to rentals. Comprehensive will cover fire,theft and generally glass, flying objects etc. You will have to pay your deductible and yes, if the accident was your fault you could possible lose a driving discount but that all depends on your state and your insurance company.
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PLEASE listen to me. You HAVE to go to the hospital and get checked out today. You have to document EVERYTHING when it comes to an accident like this. You may have a very serious injury, but if you wait to get it diagnosed, you will be giving up your rights to get your medical bills and future pain paid for by her insurance. And then, after you've been checked over, you need to do 2 more things--be very vigilant of your health/aches over the next weeks. Go immediately to the dr. if you notice anything (some injuries from accidents like this take a little time to show up). And--this morning--call your lawyer, and turn this whole thing over to him. You don't need the hassle of trying to deal with her (and your) insurance companies, AND you'll get far more if a pro does the negociating for you. My dd was rear-ended a few years ago. Went to the hospital that night, had X-rays, checked out okay. Within a few weeks, she developed a herniated disk from the accident. She has a permanent injury now--which will give her problems and pain the rest of her life (she was only 22 at the time). Luckily, we didn't wait to take her to the dr. The best thing we did, though, was to let our lawyer handle everything. He got her car replaced, a rental for her as long as she needed it, her current and future medical bills paid and an award for pain and suffering. You really don't want to have to handle the long and difficult process of getting through those negociations on your own, trust me--it takes years, and if you attempt to do it yourself, you'll almost surely 'give up' and take far less than you deserve.
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While that is usually true it wouldn't work in my situation. I didn't want to negotiate a private sale with a complete stranger. I didn't want to give out my name and address and have strangers come to my home. Plus there's no way I'd get in the car with someone I didn't know for a test drive and I couldn't just hand the keys over and let them drive it away. So for me trading it in at the dealership was the safest - and I was fortunate that this salesman not only wanted to sell a new car but really wanted to purchase mine. I did my research and knew the value of my trade in before visiting the dealers. 3 years ago it just didn't occur to me that such a minor scrape could have cost me thousands of dollars. This could easily have been a real lose of money and value and one which the insurance companies wouldn't reimburse me for. I thought I'd relate this in case it might help someone else.
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glenda_al
12 years ago
Yep, glad you are ok!
lynn_d
12 years ago
Just so you were not hurt! Cars can be fixed a lot easier than you can, Marie, stay safe and be extra kind to yourself for a few days!
Georgysmom
12 years ago
Glad you're okay. Even so, it's such a nuisance and inconvenience.
sleeperblues
12 years ago
Glad you are OK. Good advice from Azzalea.
sherwoodva
12 years ago
Marie, how awful! I am so sorry you were hit. I was once broadsided by a police car (no lights or siren), so I know how it feels. "Listen" to your body for the next few days. Hope you continue to do OK.
bulldinkie
12 years ago
I gave up on Onstar I spent more time,wasted minutes on them getting the right phone number ,she was always wrong then one nite comming home from dialysis I was rearended,not a peep I tried 5 times to call my husbandto tell him I was in an accident she got everyone of numbers wrong till the last call YOURE OUT OF MINUTES..........We were debating if I was gonna renew ..Im done they showed they like to talk but when time comes,the cop was standing there he said boy thats not like they advertise I said no its not stay away.money money..
kris_zone6
12 years ago
Onstar has always been very helpful to me. You can enter the phone numbers and have them stored, then all you do is say the name. Onstar has saved many a life, expecially in the rural areas.
lazypup
12 years ago
DO NOT LISTEN TO YOUR BODY OR WAIT A FEW DAYS TO SEE HOW YOU FEEL.

Get to the emergency room immediately and have them check you out. Soft tissue injuries or internal injuries can take days or even months to manifest, but if you delay even a couple days the insurance companies will fight you tooth and nail later. If you have it looked at now, that officially establishes the onset date for any future claim you may have to file.

Ask any lawyer and they will tell you it is much easier to prove a claim, even if you mediacally check out fine right now.

Many insurance policies even have a clause that says you are not covered if the original accident was not seen by a doctor with an specified period of time, which is typically about 48 to 72hrs.
jannie
12 years ago
I learned the hard way that every car accident should be reported to the police. Even a minor looking dent can cost $500 or more to fix.And I wouldn't be so quick to run to a lawyer. Having filed a police report and an insurance claim should be enough in case your injuries are more serious. Do expect some muscle soreness in the next couple days.

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