Uninsured car wreck

[Oregonhunter5]

im gonna keep this short and sweet, and then I will expand later on, when I have the time. 17 year old destroyed my car, with wife driving it, and another car in a rear end job. His fault. Parents let there policy lapse. I did some Intel. They have a $600,000 home in eagle idaho. They filed for bankruptcy 4 years ago. Business owners. There are past politacal ties. Extended family deep pockets. I have to pay my deductible, and pray State Farm gives me what I want for my car.
Do you think State Farm will get there money from them? Should I get a lawyer to write them a letter. My wives back is sore. And she's pregnant.
We aren't the sue type at all. So I'm not sure what to do.
Anyone been down this road?

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[Joe13]

Get a good lawyer sooner then later and take their advice.

 

[Just Jim]

My wife got hit from behind and it totaled the rig. Totaled because it cost more to repair it than what it was worth. State Farm paid what the wreck was worth which was basically nothing. Took it to a lawyer and got $500 more than they wanted to give. I changed insurance companies and they lost payment on 4 rigs and my house, guess they figured it was worth it.

 

[sig40shooter]

+1 Lawyer!!! I was rear ended while standing still in traffic by a car doing 60 mph. Totally their fault. I got a lawyer and it was still a battle to get just damages and doc visits covered! Document everything because you wont know if your unborn child is ok for years! Be sure your wife gets thoroughly checked out by her doc! My wife was pregnant in our accident as well. But yeah, lawyer is a MUST!!! Good luck!!!

 

[OLDNEWBIE]

I'm assuming you have uninsured motorist coverage. I may be wrong but I think ours didn't have a deductible for that when my wife was hit by an uninsured person.

Get your wife checked out thoroughly. If in any doubt, get a lawyer!

Don't take their first offer no matter what.

They lowballed me at first and I got another 1,000 out of them. They said our vehicle model didn't have factory cruise and power windows when it did and I explained how the tires had low miles and got some comps to show what it would cost to replace my vehicle so they went up from like 4,000 to 5,000. I was on the phone with them for many hours with a few calls though.
My wife said she was fine but years later she complains of back pain and cites the accident. She shouldn't have let it go.

 

[Oregonhunter5]

We have uninsured coverage. I should of stated, she's 7 weeks along. I'm guessing by the time the insurance comes back, I will get a little less than what I should. Then the $1,000 deductible. I figure I will be out $4,000-5,000.
State Farm said there gonna go after them. They can't BK again this soon, so there cornered. I feel since they don't have insurance, I'm limited at best, on getting much money. So I get nervous about getting stuck with a attorney bill.

 

[OLDNEWBIE]

This is what we had 8 years ago. Maybe I need to check it again. Our deductible is $1,000 too!
I know as far as vehicle replacement value I did O.K. and was satisfied.
Nothing pays you for the stress of looking for a used car in a hurry if you're replacing a daily driver though.
Anyway. good luck to you,the wife and new baby!

Collision deductible waiver. When you purchase uninsured motorist property damage in conjunction with collision coverage, your uninsured motorist property damage coverage is referred to as collision deductible waiver and displayed on your policy as "CDW". Collision coverage will pay for the damage to your vehicle (less the amount of your deductible), and when the loss is caused by an uninsured motorist, your collision deductible waiver coverage will reimburse or waive the deductible payment.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

im gonna keep this short and sweet, and then I will expand later on, when I have the time. 17 year old destroyed my car, with wife driving it, and another car in a rear end job. His fault. Parents let there policy lapse. I did some Intel. They have a $600,000 home in eagle idaho. They filed for bankruptcy 4 years ago. Business owners. There are past politacal ties. Extended family deep pockets. I have to pay my deductible, and pray State Farm gives me what I want for my car.
Do you think State Farm will get there money from them? Should I get a lawyer to write them a letter. My wives back is sore. And she's pregnant.
We aren't the sue type at all. So I'm not sure what to do.
Anyone been down this road?

Sue them. They owe you, you dont owe them a thing.

 

[AMT]

A lot of accident attorneys have a policy of "if you don't get paid, I don't get paid." They usually charge 1/3 of whatever is received. An attorney will get much more than you ever could as they know all the laws.

Example:
My wife and I were rear ended (with our dogs in the bed of our truck). I thought could handle it on my own. THEIR insurance company started telling me that it was my fault that they rear ended me - when I was at a complete stop, and they hit me so hard that it blew out 2 of their windows and deployed their airbags.

I argued until I threatened to go talk to an attorney. They wanted to settle for me paying the damages to my vehicle and they would give me an extra $350. They would fix their own car.

I told them they had to fix my vehicle and pay me $2000. They laughed and hung up on me. They called me a little while later (15-20 mins) and said they would give me $500 and no more, and wanted me to sign the papers right away or the offer was off the table.

I talked to an attorney that day. We met. He asked if we had any problems. We told him that we were seeing a chiropractor as we both were pretty stiff. We also told him that one of our dogs was acting funny (not eating, sleeping, shy around my truck, etc), and the other had a gash over his eye that needed some stitches.

He told us his "fee". (1/3 of what we get. He doesn't get paid unless we get paid). He told us to keep seeing the chiropractor until we were back to normal. There was nothing that could be done about the dogs.

We were told to go get a rental vehicle while ours was being fixed - which they paid for. Our doctor and chiropractor bills were paid by them. There was nothing that could be done about our dogs as they are not considered "humans" in accidents. The attorney got us $13,500 - which he got 1/3 and we had to pay the taxes.


My 2 cents..... don't go at this alone unless you are an attorney. If you are not an attorney, get one. From what you described, you will need one. For your sake, your wife's sake, and for the sake of your unborn child. (Congrats by the way!)

 

[BoonDocks36]

Attorney Bill should be flat 30% of what you sue for.

Pain & Suffering is real... I was involved in a HIGH speed Hit & Run, who was caught, DUI, and Four time looser of his drivers license, "stole" his mother's car.....

It took six/seven years... for me to drive that stretch of road, without mental anguish.... my daughter was in the car: a Chevy 9 passenger station wagon, spun 180 on the freeway (101, North of Santa Rosa, CA).

I had just Lost my wife to cancer, so, Single Parent.... my younger daughter did not feel good, so she was not with us.

My Insurance company screwed me over After the accident... sort of like getting Kicked, while down, from a solid Punch...

You make 110% sure you wife is OK, and Tell your insurance you have Paid them GOOD Money, now Take Care of Me & Mine... including enough to replace the drive YOU had.....

philip

 

[Gunwheeler]

Lawyer up. You will receive 3x what you would get going it alone.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Lawyers? Report it (the fact that you were hit) to your insurance company when you file. They are the lawyers that you've already paid for.

 

[winchester270]

A chiropractor for your wife can do amazing things.

 

[fireninja13]

I suppose I should chime in.

Full disclosure: As some of y'all know, I am an Attorney in Oregon.

There is an old saying Lawyers like to repeat: "The man who represents himself has a fool for a client." Basically, you'd be a fool not to get some legal advice at this juncture. Depending on your policy, your insurance company might help with the damage to your vehicle and perhaps some medical bills. But you have been hurt in more ways than that. You need someone to be advocating for your interests, and don't for a second think that your interests and your insurance company's interests are the same.

Most lawyers who do work in this area will do a free or very inexpensive initial consultation -- you'll get some basic general advice, and they will get a sense of whether they want to take your case. If you have friends or family who have had a good experience with an attorney that is a good place to start.

Otherwise the State Bar where you live will have a referral program to help you find someone with the right background near you -- you're in Idaho right? You can start reading about the Idaho Lawyer Referral Service online here:

https://isb.idaho.gov/member_services/lrs/about_lrs.html
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Good luck! (and congrats!)

P.s. document everything. Take pictures. Save receipts. Take detailed notes about what happened now while it is fresh in your mind. This all might be very useful later, and will make lawyers more likely to take your case.

 

[Oregonhunter5]

Thanks all. I will see what I have to offer an attorney. And this is our 5th child.
I loved that camry. It was a nice get around vehicle. Maybe an accord this go around.

 

[AMT]

Lawyers? Report it (the fact that you were hit) to your insurance company when you file. They are the lawyers that you've already paid for.

They are not the attorney's that you've paid for. They are a company who's only interest is getting payment every month.

They are not there for YOUR best interest. They are there for THEIR best interest. Their best interest is paying as little as possible while collecting as much as possible.

 

[DieselScout]

If you are paying your deductible. Then you are implying you'll let state farm handle it. This happened to my wife and I last year and we also have State Farm. I paid them my $250 deductible and they ended up totaling the car. They gave us what I thought was a fair price for it and we were able to pay off our loan and walk away with just under $4000, which we put toward the replacement. State Farm has since sent their lawyers after the other driver to recoup their costs and my deductible.
I don't get the mentality to sue? You have insurance and this won't affect your premium and you have already paid your deductible for them to handle. Also, if they lost their cabin and haven't paying insurance what do you think your going to get?

 

[parallax]

Lawyer up!.. When I was younger and niave, I was rear ended while sitting at a red traffic light on my motorbike, with a car in front of me, by a guy in one of those door to door meat sales trucks, ( He was chasing a pretty girl in the next lane trying to get her attention.) I wanted to give the guy that rear ended me a break, as he was really worried about getting fired, and his boss/ owner of the company told him to tell me, they would settle for cash if I didn't turn it in to his insurance. I told the dude to tell his boss O.K. and to pay for my medical exam and damage to my bike. From that point on the meat company owner wanted to play stupid games and dodge me, for several weeks. I then turned it in to my insurance company and filed a police report, contacted his insurance company and they told me this has happened before with this meat company owner.. Got my bike repaired and my medical covered, but in hind sight I should have gotten a lawyer, and went after this cat..

 

[Certaindeaf]

They are not the attorney's that you've paid for. They are a company who's only interest is getting payment every month.

They are not there for YOUR best interest. They are there for THEIR best interest. Their best interest is paying as little as possible while collecting as much as possible.

Exactly. loose the paid dogs

 

[SOrez]

Sue them and if you win, they don't pay, put a lien on their property