Car Insurance not Paying (in Georgia)?
I was in an accident three weeks ago. It was the other car's fault. There were no injuries. We didn't call the police, but I got a written statement from the other driver admitting fault. I got her car and insurance information and filed a claim with her insurance. They sent an appraiser and I got an estimate for the damages. So all that is left now is for the insurance to approve the estimate and send me a check. I have called the insurance company almost everyday since I got the appraisal (about 2 weeks ago) and they are saying that they are waiting to get in touch with the policy holder; apparently they don't have her correct phone number. But they have the signed statement from her admitting fault. The agent in charge of my claim doesn't even pick up the phone or return my calls, I just talk to the operator who can't really give me any answers. I have the basic car insurance, I don't have collision coverage, so I haven't even called my own insurance. My car is operational but my rear susspension is gone, and the bent metal is hitting my tire; I really need my car rapaired asap. Should I call a lawyer even though there were no injuries? I should probably add that my car is not worth much, but I still need it fixed! and I can't afford (don't want either) to pay for repairs out of my pocket. What should I do? Thanks in advance for your help.
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August 27th, 2010 - 09:02
Your best option is to call the Georgia Insurance Commissioner’s office. It’s one of those “If your question is about auto insurance, press 1″ kinda switch boards…so you’ve got to be patient.
One problem you might have is that…if your car is not worth much, they might just total it out and pay you only a small fraction of what it’s actually worth. That happens sometimes with older cars…they cost more to repair than they would be worth.
One problem you’re going to have is that you can’t PROVE that the person’s signature is actually theirs. It would really have been better if you had called the police and gotten an official accident report stating clearly that it was the other car’s fault. I hope that doesn’t keep you from being able to collect, but you might actually have to get a lawyer and sue.
Good luck…hope it gets worked out soon.
August 27th, 2010 - 09:54
You just need to keep applying pressure. A lawyer is going to cost you far more than he is worth if he even agrees to take your case.
1/3 of the proceeds.
I got hit when I was a kid, the other insurance NEVER paid. And there wasn’t anything I could do.
I guess in hindsight I could have sued them in small claims court.
August 27th, 2010 - 21:19
This is a good example of why you need to get a police report anytime you are involved in an accident. Depending on the quality of the liable party’s insurance company, they may try to delay paying you for a while. You have several different options available right now:
1. Call the insurance commissioner as suggested above.
2. Call your insurance, set up a claim with them and have your insurance pay to fix your car. Your insuranc may or may not require you to pay the deductible. Since you don’t have an accident report, they will probably require you to pay the deductible. Your insurance company will then contact the defendant’s insurance company for reimbursment. You should get your deductible back once your insurance is paid back. This usually takes 8 to 12 weeks if there is no problem.
3. Sue the defendant in small claims court. I imagine once he is served by the police with the lawsuit, his insurance will pay to fix the car. If they did not you would have to be able to prove the cost of the repairs.
4. Hire a lawyer. This would be hard since most personal injury attorneys do not take property damage only cases. If you had to pay a lawyer hourly, it probably would not be worth it in a property damage only case.
If you need information about property damage claims go to my website at http://www.shanesmithlaw.com and look at the section on property damage claims. I also have a no cost book available that goes over this area of law in detail that you can get free there.
Good luck and if you need any more advice about your claim, call me and I’ll try to help. I would recommend option 1 or 2 though.
Shane Smith
Atlanta Car Accident & Personal Injury Lawyer
http://www.shanesmithlaw.com
(770) 487-8999