Car Accident n00b

[c0rnedfr0g]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad. She was willing to pay out of pocket for the damage, and didn't want to get police/insurance involved. I agreed not to get the police involved, but I did get her insurance information and contact info. I took my car to get an estimate, and the body damage was worse than it appeared -- nearly $2000 to get it fixed. At that point, she decided to pay through insurance.

Sorry, but I haven't been involved in an accident before. She has StateFarm, and I have NationWide. What do I do from here? File a claim with my insurance company, or with hers?

Thanks.

 

[Venardhi]

Call your guys, they'll call her guys and figure it all out. At least that is what I always do and it seems to work out pretty well.

 

[RoJoHen]

^Yeah, that's basically the way to go.

 

[TheWifeOfBrian]

Always always get the police involved. Too often this turns into "Omg undiscovered neck injury" (real or imagined) six months down the road and then it gets ugly.

 

[Luckyflux]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad. She was willing to pay out of pocket for the damage, and didn't want to get police/insurance involved. I agreed not to get the police involved, but I did get her insurance information and contact info. I took my car to get an estimate, and the body damage was worse than it appeared -- nearly $2000 to get it fixed. At that point, she decided to pay through insurance.

Sorry, but I haven't been involved in an accident before. She has StateFarm, and I have NationWide. What do I do from here? File a claim with my insurance company, or with hers?

Thanks.

This wasn't on Sunset ave in Hollywood was it? I was right next to a vehicle that was rear-ended! I bolted.

 

[John Picard]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad. She was willing to pay out of pocket for the damage, and didn't want to get police/insurance involved. I agreed not to get the police involved, but I did get her insurance information and contact info. I took my car to get an estimate, and the body damage was worse than it appeared -- nearly $2000 to get it fixed. At that point, she decided to pay through insurance.

Sorry, but I haven't been involved in an accident before. She has StateFarm, and I have NationWide. What do I do from here? File a claim with my insurance company, or with hers?

Thanks.

Boy did you screw up. ALWAYS file a police report. Have you even contacted your agent yet? And like above, sometimes injury doesn't appear for days. I'm still hurting from an accident I was in on January 3, 2008, when I hit a lady who rolled a stop sign. It was all her fault, and she's for damned certain paying.

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad.

If you just read that part, the thread is so much more kinky.

 

[Alpha Romeo]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad. She was willing to pay out of pocket for the damage, and didn't want to get police/insurance involved. I agreed not to get the police involved, but I did get her insurance information and contact info. I took my car to get an estimate, and the body damage was worse than it appeared -- nearly $2000 to get it fixed. At that point, she decided to pay through insurance.

Sorry, but I haven't been involved in an accident before. She has StateFarm, and I have NationWide. What do I do from here? File a claim with my insurance company, or with hers?

Thanks.

File a poilice report regardless. File a claim with her insurance company. Only if hers cannot cover the entirety of the damage do you seek a claim with your insurance company.

 

[Alpha Romeo]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad. She was willing to pay out of pocket for the damage, and didn't want to get police/insurance involved. I agreed not to get the police involved, but I did get her insurance information and contact info. I took my car to get an estimate, and the body damage was worse than it appeared -- nearly $2000 to get it fixed. At that point, she decided to pay through insurance.

Sorry, but I haven't been involved in an accident before. She has StateFarm, and I have NationWide. What do I do from here? File a claim with my insurance company, or with hers?

Thanks.

Boy did you screw up. ALWAYS file a police report. Have you even contacted your agent yet? And like above, sometimes injury doesn't appear for days. I'm still hurting from an accident I was in on January 3, 2008, when I hit a lady who rolled a stop sign. It was all her fault, and she's for damned certain paying.

Don't talk to your agent, file a claim through her insurance.

 

[cultcross]

^ I'm assuming the system is different in the US then, because here we call our insurance and report the accident, then the insurance companies battle out who pays for what between themselves.
And I'll echo the call to make a police report - although technically not a requirement for a damage only, it's good to get a record with them in case whiplash or similar appears (or "appears") later on.

 

[John Picard]

So, I was rear-ended the other day. Completely not my fault. The girl was very young and apologetic, and the damage did not look too bad. She was willing to pay out of pocket for the damage, and didn't want to get police/insurance involved. I agreed not to get the police involved, but I did get her insurance information and contact info. I took my car to get an estimate, and the body damage was worse than it appeared -- nearly $2000 to get it fixed. At that point, she decided to pay through insurance.

Sorry, but I haven't been involved in an accident before. She has StateFarm, and I have NationWide. What do I do from here? File a claim with my insurance company, or with hers?

Thanks.

Boy did you screw up. ALWAYS file a police report. Have you even contacted your agent yet? And like above, sometimes injury doesn't appear for days. I'm still hurting from an accident I was in on January 3, 2008, when I hit a lady who rolled a stop sign. It was all her fault, and she's for damned certain paying.

Don't talk to your agent, file a claim through her insurance.

No, you always notify your company when you've been involved in an accident. Also, in the event someone in your vehicle has been injured, if your policy has a MedPay provision, that will help cover medical expenses while everything is being sorted out. Been there, and am still doing that as my policy has $5,000 MedPay.

 

[ByrdMan]

^ I'm assuming the system is different in the US then, because here we call our insurance and report the accident, then the insurance companies battle out who pays for what between themselves.
And I'll echo the call to make a police report - although technically not a requirement for a damage only, it's good to get a record with them in case whiplash or similar appears (or "appears") later on.

IIRC, from the last time I was in an accident, any damage over $1000 required a report... at least in my state.

 

[ShamelessMcBundy]

I don't know how the laws in your area are, but in CA, if someone rear ends you, it's automatically their fault. I guess the law assumes that the person behind you should have been paying closer attention.

 

[RoJoHen]

I don't know how the laws in your area are, but in CA, if someone rear ends you, it's automatically their fault. I guess the law assumes that the person behind you should have been paying closer attention.

In Illinois, it's also partially your fault. If you weren't there, you wouldn't have gotten hit.

 

[cultcross]

I don't know how the laws in your area are, but in CA, if someone rear ends you, it's automatically their fault. I guess the law assumes that the person behind you should have been paying closer attention.

I think this is the general rule in most places - even if you're driving like an idiot, harsh braking, etc, the insurance companies would say the person behind should have left adequate stopping distance.

 

[c0rnedfr0g]

Update:

I filed a claim with my insurance (Nation Wide), and the other driver filed a claim with hers. Her insurance (USAA) determined they were responsible for the damage to my vehicle, and offered to either get the repairs done through USAA and their estimate giver (free of charge), or I could get the repairs done through Nation Wide with their estimate giver, pay Nation Wide a $500 deductible, and then USAA would reimburse that (may take a few months for reimbursement check to mail). I opted to have her insurance handle it all and closed (temporarily) my claim with Nation Wide, who said they'd battle USAA if their estimate didn't cover all the damage (which is unusual, they said).

Side note: it happened in Omaha, Nebraska. From what I've heard, while I was rear-ended and the driver behind me is responsible for the damage to my car, had that accident pushed me into a car in front of me then I'd be responsible for the damage to the car in front since I supposedly should've left more space between myself and the next car.

Thanks for all the advice.

 

[ShamelessMcBundy]

OK well glad that it's starting to work out for you.

 

[ByrdMan]

Update:

Side note: it happened in Omaha, Nebraska. From what I've heard, while I was rear-ended and the driver behind me is responsible for the damage to my car, had that accident pushed me into a car in front of me then I'd be responsible for the damage to the car in front since I supposedly should've left more space between myself and the next car.

Thanks for all the advice.

When I was rear-ended 5 years ago (in Minneapolis, MN) I was pushed into the vehicle in front of me. The driver who hit me was at fault for all three vehicles (I supposed it could have helped that I was stopped in traffic, and it happened right in front of a state trooper)

 

[BigFoot]

There's a big difference between driving too close to the car infront and being stopped at a traffic light.

 

[cultcross]

There's a big difference between driving too close to the car infront and being stopped at a traffic light.

Correct. If you have the handbrake applied and are a sensible distance behind the car in front (usually far enough back to see their tyres on the road), you wouldn't be held at fault here for being shunted forward. If you have stopped but not applied the handbrake you may be held at fault for the car in front's damage.