calling all insurance agents
 

I believe a few members are automotive insurance agents on here? My daughter was involved in a rollover accident that was initiated by a car that she was passing started to turn toward my daughters car. Legal passing zone. My daughter saw the car about to impact the passenger door when she looked over and she attempted to veer left onto the shoulder to avoid a collision and in the process, her car lost control and rolled once into the bar ditch. Since she averted a collision, and since the other person involved did not stop (not even to see if my two kids were okay), the insurance company is already questioning if there was another car involved before they have even seen and photographs, before they have inspected the car and before they have seen the police report.

My question, should I be asking for a different claims officer since the current one has already expressed a bias without even having any documents in hand except for the account I gave when filling out their online form?

One other piece. The State Patrol issued a traffic violation on Thursday night when the accident occurred and then called my daughter the following Sunday to ask if she had sent the traffic violation in with the penalty payment. We had not done that and he said not to turn it in but to return it to him and he was going to void the traffic violation.

Now the insurance is acting goofy like they need something else to blame her for in order to prove fault and jack up the insurance rates?

Any advice? This doesn't feel or sound right to me.

A pic for perspective.http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1444179226.jpg
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1444179245.jpg

By the way, my 90 pound daughter and 120 pound son walked away practically unscathed. I'm a believer in the Honda Civic and curtain airbags that deployed when it detected a rollover event. Both the driver's and passenger's windows were broken out by the rollover and the curtains kept the kid's heads and arms inside the vehicle during that event. At least that's how I envision it.

Not an agent but as a Dad with 4 boys I am VERY happy your kids are safe.
Insurance first response always equals "No".

So as far is the insurance company was concerned, there was no other car? What is there problem? If your car has collision/comprehensive, they need to pay to fix your car reguardless of the circumstances.

Hate to say this but you might need to lawyer up.

Glad to hear the kids are okay. Stand your ground with the insurance company. It is in their nature to be suspicious.

Make sure both kids see a doctor right away, the insurance company will change their tone.

See what the crash report says. You can probably get your own copy but you may have to pay for it. Insurance adjusters are paid to question claims. Don't back down and don't change the story. The report should have a matter of fact narrative that depicts crash events. Then there should be a paragraph of your daughters statement. Lastly should be investigation findings. If he has in there in paragraph one or three that another car was involved then you're good. Even if he didn't you still should be ok with her statement. Either way it sucks because there's no impact with the other car so your insurance company is paying either way and you can bet they aren't thrilled.

Glad everyone is OK. That is by far the most important thing

Avoid any recorded statements if at all possible
What insurance company is it?

thanks for the insights everyone. I'm reluctant to post the insurance company name. However, it might have a mascot that looks a lot like a little lizard. My brother in law is an officer in Nebraska and he saw a few holes in the State Highway Patrolman's investigation. He only obtained a statement from my daughter and didn't request one from my son in order to compare the two first eye witness accounts. He didn't make an attempt to visit any of the nearby houses to determine if they by chance recognized the vehicle description.

The story my son relayed over the phone when he called me immediately following the accident, when there was NO-ONE on scene yet, not even passers-by, that story fits exactly with my daughter's. This only a minute after the accident when they were finally able to locate her cell phone on the floor of the car and still in shock and distraught, disoriented and frightened.

By the way, my daughter is 17-1/2 and my son will be 16 next month.

Not an adjuster, but worked for an insurance company for years.

Maybe I'm missing it, and I don't want to down play the emotions involved, but what is the point you are trying to make with the insurance company?

Yes they will question the events, but ultimately they will only have the statements of your children, any witnesses and the police report to make a ruling - but ultimately it won't really effect anything if the story is true. I mean she could have been texting while driving and drifted off the road right? (This is what the insurance company wants to find out)

Everything will be ok. Just answer their questions and provide the statements. Since there was no contact with the other party, she will be at fault (unless the officer cited something else on the report). It will be a comprehensive claim, you will need to pay the deductible. Typically your rates won't increase (but really depends on your insurance company) unless you/she switches insurance companies within 3 years (or if you get a laps in coverage)

Thanks Mac, my point was that the person I was speaking to on the phone was already casting judgement and they didn't have all the information gathered. It's premature to do that. And no, my daughter doesn't text while driving, she doesn't even touch her phone. She can't talk on the phone while driving. It's illegal in the State of Colorado and we made that very clear when she started driving that we would have her license revoke if we ever caught her messing with her phone. My son helps watch for deer when my daughter is driving, as well as other potential dangers on the road, especially at like when this occurred. Texting and phone calls can be easily verified to coordinate with the timing on driving and accidents. My kids did not come up with some lame ass story to cover anything. They are almost too honest for their own good. They get in trouble from their Mom by being too honest and speaking with candor. They stand up for what is right and honest. I grow weary of people who assume the worst, who assume that me or my kids would do the "****************e" that others do.

Anyway, that's my point, a friggin' coward didn't flip on his turn signal and didn't look in his mirrors and started turning towards my daughter's car. She over corrected to avoid a collision. The coward got away. I'm dealing with insurance and replacing a car. Thank GOD my kids weren't injured. I'm very angry about the coward that left the scene of the accident without even stopping to see if my kids needed emergency medical attention. That chaffs my hide. It chaffs my hide that in 5 miles it took me to drive to the scene to get to my kids, I passed over a dozen cars headed past me in the other direction. I get there and 1 car stopped to see if they were okay. On a small country road with a lot of rural residence. I'm disappointed in all of these "neighbors" who don't give a ****************e about anyone but themselves. I am thankful for the elderly old lady (must have been 80 years old) who did stop to make sure my kids were okay.

I'm disturbed by a 50 year old man released from jail last week who broke into a woman's house to eat some food because he was hungry...she arrived at her home and he made her get down on her knees and shot her in the back of the head. This all in my small town.

It's a bunch of sick arse lawlessness and selfishness.

Anyway, I'm annoyed when me or my family's honesty is questioned.

Glad to see your family is okay. In situations like this it usually helps to keep emotion in check.

Keep in mind that the adjuster deal with teen drivers everyday. Usually when two teens are in the car, the passenger isn't looking out for deers / road debris / dangers on road to help the driver be safe. I can understand why they would really question that story.

Also, most people won't run you off the road on purpose then cowardly speed off. Most of the time this stuff happens, its from inattentiveness and one who caused the accident doesn't even realize what happened behind them and just continue with the rest of their day. Sucks but being a motorcyclist, I've had that happen to me a few times already.

GL with your claim.

If your daughter had a vehicle description, that went into the report in her statement. The issue is, when you're conducting a crash investigation where there is another participant you can't prove much. Even if some neighbor has Billy's 99 Celica with the green racing stripe in the driveway, you now need Billy to admit that he swerved and caused the crash. If Billy was so unaware or cared so little that he didn't stop, do you think he's going to admit to causing a crash? Your son's account isn't needed. He's in the same car so he's not exactly an independent witness. If there was a third party on scene who actually saw the events of the crash that would've helped.

The Trooper did you a favor by voiding the ticket. Now you have that leg to stand on. Obviously no citation means no record for your daughter and it also means the troop thought her story had merit.

I had a trucking company roll back into an suv in traffic. Tried to take off. I caught up, got them both pulled over and got their stories. Clearly if you ran into a truck and the truck had no damage you wouldn't be the one chasing him down. Her story was legit his was bs and full of holes. I explicitly put in the report he rolled back and hit her placing him at fault. The insurance company (truck company's) tried refusing her claim stating there was no way that happened. I ended up having to talk to an adjuster on her behalf and defend my report. Moral of the story: insurance companies do not want to pay and they don't care what they have to say or do to try and get out of it. Keep on them don't back down. You'll get paid and threaten to jump if they try and Jack your rates. Just try not to take it personal. Seems like it is but trust me it isn't.

Not an insurance adjuster, but I would really recommend having both of your kids checked by a doctor, if for no other reason than creating a paper trail. A rollover accident could lead to some neck/back issues down the road, even if they seem fine for a few days/weeks after the accident.

I was in a pretty serious accident a few years ago (someone else's fault, not my 986), and I agree with the advice to not make any recorded statements, and given their response so far, I would seriously consider getting a lawyer. I never wanted to 'lawyering up', but I found it completely worth it just to deal with the insurance companies. Glad everyone is okay!

Similar thing happened to my sister in California.

Don't know all the details, but it ended up going down as her fault, point on her record and everything.

Good luck.

Best of luck. I had a friend roll his truck in a similar situation. Ended up going down as his fault. He admits to driving recklessly though even though there was another car involved that didn't stop. Teen accidents with no evidence of another car are hard to prove. Best of luck.

Why? Out the weasels! What the internet needs is a "rate your insurance company" website.

As everyone else has said, I'm glad that no one is hurt. Best of luck on your claim.

Having said that, this story reminds me of a time I was playing Zaxxon. I was doing great - high SCORE potential... But then I heard a noise, I turned my head, and suddenly my ship crashed. My game was over. As the screen was showing me the game ended, my brother came into the room saying it was his turn. I told him that it wasn't - I didn't mean to die - I was distracted by a noise. He said, "What noise? I didn't hear a noise. Gimme the controller. It's my turn."

What is the point of 'lawyering up"? Are you trying to exonerate your kids and pin the accident on someone driving a car that hasn't been identified? If as stated you don't want the ins co to jump to conclusions, are you suing them for that? I don't get the point you're trying to make. What difference does it make if they jump to conclusions, aren't you still going to have to pay the deductible?

Have you contacted the phone company to see if there was any texting or phoning going on before you categorically state nothing was happening? I'm reminded of someone's avitar saying, "Trust but verify" - Ronald Reagan.

If I recall correctly, husker, his kids are honest, so I think that's what it's about. Not to change the subject, but I just got this email:

"Warm Greetings from Jacobs Publishers!
We are pleased to invite you to be a part of Jacobs Journal of Forensic Science research, which has a very good reputation. The journal has already released one issue so far."

I think I may submit. The journal has a self-described "very good reputation" and has "already released one issue so far." Surely one issue is enough to grant the very good reputation, right?


For the record, I do not do this, but apparently have been identified as doing it. A journal with a very good reputation would not make that mistake. Therefore, I must do this.

http://i.lvme.me/f48yt35.jpg

I am more than happy to hear that your kids are safe! That is all that really matters.

Yes, agreed, potential learning experience for all involved.
Post #11 contains a telling sentence: " She over corrected to avoid a collision." Insurance Co will consider that as a confession of guilt. I consider it a normal reaction for most drivers especially, the young & inexperienced. Once the dust & dollars settle, I imagine your kids would welcome some defensive driving lessons. Maybe the insurance co will give a discount for them. Embrace this 2nd opportunity as much as you can.

I'm glad they are OK. In PA the insurance will look at this as her fault, the other car did not hit yours, and she admitted to over correcting and losing control. As wrong as it is to say this she would have been better off from a insurance stand point to have stayed her course and left the other car hit her.

I'm glad she did what she did. Had the other car hit her, there would have been definite injuries.

Dash Cam / should have let them hit.

So, for the nay-sayers and stereo typers in the group. I checked my daughter's phone records and there was no phone activity, texting or calls or otherwise from 6:30pm-9:03pm after the accident when my son called me frantic and frightened and shook up and gave me the same story my daughter later gave.

My local retired law enforcement officer verified for me that insurance will always verify the phone activity and question what really happened, so I'm a little more understanding about that now. However, as I mentioned, I verified that my daughter is really doing what I told her to do. Not messing with her phone while she is driving.

Yes, it would appear as though she over corrected (I don't think she used that wording in the police report by the way). I'll get the police report tomorrow along with pictures. Hopefully, I will be able to glean from that why the officer voided the ticket. I also left a message with the officer who will be back on duty saturday to call me and explain why he voided the ticket if he is at liberty to share that. I'll share what I can on here. Probably just about every person on this forum has lost control of a vehicle at one time in their life, some ended up in a wreck and some managed to regain control. For someone with 1 year of driving experience, I'm not too surprised in a situation like this. She was already in the opposite lane of traffic and on loose gravel at the county road entrance where the perp decided to suddenly turn. Dead ahead of her was bar ditch she entered that, the car mostly on the bar ditch sliding sideways and headed back for the pavement where it initiated a rollover once and then ended up back in the bar ditch 20 feet from the highway on its wheels.

In any case, I am VERY thankful God is watching out for my kids. I'm very thankful for the car we put them in. It functioned well on and off the road.:cheers:

I'm happy there was not phone activity before the accident. It sounds like your daughter gets it and good for her. My point was how many parents blindly believe what their children tell them. Sorry if that makes me a a nay-sayer. This might be a chance to reinforce the no phone thing by talking about what would have happened if she was distracted by her phone. Stuff happens quickly when driving and new drivers have no experience to fall back on. Howeve, this is probably a conversation for later when the dust settles, but would be an excellent teachable moment none the less.

These are words I've proven myself many times: never drive faster than your guardian angels can fly.

And I'm not a nay-sayer either. My point is the insurance adjuster deals with these situations all day everyday. And while your kids are the exception, the majority of cases are not going to be what is being told to them. They are of course going to be suspicious - not because it affects the results of the claim, simply because they want to know the truth about why they are paying the claim.

So there's really nothing to 'stick it to' the insurance company on or get angry about. Save that for if they try to deny coverage or aren't giving you a fair amount for the vehicle.

I am glad everyone is okay. I think using police reports as an insurance tool is ridiculous. Unless the police are involved in the accident what do they know? They are just paper pushers and don't have any interest in getting the correct answer.
Example, I was in an accident where an old man was in his car gawking at a home for sale in my neighborhood. His car was mostly at the curb in front of the house, so I proceeded around him. He pulls out at the same time without looking and hits me in the rear passenger quarter doing a pit maneuver on me. The police had me at fault.

Dang. That sucks!
The insurance agent emailed me today with a settlement check offer.

Well put. know the limits of your current abilities.

don't accept the first offer
They will always go higher

They haven't budged yet!

They sent me a sheet with 15 different dealers with comparable CR-V's and pricing that fit the settlement and NOT a single car was still available. I emailed that bit of information back to them and have not heard back all day.
j

That helped a lot with mine! Point out that the "comparable" cars were all no longer comparable helped.

They do go off of comparable cars on the market as apposed to blue book. With something like a boxster this helps, however may hurt with a crv

Look on autotrader and cars.com as well as carmax. Only use dealer sales