Rear Ended!!!

[subi-crosser]

Originally Posted by Brian

Zandar, I don't mind you going on at all. It's all good information/advice.

Eric, yes, this is the same shop that did my trunk.

It seems my bad luck is continuing! My car has developed a delay in up-shifting. I think it's mostly into 3rd, maybe 4th. Accelerating up hill, it especially doesn't want to shift. The settlement money may have to go into a new tansmision instead of bodywork!

There is a guy about 2 1/2 miles down the road that ownes a SUBARU shop that can fix that! ( OT). I Think that I met you there!

[Brian]

Jerry,

I already called OT about it even before reading your post. I'm waiting to hear back from him.


Reminder for Tom, in case you check here:

I'm usually going about 20 MPH when the car is trying to upshift, but can't. If I let off the gas, it's usually able to upshift then. I'm not getting any codes from the TCU. I drove it on the highway yesterday, and it just didn't feel right.

[Speedklix]

Originally Posted by Zandar

There are not plenty of ways. Trust me.

Believe whatever you like, but the only way to pin liability on the car in front is to claim that they backed into you, and you could do that just as easily with or without the police there to document it.

So I know from dealing with this stuff in the past, that the info you're giving Brian is great stuff. They'll try to scare you into accepting less, I was told once that if I didn't take the new offer, they wouldn't have to pay me anything

Aside from this advice though... the issues are outside the scope of your experience aside from first hand instances. (Legal vs appraisal/negotiating)

Taking the advice of the insurance company that represents the offender on not submitting a police report is not a good practice... how on earth do you know what was in the one they submitted anyway? Some of the common key things (which the cop would know about) that can leave you "without a paddle" are "taking the right of way" or "failure to maintain lane". Both being instances where you could be at fault at least up to 50% or more depending on your state's laws.

I HOPE that I am wrong... but in my experience whenever I put faith in people to "do the right thing" I am nearly always disappointed. I actually caused an accident for the first time not to long ago and I had friends and people I work with asking me why I didn't put a claim against the other person... um, it was my fault! Sure there are ways I could argure that it was his in the situation and I am SURE that I could have got cash out of it, but why? I had already wronged the guy once, why should I cause his insurance to go up as well?

[Brian]

Originally Posted by Speedklix

Taking the advice of the insurance company that represents the offender on not submitting a police report is not a good practice... how on earth do you know what was in the one they submitted anyway?

You're right, Mike, I don't know what was in the other report. All I know is that their insurance agent told me that our stories matched. He could have just been saying that so I would think everything was O.K. And I know that me filling out a police report is not in his best interest, but I couldn't think of anything at the moment that would make it detrimental to him. I just figured that it backed up Zandar's points, my own impressions, and the fact that the woman and insurance company already seemed to be complying. 2-3 days had already passed since the accident, so what could the Police do to help? That's what I saw as the biggest factor. Maybe I'm being foolish; I don' know.

[SubaruSVXCrazy]

Man, people suck. Best of luck.

[Brian]

The results of my Tuesday meeting are...inconclusive. The adjuster who was supposed to meet me at a dealership didn't show up, but Nationwide soon had another adjuster there for someone else. He took a look at my car. Everything seemed to go well enough. He seemed very compliant, took a closer look as I started pointing things out. He apologized for the other guy not being there, and he looked over the estimate I already had - not the page w/the price though. I got the impression that he agreed with their assessment. He said that I would be able to take it where I want to get the work done. He said that he'd have to make his own estimate, and he'll send me the paperwork, etc., and that if the shop charges more, Nationwide will pay the difference too - and cover a rental car for me. He never mentioned anything about totaling. That being said, I have none of this in writing, and I have no check. Whose to say that when they review the figures, they won't try totaling it? It seems like everything's going perfectly, but I don't know if it is.

[subi-crosser]

Originally Posted by Brian

The results of my Tuesday meeting are...inconclusive. The adjuster who was supposed to meet me at a dealership didn't show up, but Nationwide soon had another adjuster there for someone else. He took a look at my car. Everything seemed to go well enough. He seemed very compliant, took a closer look as I started pointing things out. He apologized for the other guy not being there, and he looked over the estimate I already had - not the page w/the price though. I got the impression that he agreed with their assessment. He said that I would be able to take it where I want to get the work done. He said that he'd have to make his own estimate, and he'll send me the paperwork, etc., and that if the shop charges more, Nationwide will pay the difference too - and cover a rental car for me. He never mentioned anything about totaling. That being said, I have none of this in writing, and I have no check. Whose to say that when they review the figures, they won't try totaling it? It seems like everything's going perfectly, but I don't know if it is.

I TOLD ya!! Keep rubbing your lower back and shifting your weight from side to side while ' NEGOTIATING'!! It just might open their eyes to the true value of the SVX.

[Brian]

Jerry, thanks for taking a look at my car while I was at Tom's, and for getting the trunk openable/closable.

[Brian]

The check and estimate from the insurance company arrived. They didn't total the car, but they only gave my $1508! That's $600 less than the shop's estimate!

The cover letter that came with it says that if there's a discrepancy between the 2 estimates, to have the shop call the adjuster to discuss it. It says the same for any additional damage that's discovered when they get it open. But on the estimate, underlined in pen, is "Borderline total loss" and a statement for the shop to call them before any additional work is done.

Here's Nationwide's estimate:

[Brian]

So, way back on the Monday after my last post, I took the insurance company's estimate to the body shop, so they could call Nationwide to try to get more money to cover the repairs. There are 2 guys I deal with there: Steve, the budy of my relative that recommended the shop. He seems to be a decent guy, and he actually does body work. And then there's another guy, who I'll just call Jabba, because that's who he reminds me of, and that pretty well sums him up. He sits at the front desk. There were a couple items I could do w/o on the estimate, knocking the difference I needed down from $600 to about $400. When I pointed out to Steve how much less frame labor the insurance company gave, he said that he estimated it a little high because he knew Nationwide would low-ball it. Unfortunately, it was Jabba's job to make the call, and he said he'd get back to me in 1-2 days.

When Friday afternoon rolled around, and I hadn't heard anything, I called the shop, and Jabba told me that he'd talked to the insurance adjuster days before, and he wouldn't give any more money, since he's already given all he could w/o totalling the car. They left me with 2 options: I could pay the difference myself or Steve could do just as much work as the $1500 covered.

After weeks passed, I decided to write a "pointed" letter to Nationwide, not to the adjuster who looked my car over, because he seemed kind of shady, but to the agent in the corporate office who had set up the meeting with that adjuster. I expressed my dissatisfaction, challenged the amount they were totaling my car at, asked for the money I still needed, and let them know that if I didn't get it, I'd ask the lady who hit me to pay it. This idea seemed to backfire. The afternoon followng the day I mailed the registered letter, I was caught off-guard by a phone call at work from the Nationwide agent. He was irate and offended by my letter. He cut down all the points I made. He told me that the adjuster didn't send any money because no work had been done on my car yet. (What a circular arguement!) He said I'd have to deal with that adjuster, and threatened to send him a copy of the letter too. Great! I'd still had one card up my sleeve. I was hoping that if I declined the car rental included in the settlement, they could give me the monetary value ($160). But now, they'd both be mad, and really uninclined to help me anymore!

A week later, about 3 weeks ago, I called the adjuster. I was completely surprised when he immediately said he'd gotten my letter, and already made an adjustment, claiming that they must have had the wrong bluebook value listed for my car! He was sending a check for $300 out that day, and again claimed that if the shop finds more damage when they open the car up, he'll send more. Then he called right back to tell me he was sending a little extra to cover the cracked tail light. $358 arrived the next weekend! (He was unwilling to exchange the rental for cash though.)

The shop was busy, but they could finally take it in today! Last week I'd asked Steve about the estimate for the frame straightening. He said it could run over. Today, Jabba was the one in the office when I droped the car off. He said he thinks the frame straightening will almost definitely run over...that they may even have to send it out to have it done. After he asked to see my new estimate from Nationwide, he asked if I had the checks w/me. I didn't. I said I thought I'd pay when the work was finished. Jabba said he likes having them before, and he prefers their checks over cash. That just seems wrong to me! What's to stop him from asking for more if I've already paid! I wasn't 100% sure if he was serious or not. Later, I mentioned, as I had to Steve, that in the unlikely event that the actual work is less than the estimate, I'd like to have my spoiler repainted. (It's chipped & peeling.) Jabba said that if I bring the checks in tomorrow, he would do my spoiler. The implication was "at no extra charge". Despite my misgivings, I said I would. I immediately started thinking that maybe I should only bring in the larger check. But now I'm back to the point where I don't want to do even that! Those uncashed checks are are the only possible leverage I have over Nationwide. And I wouldn't be calling this guy "Jabba" if I thought he was trustworthy.

My car is supposed to be done on Friday.

[Zandar]

Yeah, writing to the agent was a bad idea; but not because it could hurt you. The agent basically has zero power over the claim, so it's better to go to the source (the adjustor). If you're uncomfortable with the adjustor, just write to his/her supervisor. It seems to have worked out, in any case.

As far as the loss of use (rental), it's industry standard to not pay rental unless it's actually used. Nothing wrong, there.

For the total loss value, they're probably going with 70% of blue book for the threshold. I wouldn't worry too much about that, as they seem to be playing ball.

Your shop sounds . . . questionable. Maybe it's just Jabba. As they seem to be doing quality work for you, I'll reserve my opinion on them. It's just a little strange that they want money up front, that's all.

Glad to hear it's coming together for you! Here's hoping you have no out-of-pocket!

[Brian]

Zandar,

Going directly to the adjuster was my first idea. I planned to go to his office, and speak to him in person. But when I took a look at his business card and the paperwork he'd sent, no physical address was included. His phone number was listed on one source as claims department, and on the other as his cell phone. No Nationwide office was listed in the town of his P.O. box, and when I searched the Nationwide website for agents by name or location, he didn't show up. Obviously, he's some independent guy running things from his home and cell phone. It just seemed shady. And the shop was so sure he wouldn't budge.

I called my relative whose friends with Steve, and he vouched for Jabba. He said they need the checks so they can order parts/supplies. I'll take just the bigger check in this afternoon, but I'll ask Jabba if he can hold off on cashing it.

[tiv0]

i wish you luck with it all

[Zandar]

I wouldn't worry about losing your "bargaining chip" with Nationwide if the cheques are cashed. If you didn't sign a "release of all claims" form, the claim is still open. Cashing a cheque never means that you fully accept a settlement.

We cash cheques all the time for partial claims, but then still dispute it. Example: if I think someone is 100% at fault and they only pay 50%, I'll cash the 50% cheque and still go after them for the rest.

It looks like it's coming together well for you, and you did the right thing in writing a letter to them (it was just to the wrong person; but that seems to have worked out in any case). Laguna Blue is my favourite colour aside from pearl; get it back on the road soon!

To Speedklix:
Sometimes a police report is a good idea, but usually it's a waste of time. you'd be amazed at the amount of police officers that can't find liability with a map and a guide. For a rear-ending, a police report is worthless 99.9% of the time. A police report after the fact is worthless 99.999% of the time, for almost any type of accident. That's just how it is; the police report doesn't provide any new information or prove anything. It doesn't hurt to file one, though, so if you feel you need to in every accident, go right on ahead. I see your point, and I'm all for "better safe than sorry," but it really is superfluous in most cases.

[svxpert]

<<To Speedklix:
Sometimes a police report is a good idea, but usually it's a waste of time. you'd be amazed at the amount of police officers that can't find liability with a map and a guide. For a rear-ending, a police report is worthless 99.9% of the time. A police report after the fact is worthless 99.999% of the time, for almost any type of accident. That's just how it is; the police report doesn't provide any new information or prove anything. It doesn't hurt to file one, though, so if you feel you need to in every accident, go right on ahead. I see your point, and I'm all for "better safe than sorry," but it really is superfluous in most cases.>>

I would have to disagree. insurance companies determine liability. police reports place facts on the paper. while reading a (good) police report should give you an idea of whos fault it may be, insurance companies use the facts of the report to determine % liability. a police report will provide who, what, when, where and the damage evidence at the scene. without one, someone can easily get over on you by claiming more/different damage. plus, the police report is done for free, thats what your taxes pay for. let the officer do all the legwork and you won't be questioned if you don't have one. thats my opinion.