WRECKED MY X

[makaveli911]

well some guy ran a redlight going west and cut me off, i was going south, i slammed on the brakes but was too late and i hit him. Anyways my front end is pritty messed up, its kinda tucked under the frame of the truck, missing the corner light, grille boken and also my left side was hit too so that kinda dented back. Im wondering how much will it cost, im gonna get it inspected but i dont want them to cut me short. Also on the police report he was unit 1 which means that he could ONLY be a car or a bike, while i was unit 2 which means that i could be a car, bike building or pedestrian. Does that mean that he caused the wreck? Also i herd them talking that if i took a right at the light (i was going streight) then it would be a diffrent story, so with all that said, do you think that the other guy's insurace should pay up? Another thing, when we called the insurance company, they said the name of the person and the # does not match up what kind of problems could that present?

 

[becker69]

Makaveli911; sorry to hear about your wreck. I do not know your areas traffic laws, and things always get sticky while trying to speculate when you are an outsider, but; I wouldn't sweat the 'unit 1/ unit 2' issue, it might be as trivial as which car was hit/perspective of the intersection, etc. and not neccesarily who is "at fault". Who knows maybe they were saying that had you turned right and not gone straight, that the accident would have been avoided because you would have been behind him. And lastly, who knows about the insurance/name issue; maybe he is sub-written on someone else's policy..... Important thing is that you are OK, next; do you have anyone that can agree that he ran the light? Good luck with it.

 

[rustytr]

Oh man that kinda news always sucks, at least you didn't get hurt. Good luck with it!

 

[X24]

Sorry to hear the bad news. I was recently on a jury for a car accident case. Someone in a Ford Tempo ran a red light and an F150 hit the Tempo and spun into an Explorer. The person in the Explorer was suing the person in the F150 when really the person that ran the red light was the ultimate cause of the crash. They lost. The person in the F150 was in no way at fault for the crash.

All I'm saying is that if you can prove that he ran a red light you should have nothing to worry about. Def. get a witness. Put an add in the paper asking for one if you don't already have one. Good luck, hope everything works out.

 

[leenjen]

that sucks. let us know what happens. at least it isnt totalled.

 

[makaveli911]

the other guys insurance company called me up and recorded my side of the story, and they are going to get the finalized police report. I sure hope the police noted something about the situation. The guy said that the light was green when he was about 20ft infont of the intersection but the question on my part is why would i run a redlight when i stoped for it, compaired to him going 35 mph trying get arcross the intersection. And there were no witnesses except for 2 people in my car, the police took their report, and the guy was with his 2 young kids who didnt see anything.

 

[KMac]

If you got 2 witnesses (no matter who's car they were in), this is case closed. Game, set, match: you!

The tricky part comes when his insurance called you and interviewed you. They ask questions that sound innocent enough, which lead you to answer them as fully as you can. What they are doing is fishing for ANY information that could put you at least PARTIALLY at fault.

Example: I'm driving along minding my own business and some idiot runs a stop sign and I plow the crap out of him. If that insurance company interviews witnesses and one witness says "Yeah, I saw it. The guy in the red Explorer had just passed along side me when that stupid moron in the Chevy Blazer ran the stop sign and the red Explorer couldn't do anything, he didn't have time to stop, and hit him"-----Insurance company will then try to establish that the witness was driving the posted speed limit, therefore I MUST have been speeding because I passed him. In addition I didn't have time to put my brakes on so I MUST have been NOT paying attention. Lastly, three vehicles all in that same close proximity MUST have been that way due to heavy traffic, therefore I was driving too fast for the "conditions".

In my state, that insurance company will use it ALL to show I was somewhat to blame, thereby reducing their financial responsibility.

Here's a nickel's worth of free advice to anybody. If an insurance company calls you to interview you, give ONLY simple yes/no answers and DO NOT offer any additional information other that what was specifically asked. They WILL twist it and use it against you.

 

[YW84U]

Just thought I'd throw my .02 in. as food for thought.

First and foremost, I hope everyone involved is alright. Metal and glass can always be repaired; people are never quite able to be restored back to new condition after a collision...

From my experience in the law enforcement profession, I can safely say that at least here in Canada, there is a marked difference between who the police charge, and who the insurance company finds at fault. Here, the difference lies in criminal liability versus civil liability. I'm under the assumption that your laws must be fairly similar.

If I charge someone for running the light, it sets out fault in criminal responsibility only (ie - proof beyond a reasonable doubt) . The insurance companies use civil liability to establish fault, and the test of fault is much more of a grey area (ie - proof is based on balance of probabilities instead). Just be aware that the insurance comany wants to save on claims - that's their job. The input of the officer involved is still important, but the way the matters are settled criminal vs. civil are much different from each other.

That being said, always remember that common sense and patience are your best allies, despite all the legal ramblings and so forth. If it looks ugly, perhaps consider getting some legal advice.

Take Care,

 

[pd rd]

Kmacs right.

if you got the witnesses and and the other guy doesnt have any thing. then it should be case closed.

just dont volunteer info to the other insurance.

i had a situation similar to yours. only i was a passenger in a car with three of my friends.
and the other guy who ran the red didnt have a witness. he tried to sue and stuff but couldnt prove he didnt run the red. so it was 100% that guys fault.
you should be ok.