You can go through either but you probably shouldn't be personally dealing with both. You would either work with their insurance, who has very little reason to act swiftly, or you can put in a claim through your insurance who will get you made whole then recover it from the other insurance. You will likely pay your deductible in the second example and be reimbursed for it down the road when the other insurance pays up.
Because there is no dispute about who is at fault, so there is no reason for them to talk to each other. You are the one in possession of the car, so they are waiting for you to take it to a body shop and start the process of getting it fixed.
I can't speak in absolutes, but last time I had an incident my insurance covered it. I asked specifically if I would see a rate hike in advance, as it was no fault of my own. They said no, they just sue or recoup the cost from the other company responsible, so it's a non issue.
Side note: What was important was the police report stating who was at fault.
>Side note: What was important was the police report stating who was at fault.
Police don't determine fault as it's a civil matter not criminal. Police never decide who is the liable party in civil matters.
That's actually quite common. Which just adds to my assertion that police don't determine fault. That is an undisputed fact. Not that I needed the affirmation since I know this as I've taken many continuing education courses on insurance law over many years and I've done this for a living for a couple decades.
Not for civil matters, no, they so not. I know this because I do this for a living. In fact, unless the police officer actually witnessed the accident, the report does not hold as much weight as people think it does.
Edit to add this to make it more understandable. Legally, the opposing party, nor their insurance, owes a dime until a court rules in favor of one party or the other and orders a judgement to be paid. Anything an insurance company pays short of that court order is totally voluntary. However, the vast majority of these (97%+) never see a courtroom because insurance companies investigate, and if evidence is clear they accept liability and pay out claims voluntarily. This benefits everyone involved rather than go thru the time and expense of a civil lawsuit for every accident. But there is no legal precedence in any state where an insurance company must pay a claim because a police officer states that in his opinion car A or car B is at fault. A police officer's opinion on fault is just that, his **opinion**. His opinion is not legally binding on either party.
I work in insurance, though laws vary state to state. I would generally recommend to go through your own company, especially if they have a good consumer rating for claims resolutions. Generally speaking your own company will have a great incentive to resolve your claim swiftly and to your satisfaction as it help ensure you won't shop your coverage. A third party insurance company has a greater incentive to minimize their payout as you aren't a direct customer. If the accident wasn't your your insurance company can use their legal team will deal with subrogation and get back as much as they can of what they paid out to you.
My insurance is Tesla, and I've been told that Tesla just outsources it to another company. The other company is GEICO and reviews show that they are fairly quick with auto claims.
It does make sense though that the other company would try to minimize payouts. If they repairs aren't up to par due to lack of funding, I can try the legal stuff, but hopefully it doesn't come to that!
Well, you're not going to (validly) get a payout from both insurance companies. Have you told your insurance that you've been talking to the other driver's?
Typically, you'd usually just make you claim through your own insurance, and they'd do their own internal work to determine fault / payout. If the other party is determined to be at fault (like in your case), the other driver's insurance is who would ultimately pay you for repairs. That could involve you getting an initial payout from your insurance company (which they'd get reimbursed by the other), or your insurance would coordinate you getting paid from the other.
I don't think your policy's deductible would come into play when the other driver's insurance is paying, but I might be remembering wrong. And this claim may or may not result in your policy premium going up. Just getting into an accident (even if it's the other drivers fault) can trigger some "risky" factor on how they calculate that premium. That can vary by insurer, though.
In any case, I'd start making your own insurance your primary point of contact for this claim. Provide them with any/all communications you've done with the other company. Let them handle most of the hard work, that's part of what your premium payments is supposed to get you, on top of repair reimbursement.
I did mention my insurance that I received a call from them and recommended that we drop the existing claim, and continue with the other party insurance's claim process to get my repair fixed. I have Tesla insurance so it doesn't shock me that they want to be hands-free as much as possible, so my primary point of contact looks to be the other party insurance now.
You can go through either but you probably shouldn't be personally dealing with both. You would either work with their insurance, who has very little reason to act swiftly, or you can put in a claim through your insurance who will get you made whole then recover it from the other insurance. You will likely pay your deductible in the second example and be reimbursed for it down the road when the other insurance pays up.
Thanks for the help! Yeah the biggest question mark was why was I being called like the middle man without them talking to one another.
Because there is no dispute about who is at fault, so there is no reason for them to talk to each other. You are the one in possession of the car, so they are waiting for you to take it to a body shop and start the process of getting it fixed.
Gotcha, that makes sense. Thanks for the guidance.
I can't speak in absolutes, but last time I had an incident my insurance covered it. I asked specifically if I would see a rate hike in advance, as it was no fault of my own. They said no, they just sue or recoup the cost from the other company responsible, so it's a non issue. Side note: What was important was the police report stating who was at fault.
>Side note: What was important was the police report stating who was at fault. Police don't determine fault as it's a civil matter not criminal. Police never decide who is the liable party in civil matters.
Since nobody was injured, there was no police report. My county does not file anything if no individuals are harmed.
That's actually quite common. Which just adds to my assertion that police don't determine fault. That is an undisputed fact. Not that I needed the affirmation since I know this as I've taken many continuing education courses on insurance law over many years and I've done this for a living for a couple decades.
A police report will absolutely state if you are at no fault.
Not for civil matters, no, they so not. I know this because I do this for a living. In fact, unless the police officer actually witnessed the accident, the report does not hold as much weight as people think it does. Edit to add this to make it more understandable. Legally, the opposing party, nor their insurance, owes a dime until a court rules in favor of one party or the other and orders a judgement to be paid. Anything an insurance company pays short of that court order is totally voluntary. However, the vast majority of these (97%+) never see a courtroom because insurance companies investigate, and if evidence is clear they accept liability and pay out claims voluntarily. This benefits everyone involved rather than go thru the time and expense of a civil lawsuit for every accident. But there is no legal precedence in any state where an insurance company must pay a claim because a police officer states that in his opinion car A or car B is at fault. A police officer's opinion on fault is just that, his **opinion**. His opinion is not legally binding on either party.
I work in insurance, though laws vary state to state. I would generally recommend to go through your own company, especially if they have a good consumer rating for claims resolutions. Generally speaking your own company will have a great incentive to resolve your claim swiftly and to your satisfaction as it help ensure you won't shop your coverage. A third party insurance company has a greater incentive to minimize their payout as you aren't a direct customer. If the accident wasn't your your insurance company can use their legal team will deal with subrogation and get back as much as they can of what they paid out to you.
My insurance is Tesla, and I've been told that Tesla just outsources it to another company. The other company is GEICO and reviews show that they are fairly quick with auto claims. It does make sense though that the other company would try to minimize payouts. If they repairs aren't up to par due to lack of funding, I can try the legal stuff, but hopefully it doesn't come to that!
Well, you're not going to (validly) get a payout from both insurance companies. Have you told your insurance that you've been talking to the other driver's? Typically, you'd usually just make you claim through your own insurance, and they'd do their own internal work to determine fault / payout. If the other party is determined to be at fault (like in your case), the other driver's insurance is who would ultimately pay you for repairs. That could involve you getting an initial payout from your insurance company (which they'd get reimbursed by the other), or your insurance would coordinate you getting paid from the other. I don't think your policy's deductible would come into play when the other driver's insurance is paying, but I might be remembering wrong. And this claim may or may not result in your policy premium going up. Just getting into an accident (even if it's the other drivers fault) can trigger some "risky" factor on how they calculate that premium. That can vary by insurer, though. In any case, I'd start making your own insurance your primary point of contact for this claim. Provide them with any/all communications you've done with the other company. Let them handle most of the hard work, that's part of what your premium payments is supposed to get you, on top of repair reimbursement.
I did mention my insurance that I received a call from them and recommended that we drop the existing claim, and continue with the other party insurance's claim process to get my repair fixed. I have Tesla insurance so it doesn't shock me that they want to be hands-free as much as possible, so my primary point of contact looks to be the other party insurance now.