Auto insurance claims, accident reports.....?s

[Ecomike]

Does anyone here know much about current Texas rules (regs) for reporting an auto accident that happened on an open beach, off the main road in a parking area on the sand beach area near the water?

My daughter was backing up to turn around from a row of parked vehicles on the beach near the water when another vehicle (speeding, doing about 25-30) on the beach, and waving to the beach people (and not looking where she was going) headed straight for my daughters jeep, and plowed into her finally. My daughter stopped backing up after backing up about 5 feet. My daughter had a clear view of the left side, the direction the car was coming from). When she saw her coming, she stopped and was trying to shift into drive (it was obvious the car was not stopping) after stopping, to try and pull back up some, but about 4-5 seconds after stopping the other girl plowed into the rear side of my daughters jeep.

The other driver admitted to my daughter that it was her fault on the scene of the accident, and said her insurance would cover our jeep damage, but now the other side and the insurance company is trying to say it was (or might have been) my daughters fault, so they are dragging their feet now.
We only have liability coverage, and since they were saying they would cover the damages with their liability insurance to pay for our repairs, I had not (yet) notified my insurance, and I was not even sure if I would need to ( it was off road, on the beach, they drove into a jeep that was not moving for at least 4-5 seconds, and so on). So know I am wondering what to do next.
They might as well have driven into a parked car.

I did report the accident to their insurance operations in blow by blow detail, filing a claim with them. I saw no reason to bother my insurance carrier.

Is my daughter liable for an idiot that drives into her parked jeep?

I am thinking of suing Allstate in small claims court for the damages (or least threatening them) if they don't give in soon, but are we obligated to file a report with my insurance carrier or the Texas highway department for an off road, non-city, out in the county (I think), on the beach, accident.

Last time I had to deal with crooks (Insurance, and liers) like this was 30 years ago when an old lady drove into the side of me when I was parked, trapped in a traffic jam, not moving for nearly 60 seconds trying to complete a left turn that I got cut off from completing, then 1 minute later this 80 year old blind women takes off from a stop light, 60 seconds away from me, drives straight into my side 60 seconds later. She did not even slow down! My insurance would not fight for me just raised my insurance rates and paid me using my own comp coverage.

OH, and her husband showed up with a Polaroid camera about 2-3 minutes after the accident (Had insurance fraud claim set up written all over it) and the police officer would not use the only witness testimony to ticket her because the witness knew me (casual aquantance, next door business owner to where I worked).

 

[90Blue_XJ]

Did you file any type of police report, county sheriff or beach patrol? I think you have little to stand on w/o it.

 

[Ecomike]

Did you file any type of police report, county sheriff or beach patrol? I think you have little to stand on w/o it.

Not yet. Last time I checked (about 20 years ago) they changed the law to require people to move vehicles off the road if the accident was not serious (non-lethal for instance) like under $xxxx dollars in damage....., so as to not tie up busy police and traffic, while waiting for police to arive just to file a police report. The law instructed the drivers to file accident reports later with the TDPS with in XX number of days (10-20?), said accident reports are used for statistical safety analysis to determine high frequency accident intersections that need stop sign (4 way) upgrades or stop light upgrades.

Allstate has said nothing to me about filing a police or other report, but has bugged me to file a report with my insurance.
In my experience if you let the two insurance companies start talking directly, they will work out a least cost to them deal and highest cost to the drivers deal and screw us all over.

 

[eflores]

you need to contact mischiefman.....his boss is a *&^% oh wait maybe its him....he is a paranormal er paralegal and con probably lead you in the right direction

 

[Swamprat]

accidents bring the suck period!

 

[Ecomike]

accidents bring the suck period!

Yep, it's kinda like the JEEP acronym, Just Empty Ever Pocket!

I found some answers to my questions at:


http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview/id/546061.html

 

[MischiefMan]

The google answer is correct. If a non-injury accident, you are just supposed to exchange info.

You can then contact the police department and file a report.

If the property was private, or even semi-private, you can bet they have insurance, so you can file a claim with them.

I'm willing to bet that your daughter's insurance requires you to notify them of the incident.

Uh..yeah, good luck with Allstate. We won't even take cases with claims against them because it is more work than necessary. I would strongly recommend that you have your daughter file the claim with her insurance company and allow them to deal with Allstate. What the two companies work out has very little to do with having your daughter's vehicle fixed/repaired.

My guess is also that, based on your recount of the events and timing, that Allstate will claim contributory negligence. From what I read, your daughter was backing up...saw the other vehicle...stopped in it's path...and sat there. I'm not saying that's what happened, I'm just playing Devil's Advocate based on how I've seen Allstate handle things in the past.

Check with an attorney, but I'm also willing to bet that your daughter would need to sue the driver of the other vehicle NOT Allstate. Allstate has done no damage to your daughter and therefore you have no claim against them.

Good Luck man!

 

[Ecomike]

Not an option as we only carry the required minimum liability insurance so my insurance has no motive to collect anything for us. I no longer believe in insurance, gave up on that idea 20 years ago. Several other long sad stories!!!!

It's just organized crime in my view anyway. :lecture: So is the legal profession!

It costs a corporation lots of legal $ attorney time just to reply to a small claims court suit. Only costs me $50 (at least that was rate last time I filed). It would be cheaper for Allstate to pay me off for the minor costs of my claim.

Why would I sue the driver and not Allstate, since Allstate has already admitted she has liability insurance with them? Allstate has already accepted my claim.

The Allstate field adjuster agreed to total my jeep, salvage value $1,000, for the damages, as the damages roughly equal the salvage value.

They can claim what ever they like, the fact is the other driver was screaming out the left window and waving and looking out the left window at the people on the beach, speeding on a soft sand beach, driving in the oncoming traffic left lane (not the right lane) when she plowed into a stopped car. She was not there when my daughter started backing up into her lane, and my daughter was watching to the right rear for oncoming traffic in her lane, but checked both directions first. Then the other car came out of no-where, my daughter stopped, tried to shift to drive to pull back up but was hit before she could move. Witness says the other driver had 4-5 seconds to stop, or swerve to the right , she had a 50 ft berth to go around my daughter and switch to her proper lanes, but she did not, she drove straight into the side of my daughter's jeep while the other driver stayed in the oncoming traffic lane.

Allstate wrote the liability policy for the other driver, that gives me claim against them.

My insurance can "require" whatever they like, so can I, LOL, but that does not mean either of us will get it. If I drive my jeep into my tree, my insurance company will be the last to hear about it, not happening. All my jeeps are old, fully paid for junkers. Another reason I only carry liability, and I only carry it because it is cheaper than tickets for no insurance. State laws requiring auto insurance are just legalized extortion, legalized crime IMHO.

OK, rant is over, for now.
But thanks for replying, even if I did not like some of your answers, LOL.

The google answer is correct. If a non-injury accident, you are just supposed to exchange info.

You can then contact the police department and file a report.

If the property was private, or even semi-private, you can bet they have insurance, so you can file a claim with them.

I'm willing to bet that your daughter's insurance requires you to notify them of the incident.

Uh..yeah, good luck with Allstate. We won't even take cases with claims against them because it is more work than necessary. I would strongly recommend that you have your daughter file the claim with her insurance company and allow them to deal with Allstate. What the two companies work out has very little to do with having your daughter's vehicle fixed/repaired.

My guess is also that, based on your recount of the events and timing, that Allstate will claim contributory negligence. From what I read, your daughter was backing up...saw the other vehicle...stopped in it's path...and sat there. I'm not saying that's what happened, I'm just playing Devil's Advocate based on how I've seen Allstate handle things in the past.

Check with an attorney, but I'm also willing to bet that your daughter would need to sue the driver of the other vehicle NOT Allstate. Allstate has done no damage to your daughter and therefore you have no claim against them.

Good Luck man!

 

[MischiefMan]

Not an option as we only carry the required minimum liability insurance so my insurance has no motive to collect anything for us. I no longer believe in insurance, gave up on that idea 20 years ago.

Option or not, I bet your policy requires that you notify them.

It's just organized crime in my view anyway. :lecture: So is the legal profession!

HA!!!!! There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with the legal profession. We just do what our clients pay us to do. The fact that we took the time to learn the rules does not make us the bad guys. The information is available to everyone just as it is to us....all ya gotta do is read it! But seriously, don't blame the legal peeps, it's the wankers that hire us that you should hold disdain for.

It costs a corporation lots of legal $ attorney time just to reply to a small claims court suit. Only costs me $50 (at least that was rate last time I filed). It would be cheaper for Allstate to pay me off for the minor costs of my claim.

Unless that corporation wins and requires you to pay their fees. I STRONGLY urge for you to seek legal counsel.

Why would I sue the driver and not Allstate, since Allstate has already admitted she has liability insurance with them? Allstate has already accepted my claim.

Again, Allstate has not damaged you in any, shape, or form. You have no claim against Allstate. The mere fact that you do not like the way they are handling the claim is not their fault. Not to mention that you have a legal obligation to mitigate your damages. I STRONGLY urge for you to seek legal counsel.

They can claim what ever they like, the fact is the other driver was screaming out the left window and waving and looking out the left window at the people on the beach, speeding on a soft sand beach, driving in the oncoming traffic left lane (not the right lane) when she plowed into a stopped car.

I'm certainly not going to engage in a debate with you regarding the possible legal positions and rules. I was merely trying to offer you a bit of info on one possible way it could be handled. Nor will I engage in a debate with your regarding the difference between public, semi-public, and private lands and the different rules, laws, rights, and regulations that apply to each one. I will say this however, while everyone has the reasonable expectation that he/she is able to travel freely and safely within the United States, that reasonable expectation also extends to the wrong-doer. You seem annoyed that your daughter could not enjoy the same reasonable expectation that you are claiming the other driver should not be able too. Double standards don't work real well with the law man. I STRONGLY urge for you to seek legal counsel.

Allstate wrote the liability policy for the other driver, that gives me claim against them.

Quite frankly, you sir, are mistake on this statement. Yes, Allstate wrote the liability policy to protect their insured, not the other driver. The contract is with their insured, not you. They owe a duty to their insured to protect them. They owe no duty to you. The driver of the other vehicle owes you such a duty. I STRONGLY urge for you to seek legal counsel.

If you desire to pursue a claim against Allstate, more power to ya man....I STRONGLY urge for you to seek legal counsel prior to doing so however.

It sounds more like you want to bitch, moan, vent, and complain than develop an actual understanding for the workings of the situation that you originally described....so, I'll leave ya to that.

 

[eflores]

hmm maybe you should call a lawyer dude

 

[imwally]

Okay not to hijack but what do you do for a living MischiefMan. You have a lot of good info and it really sounds like you have done this before or you are part of the legal system or insurance. Just asking

 

[5-90]

@MischiefMan -

Nothing against attorneys or paralegals (I used to date an attorney, and I'm married to a paralegal,) but the problem I have with the system is that it was made overly complex for no apparent reason.

Do you see any logical reason why the common man should not be able to "learn the rules" (your words) to which he is subject and understand them fairly easily?

This is the genesis of my personal issues with the "legal profession" - the system has been made needlessly complex, the common man generally does not (or can not) understand the rules to which he is subject, there are dated rules still in force that no longer apply, and it's damned near impossible to keep all of the rules straight so you can understand them. Why for can't the total body of law to which one is subject be contained in a single volume about the size of a middlin' long novel, suitable for consumption in a week or so?

I can understand specialisation in medicine - there are quite a few systems involved in the human body. There's no real reason for specialisation in law - except that the system is overly complex, and probably likely to collapse under its own weight.

Riposte?

 

[Ecomike]

Food for thought.

One of my ex-business partners (an attorney) told me that the first thing they teach law students in law school school, is "to get the money". Second they teach them, is "that if there is any money left after step 1, get the rest of the money as step 2". :laugh3:

On another note, I just got a great deal on car insurance from Gieco! LOL, just taking a chuckle break guys!

Mischiefman,

A cordial thanks to you for taking the time to respond, even if I don't like or agree with some of your answers, thanks anyway.

Now I am going to step to the side lines and watch the mayhem as the sharks seem to be circling, LOL. Have at it guys! (that means you 5-90!, & imwally).

eflores,

Question, was your response directed at me (seriously, or jokingly), or directed at Mischeifman?

For those that might be curious, I filed a claim with my insurance carrier today, on the off chance that Allstate my grow some b*lls, or loose their sanity and decide to fight me on this claim. My insurance agent said that filing the claim with my insurance would only raise my liability insurance by about $80/year. I was a bit shocked (so I will believe it when I see it, as I lost all trust in insurance agents and insurance companies not long after loosing my virginity)

I am preparing a typed dissertation as to the chain of events along with blow by blow drawings of the accident scene. I suspect that once Allstate sees the amount of effort I put into the report, and the quality and professionalism of the report, and the detail of the report, and details and witnesses, I might just get them to budge by suggesting that I am prepared to file a claim in small claims court if they deny my claim. Small claims court is costly for corporations, and real cheap for individuals, and they know that. It would much cheaper for them to pay me the small amount of my claim. Oh, and I have never lost a legal battle, probably because I did not have lawyer on my side in most of my battles.:laugh3:

 

[dhyatt]

I have had good luck having to deal with insurance companies and even HBPD. Legal Eagles are amazed that I got Huntington Beach to settle an accident where we were rear ended by a police car stopped at a red light.
If you are not in a no fault state, it is simple...sue in small claims. Dont forget ALL your expenses. You are suing the chick driving and the owner of the vehicle BOTH.
If you are really lucky, the other side doesnt show up you win by default
Even if they show up, you stick to the basics....SHE HIT you, while she was doing 30mph in a 10mph zone, while you were stopped. Where she was endangering lots of people. You have a witness that was not in the vehicle with your daughter (even if she was that is fine).
You feel your vehicle is worth $3000 (or $5000), you want court costs, and loss of use of the vehicle ($1000)
No I am not an attorney...I had 14 accidents in one year (2 officially my fault, had there been dash cams, none would have been my fault). I learned to be professional and nice to the insurance company and usually they will be fair to you for small property damage claims. As they expect these claims to be at $5000-$10,000.
If you are in a no fault state....the answer is no nothing nada fire your state legislators.

 

[Ecomike]

dhyatt,

Now were talking! Thanks for joining in here.

14? Accidents! OMG! Talk about experience, LOL.

Right now Allstate is refusing to give my any details on the witness they suddenly claim to have on their side, and will not give me missing details on the other party. My daughter only got the drivers license #, the car license Tags number, a phone number that does not work, the drivers name, and a bad policy number. Luckily Allstate gave me the good policy number after 6 days of hounding them in claims hell. But right now I don't where to serve them. Also don't who owns the car.

I have been very nice to Allstate so far.

 

[eflores]

seriously ecomike, get a lawyer and stick em....i hate insurance companies
that should clear it up

 

[MischiefMan]

Okay not to hijack but what do you do for a living MischiefMan. You have a lot of good info and it really sounds like you have done this before or you are part of the legal system or insurance. Just asking

I'm a "senior paralegal." I've been doing it for 10 years now and have 2 certifications (wipee )

@MischiefMan -

Nothing against attorneys or paralegals (I used to date an attorney, and I'm married to a paralegal,) but the problem I have with the system is that it was made overly complex for no apparent reason.

Do you see any logical reason why the common man should not be able to "learn the rules" (your words) to which he is subject and understand them fairly easily?

First no offense taken. I do enjoy the opportunity to attempt to clear-up the misconceptions that surround my professional world though.

Secondly, the rules, codes, laws, regulations, statutes, etc. are all written in plain, simple English. They are all readily available for anyone to read. Most are even annotated somewhere to provide a very simple explanation. I have never found any of the above written in anything other than plain, simple English, so I'm not quite sure what you're asking.

From my perspective, and yes I freely admit that it is tainted by experience, and I do not mean this as a slight on anyone, the problem is not the system, it's the laziness of the citizens. The voluminous quantity of rules that have been written is, quite simply, daunting. When you combine that with the fact that English is a horribly stupid language with several meanings to the same word, it can become overwhelming.

Not to mention the fact that the media has skewed the reality of it all into something that it is not.

What amuses me is that people can complain about the law being complicated or too vast, but then turn around and recite every sport stat from every team that has ever played whatever sport. Or, perhaps, recall ever part on a Jeep XJ that can be upgraded, what parts to use to upgrade, where those parts can be obtained, how much it will cost, and a step-by-step procedure for accomplishing the upgrade.

This is the genesis of my personal issues with the "legal profession" - the system has been made needlessly complex, the common man generally does not (or can not) understand the rules to which he is subject, there are dated rules still in force that no longer apply, and it's damned near impossible to keep all of the rules straight so you can understand them. Why for can't the total body of law to which one is subject be contained in a single volume about the size of a middlin' long novel, suitable for consumption in a week or so?

This brings us back to the beginning. It is not the legal profession to blame, nor it is the law makers. It is the people that employ us. It is the people who want something for nothing. It is the people who put their own selfish desires above those of the community or nation as a whole. It is the people who have created this situation, not the legal profession or politicians.

An example is that people want the right to bear arms. Then another groups comes along and wants to restrict those rights because of such and such, now this simple sentence has grown into a paragraph (kinda like this post huh?). Then some one who is now restricted wants to bear arms, so he/she attempts to get around the restrictions by challenging the meaning of the words used. Then that paragraph is expanded into a page so as to clarify. Then another group wants further restrictions based on these new definitions. Again, that simple idea is expanded and grows into a chapter. This goes on and on. Again, those of us who work to shape the laws are only doing so based on the bidding of others, we are not to blame.

I can understand specialisation in medicine - there are quite a few systems involved in the human body. There's no real reason for specialisation in law - except that the system is overly complex, and probably likely to collapse under its own weight.

This I must also disagree with....the need for legal specialization is immense! In my perfect world, there would only need to be ten laws...they just happen to be the Ten Commandments (even though I'm not a religious person per se). I have explained this problem above though. Too many people are too concerned with their personal agendas and protecting what they want regardless of the effect on others for this to work. Our society has become "the needs of the few outweigh the needs of the many."

If you want to get rid of this system (which I am all for btw), you would first have to attack the doctrine of parens patreai. The notion that our government is our parent (when we are actually property of the US government) is what damages us the most.

Just my opinion on all this mind you!

 

[xxmidianxx]

Oh now you got him started....

 

[MischiefMan]

seriously ecomike, get a lawyer and stick em....i hate insurance companies
that should clear it up

Sadly, it is a necessary evil however. I know that I've complained about insurance companies for years, but I sure didn't hesitate to make use of it when the 928 was hit.

 

[Ecomike]

seriously ecomike, get a lawyer and stick em....i hate insurance companies
that should clear it up

Thanks, but I have enough headaches and enough to do already with out adding an attorney to the mix again. Been there done that, too many times.:soapbox:

Took me 4 years to train (or attempt to train) the last one, LOL, and he nearly bankrupted me anyway. I am still cleaning up the mess that he left 5 years later.