Do we have any legal actions we can take?

[sheilaincali]

On Friday DH was T-boned while driving from the office to a job-site. 19 year old, uninsured motorist driving his mommy's 22 year old Honda ran a stop sign and slammed into DH's truck.
The cops impounded the car because the idiot had no insurance. He tried to flee the accident but stopped when he noticed DH ran up behind him and wrote down the license plate number.
So our insurance gets stuck picking up the tab. It's a 99 Chevy S-10 (paid for) with a blue book value of like $3200. The repair estimate is $4,031.77.

I have never (knock on wood) been involved with an accident before. What happens now? If insurance totals out the truck do they send us a check? For how much? How do we negotiate with insurance for money for the now obsolete topper that we have stored for the summer? What about the $700 we stuck into the truck a month ago to fix a transmission problem?

Can we sue the idiot kid for the damage to the truck?

What is our next step? Waiting for Insurance to decide if they are going to repair or total out the truck now.

[dancinmama]

So sorry. Hope your DH is okay. This is a major PITA when it happens, especially if you liked the vehicle.

DH rolled and totaled our Crown Vic (when we were all in it I might add), right after we had put new tires on it. We told the insurance co., they asked for the receipt, and they upped the settlement amount.

[thyme4change]

You can sue, but I bet you won't get any blood from that turnip.

I would talk to your insurance company. If you have a good one, they will go after the kid and the owner of the car and get whatever they can. Our insurance company even got our deductible refunded. But, unless mommy is a YM member that drives a 22 year old Honda just to brag about thrifty they are - you are probably dealing with a 19 year old kid with a negative net worth and his mom that is still living paycheck to paycheck.

[shanendoah]

The kid can definitely be sued. (I had a friend who was, same type of thing.) Start with talking to your insurance company- find out what their normal course of action in this situation would be (the damages might not be high enough for them to sue the kid, but check first).
You should also be able to contact your local DA and find out what their SOP is. From there, you should have enough info to look in to suing the kid.

I will note, though, that he will almost certainly be put on a payment plan, as he won't be able to afford the lump sum, and courts like payment plans. However, if he stops making payments, about the only course of action you have is to take him back to court to demand the balance- and if he doesn't have it, he doesn't have it.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Your best bet for negotiating with your insurance company is to provide them with ads of cars identical to what you had. IME, they deal with what the current market value of the car is, not KBB.

Chances are you will not get anything for the transmission or the topper. If you had new tires put on it, you may get some of those back but not much.

If the repair cost is more than the vehicle, they're going to total it out.

Since I was also hit by an uninsured driver (her insurance lapsed the day before she hit me), the only way I could get anything from her would be to sue her for my $500 deductible. I had no injuries, just a crashed 13 year old car. This was per my insurance company.

This truly sucks, been there done that.

[busymom]

I was involved in an accident with a kid who claimed he had insurance, but had none. My insurance company went after him, and covered my car (totaled) and medical expenses. I even got my deductible back. I suppose it depends on the laws in your state.

Hope your DH is o.k. And yes, this is a PITA. Let us know how things work out for you.

[sheilaincali]

We have USAA insurance- they told DH that they will "Definitely being going after him for the cost of the damages". From what I know USAA is pretty hardcore about collecting on this sort of thing.

We have the receipts for the transmission work just in case.

The kid- DH said he knew within about 2 minutes that the kid had no insurance. Claimed he "had that look about him" whatever that means. I doubt we will get anything out of the kid.

Now with the truck value- do they subtract my deductible from whatever amount they decide to give us for the truck? So if they say "$3500" will they take our $500 deductible from that and only give us $3000?

It's going to be really difficult to find another vehicle like that- truck was a 99 with only 60,000 miles on it and a perfect body, interior and paint job. We bought it from the mechanic that did all the service work on it. Was owned by an older gentleman that was obsessive about his maintenance. Our mechanic (that we bought it from and is practically related to us) is on the lookout for another truck for us.

[sheilaincali]

Sorry- should have mentioned- other than being super pissed DH is physically fine. He saw the kid was going to hit him so he sped up so the impact wouldn't be fully on the driver's side door. Hit on the back half of the door and front half (gas tank area) of the bed.

[bean29]

I was hit by an uninsured driver in Jan. I just got a letter from our insurer that they do not feel my deductible is collectible. It said if I want to pursue legal action I will have to do it on my own. I did not discuss it with DH yet, but I am seriously thinking about it.

We rented a car, if she had had insurance it would have been covered so she owes me a hundred or so for the rental plus the $500 deductible. I also wondered what the state says as we have a mandatory insurance law - is her license revoked or what?

Apparently the Dems put in the mandatory insurance with higher limits and the repubs took control and weakened the law. WTF, mandatory insurance sounds more like a republican thing than a democrat thing to me.

We did ok. DH took my car to the drive in claim center. We had to show we paid the first $500 then they wrote DH a check for the balance of the claim. DH found a cheaper garage to fix the car so my car is mostly back to normal and he paid less to fix it than what he got from the insurance co. They did not fix the driver's door right, but we have pretty much $$ left from the claim. He says he is taking it back but he has not done it yet.

We also had had the transmission re-done in December. It did not figure into my claim b/c my repairs were about $4,000 and my car was worth at least 7-8,000. I was surprised b/c I thought it was only worth a few thousand.

After my accident there was a witness waiting in a car and the driver who hit me in the car next to her. I got out of my car and took a pic of the license plate and pics of the frontal damage to her car. She looked surprised and upset by what I was doing. I don't know if she thought about taking off, but the pics prevented that. I will always take pics in the future.

[8 Bit WWBG]

I just wanted to say sorry that this happened to you. Best of luck.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Now with the truck value- do they subtract my deductible from whatever amount they decide to give us for the truck? So if they say "$3500" will they take our $500 deductible from that and only give us $3000?

Yes

It's going to be really difficult to find another vehicle like that- truck was a 99 with only 60,000 miles on it and a perfect body, interior and paint job. We bought it from the mechanic that did all the service work on it. Was owned by an older gentleman that was obsessive about his maintenance. Our mechanic (that we bought it from and is practically related to us) is on the lookout for another truck for us.

You'll be compensated by the insurance company for the low mileage. It'll be worth a couple hundred $$.

[thyme4change]

I don't think a recent repair or a new transmission will up the value of your vehicle because the value already assumes it is in good working order. Tires, however, seem to matter as that is part of a negotitation when selling a car.

[Deleted]

Given USAA's great reputation for insurance, I think you will be fine so long as you can document the low mileage and have the maintenance records.

You'll be out the deductible though. You can pursue an action through small claims court to recover the deductible from both the kid and his mother but you'll have to decide whether it's worth your time. And as every attorney will tell you collecting a judgment is another thing. If either is employed it might be worth it. Otherwise thank your lucky stars that DH is o.k.

[sheilaincali]

Thank you all for your advice and kind words. It always amazes me how many people skate through life ignoring common sense laws like having insurance. The cop asked DH is he really wanted to go on record with the fact that the kid ran the stop sign. DH said "Of course" Cop said- "well then you will have to be willing to go to court and state that to a judge" DH said "give me the time and place and I will be there!". Sounded like the cop was trying to talk DH out of charging that the kid ran the stop sign.

In summary-
We can negotiate with the insurance company over the value of the truck. We probably won't get any compensation for the now useless topper or the transmission work. They will deduct our $500 deductible from whatever value they assign to the truck. And we can sue the kid for our $500 deductible and any out of pocket expenses we incur but that's a gamble since he is probably broke.

Am I missing anything? Thank you all again for your advice. I knew that you all would be able to point me in the right direction.

[Clever Username]

Here are a few more thoughts:

1. If the insurance company doesn't go after him you have the right to.
Technically, thruogh subrogation, the insurance company deserves their payment to you back.
So, you get your deductible first, court costs next, insurance proceeds after that, then you get any if it's left.
Here's the fun part: BUT THEY GOTTA ASK.
I got an injury settlement a few years back, my medical insurance covered a lot of my expenses, if they ask I'll share it with them, I even notified them there was fault and a possible claim at the time. But, they never asked and it didn't seem big enough for them to take the lead.

2. I'm seeing a lot of work related verbage in your description. It's worth asking HR how they fit in. If there are medical bills, injury or disability they definately have insurance for that. Property? Maybe not, but it's worth asking.

[happyscooter]

If it was the mom's car, isn't she responsible?

[marvholly]

Not only can you go after the kid but you s/b able to go after the mom too. She 'allowed' an uninsured driver to use the car or was negligent in protecting her property & the general public.

Get a judgement and put a lien on EVERYTHING they own and/or find out where either/both work so the court can garnishee their wages to pay you/your insurance company.

This IS going to cost you in higher premiums so do NOT be too fast to settle if you can take the $$ hit.

[swamp]

Jun 1, 2011 7:08:37 GMT -5 happyscooter said:

If it was the mom's car, isn't she responsible?

Yes, but refer to Thyme's response regarding getting blood from a turnip.

[sheilaincali]

Clever: Yes he was at work but there was no injury or anything along those lines. He did stay "on the clock" while waiting for the cops to show up and all that. A co-worker of his got t-boned in the same intersection a few months ago- he tried to get them to pay for his damaged vehicle and they refused.

happyscooter: DH asked me that last night- if we could sue the mom and the kid. Going to call around today and see what my options are. Is something like Small Claims Court the way to go in this instance?

marvholly: I was naively hoping my insurance wouldn't take too big of a ding. 15 years with the same company and we have never filed a single claim- homeowners or auto wise.

Swamp- Oh I doubt well get much of anything out of them. Did a quick facebook search of the kid and his mom. A- people really should keep their settings private and B- there isn't much to take but they can garnish his future earnings can't they?

Damn kid needs to learn that there are consequences to his actions. He recklessly drives his mom's car with no insurance and runs a stop sign. No inconvenience to him except mommy's car gets towed and he gets a ticket. Meanwhile- we have to pay our deductible, get our car totaled out, shop for a new (to us) vehicle, pay for a rental and deal with this headache. Pretty sure that kid hasn't given the whole situation a single thought beyond "That sucks" since it happened.

[swamp]

Jun 1, 2011 8:27:25 GMT -5 sheilaincali said:

Swamp- Oh I doubt well get much of anything out of them. Did a quick facebook search of the kid and his mom. A- people really should keep their settings private and B- there isn't much to take but they can garnish his future earnings can't they?

Damn kid needs to learn that there are consequences to his actions. He recklessly drives his mom's car with no insurance and runs a stop sign. No inconvenience to him except mommy's car gets towed and he gets a ticket. Meanwhile- we have to pay our deductible, get our car totaled out, shop for a new (to us) vehicle, pay for a rental and deal with this headache. Pretty sure that kid hasn't given the whole situation a single thought beyond "That sucks" since it happened.

If you get a judgment against the kid, you have to keep track of him in the future and do an income execution wherever he's employed.

Just an FYI, in NY, being convicted of driving without insurance is a little more than "just a ticket." While the fine for the ticket itself is $150 to $1500, there are also some pretty severe civil penalities through the DMV. Your license will be revoked for at least a year and you won't be able to get a conditional or hardship license that will allow you to work, and then you have to pay a $750 penalty to get your license reinstated. Mom can also get the same ticket for allow uninsured operation.

[sheilaincali]

Swamp- Thanks for the info. I haven't check out how seriously they take no insurance in MN. The cop told DH "he doesn't insurance, but that's ok- it's what you pay extra on your premiums to cover people that drive without insurance" Gee thanks Mister

[muttleynfelix]

As far as the money goes on the vehicle, the insurance will offer you a settlement sheet. In it, there is the cost of the vehicle, minus deductible, and we also got a voucher for sales tax good for 6 months. We also had an offer if we decided to keep our vehicle which was the previous offer minus the salvage value. We had a check Fed-Exed to us (which was left on our front porch while we were not home... after the Fed Ex driver walked up our 700 ft long driveway in a half inch of snow).

[Deleted]

Did the mother have insurance that covered the vehicle, or an uninsured driver? I remember my insurance agent telling me about a case where a daughter took her mom's car and killed some people while driving drunk and the mom was also held liable.

[sheilaincali]

Muttley- sales tax voucher? Is that to be used towards the purchase of a new vehicle?

anne- I checked around on the MN website about that- from what I could find "the officer may send notice to the owner requiring them to provide proof of insurance" If she can't then she will be charged for failure to have insurance. The minimum fine is $200 (max. is $1000) and they can lose their license for 2 weeks.

I talked to the police department- fortunately they did do a police report. Apparently with budget cuts the individual officer can decide if he wants to do an actual report or not. If there is no bodily injuries they claim they are "optional" WTH? Anyone- in this case he did do a police report.

I talked to the courthouse about suing them. They told me how to go about it. I have to file in the County the kid lives in. Since the officer just wrote "Minnesota Street" on the form we have we have to track down which city he lives in. There are 5 Minnesota Streets within 30 miles of us and they are in 4 different counties Almost hoping it's a different county because ours is the biggest and small claims court is backed up into August so far.
They did tell me to ask an attorney as to whether I sue the kid or the mom (Driver or Owner).

[muttleynfelix]

The sales tax voucher can be used towards the purchase of any vehicle. It was for the sales tax on a vehicle equal to the amount we woud have gotten if we let them take the vehicle.

[sheilaincali]

Thanks for clarifying Muttley. We found a couple of trucks similar to DH's- same basic year and mileage. They are asking more than the KBB is on DH's truck. I was wrong- KBB on DH's truck is 4,200 not 3,200. One we found was the same year and same approximate miles as DH's but had a toolbox- and they want $5,500 for that. Going to use that and the others we found as negotiation for the settlement amount.
DH found that there is a clause that lets us tell the insurance company- "Ok, we'll accept that offer but rather than take the cash you have to purchase us a truck of similar year and mileage to what you totaled for that amount". Has anyone ever heard of that or tried that?

[Deleted]

If Mom is insured, her coverage will apply as long as she gave him permission to use the car. My understanding is that your own insurer (and USAA has a reputation as a class act) will pay your claim and then sort it all out and go after the responsible parties.

My son settles auto insurance claims fro a living and they do offer more for vehicles that were in excellent condition, so any proof you can supply for that would help. You're out of luck on the topper- they would argue that its market value wasn't affected by the accident even though it became worthless to you. Any way you can find a buyer for it if you don't get a duplicate replacement vehicle?

Edited to add: now that you know the replacement value is more than the repair estimate, would you consider having it repaired instead of totalled? The only drawback is that the market value will decrease because it's been in an accident. DS once had a claimant who was upside down on a car financed by JD Byrider and had zero money to pay off the shortfall she'd have if they just paid her the car value- he worked with her to find someone to repair it instead.

[lulubean]

Turn it around and ask yourself if you would like to be sued. The guy is 19, he prob has nothing.

[Clifford]

There is a law proposed to establish a database of insured drivers. Apparently many folks pay the first installment, get the card that says they are covered, then quit paying. The police, DMV, vehicle inspection stations, etc. could pull the database and check to see if a driver's insurace was current. However, certain groups are suggesting that the law would disproportionately impact some ethnic groups more than others, so chances are it will not get passed.

[Formerly SK]

I understand this situation sucks, but I'm a bit surprised as to the level of your outrage/venom. Bad things happen to "good people" all the time. Life has many many ups and downs and you can't be protected from 100% of it. In the grand scheme of things, there is nothing truly bad here (in other words....it could have been SO MUCH worse). For your own mental health, I'd focus on the good in this situation (your DH is OK) and move on. Spending years suing some kid so you can get your $500 in bits and pieces from his future minimum wage jobs sees somewhat crazy. Believe me, if the kid is as stupid as you say he is, he is already paying the price for his decisions. His life could be much better and it will probably always suck.