Uninsured Drivers/Legal Advise

About ½ way thought my 20min drive home from work, traffic ground to a halt. Three seconds later I was rear ended. I turns out the 20 year old driver had a warrant out for his arrest, expired tags, and NO INSURANCE. His first words to me are “I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying attention, I have a warrant out, I meant to turn myself in, I’m going through a rough period in my life, I have no insurance, can will just try to take care of it with out calling the cops”. Now I have plenty of experience extorting guilty drivers and negotiating a cash settlement with out involving insurance companies, but this guy gave me the impression that I couldn’t trust him any further than I could throw him. It was dark and I couldn’t accurately assess the damage. Plus, it is a little Japanese car and my experience with these go carts is that the damage is difficult to check visually.

So I call the cops. This was not easy for me to do as I’ve had plenty of bad experiences with the man and I honestly felt a touch sorry for this guy. I felt as though I had no other choice. Without a police report, I can’t make an uninsured motorist claims. So Statie shows, makes us fill out an accident report, tells me I can get a copy of the accident report in 5 days, and sends me on my way.

1. Can making an uninsured motorist claim increase your insurance premiums? Do you have to pay your deductible?
2. Am I ever going to get a cent of this guy? Do I have to take him to civil court to try to get damages?
3. If I make an insurance claim, do I loose my right to take him to court?
4. Is their anything else I need to know?

[rant] People need to be responsible for their own actions. This choad will have to pay fines up the ass to the man for all his violations. Meanwhile, I eat a dick sandwich. The system is set-up to fail. It’s a catch 22, the more uninsured drivers there are, the higher everyone’s rates. The higher the rate, the more people who can’t afford insurance, the more uninsured motorists there will be. In the course of my 15yrs of driving, I’ve paid enough in insurance to pay for a brand new F250 PowerPoke. I’ve made less than $1K in claims, had 3 tixs in my live, and was involved in one parking lot fender bender. WTF! [/rant]

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Originally posted by Foggy_Goggles

People need to be responsible for their own actions.

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Think of how many times he may have done this and gotten away with it.

you might have some small claims court options. You will have to pay your deductible. The cherry on top is that your premiums will most likely rise.

Situations like this make my head unscrew. you absolutely did the right thing in calling the cops. the only way this kid will learn is by getting more stick than carrot.

Foggy.....

What state are you in?

I feel your pain. Last year I was broadsided while biking by a guy making a left into a sidestreat. He didn't speak english, had no plates, was most likely not a legal resident. And he offered me a few bills. My stupid chincy bike is smashed though, and i dont know if its gunna cost $20 or $1000 to fix besides medical bills. The entire left front of this guys car is dented in and and all the glass is smashed. Anyway, this is a month after I was just drilled by some idiot while walking in a parking lot. Who I let off. So not wanting to be hosed by bike costs, i wait while some kid calls the police. I felt bad for this guy, who prob. just got off of work from some job and really didnt need this. but hey, im beat up real good and my bike is not so much intact. So of course this guy just hops in the car and speeds off at the first chance. Cops never find him. I get hosed with the costs. Sometimes you don't have time to talk stuff out. shit happens. Theres not a lot you can do. Even if you feel sorry for him, driving uninsured with a warrant out for his arrest carries inherent risks. He got busted, he's gunna have to deal sometime.

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Originally posted by irul&ublo
Foggy.....

What state are you in?

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Colorado

Not schooled in Colo. law, but, in Ca.:

1. U/M coverage is something you pay extra for. But not sure if you need it here. Do you have collision coverage? If you do, the U/M should/would cover that portion which your collision did not.

2. As you're not at fault, it shouldn't affect your rates, but check with the agent.

3. As to deductible...not sure. But U/M should cover your collision deduct. Again, check w/agent.

4. You can still sue the guy.

At least in California, EVERYTHING affects your rates (except of course stuff that would decrease them). If you're the unluckiest person in the world, and you get rear-ended once a month, you rates are going to go up.

I was hit and run by an asshole on a sportbike a few months ago, so I talked to my insurance company about it. The cost of repairs was equal to my deductible, and if I made the claim, it was going to result in an increase in my premium, so I didn't see any reason to make a claim.

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Originally posted by AntiSoCalSkier
At least in California, EVERYTHING affects your rates (except of course stuff that would decrease them). If you're the unluckiest person in the world, and you get rear-ended once a month, you rates are going to go up.

I was hit and run by an asshole on a sportbike a few months ago, so I talked to my insurance company about it. The cost of repairs was equal to my deductible, and if I made the claim, it was going to result in an increase in my premium, so I didn't see any reason to make a claim.

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This is what I think is gonna happen. After inspecting the damage in the garage, I think I just need a new bumper assembly. I have a pretty good agent who I'm thinking will let me know the skinny and the rates and such.

I think the next thing I'll do is get an estimate.

side note: while in college I made a hit and run claim after my rig got hit the my parking lot. I knew who did it and had evidence but the pigs would not investigate. I got paid out the the fukkers dropped me.

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Originally posted by irul&ublo
Not schooled in Colo. law, but, in Ca.:

1. U/M coverage is something you pay extra for. But not sure if you need it here. Do you have collision coverage? If you do, the U/M should/would cover that portion which your collision did not.

2. As you're not at fault, it shouldn't affect your rates, but check with the agent.

3. As to deductible...not sure. But U/M should cover your collision deduct. Again, check w/agent.

4. You can still sue the guy.

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In CO U/M coverage is mandatory. I have full coverage. We just went to a tort law system.

If I take him to court, what am I suing for if the insurance company has already made the repairs?

Foggy - don't let this shit get you down. File the U/M, make sure you aren't whiplashed (IF you are, go to the ER NOW). But anyway, just get your rig fixed and take care of yourself, top priority. Don't bother suing the guy, it's the insurance company's job to get themselves reimbursed and it sounds uncollectible. If your company jacks your rates, call Progressive.

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Originally posted by AntiSoCalSkier
The cost of repairs was equal to my deductible, and if I made the claim, it was going to result in an increase in my premium, so I didn't see any reason to make a claim.

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Fucking insurance crap. There's something just inherently wrong with this. It's a law that you have to have insurance, but yet it's not against the law for them to fuck you over the first chance they get. Even worse is that some companies will drop you after your first claim. That's just bullshit! [/rant]

As my attorney once said " Insurance companies don't own big skyscrapers because they pay claims."

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Originally posted by Foggy_Goggles
In CO U/M coverage is mandatory. I have full coverage. We just went to a tort law system.

If I take him to court, what am I suing for if the insurance company has already made the repairs?

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Hey foggy, CO just passed a bill a few months back, U/m is now optional. But if I am not mistaken it is there to protect you if you hit a U/M, not if one hits you??

I asked one of my friends that knows about these things, she said pretty much what IRUL said.

You will have to pay your deductible, it won't affect your insurance premiums because it was "No fault" on your part. You can ask him to pay your deductible and if he refuses you can sue him. Or you can just sue him. Worst comes to worst, you are out whatever your deductible is. Best bet is to sue him anyway, to at least get your damages paid for. I hate the civil suit society that we have become but it is the best way to teach him a lesson. I hate uninsured drivers as well, we pay out the ass because of them.

hope it works out for you.

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1. Can making an uninsured motorist claim increase your insurance premiums? Do you have to pay your deductible?
2. Am I ever going to get a cent of this guy? Do I have to take him to civil court to try to get damages?
3. If I make an insurance claim, do I loose my right to take him to court?
4. Is their anything else I need to know?

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Well, I only have experience for being in an accident like this, so I can only speak from my experience....

1) I doubt you'll see an increase in premiums from this. But if you end up with something else in the near future, you MAY see an increase. It depends on a ton of factors.

2) You're existing coverage includes Uninsured Motorists coverage. It will be the company's responsibility to get after that guy. I'm not 100% sure if you're even liable for the collision deductable here.

3) As in #2, it will be your insurance company's responsibility.

4) You did the right thing. You should make a claim on this as well. The only time I wouldn't is if a) the accident was my fault or b) the other person involved seemes COMPLETELY trustworthy. It's tough call beacause of the circumstance sometimes, but in this case it was easy - file the claim.

I T-boned an uninsured drunk leaving a bar once. He fled the scene too. I got to learn a lot about Uninsured Motorists and Leaving the Scene laws.

I hope I helped. Good luck on this. Stay clean for awhile, and you'll be fine.

In Washington you file your claim, your insurance company pays for the repair. You pay nothing. Then they (insurance co.) go after the UM to get their money back. I bought a Corona wagon once and before I made the first payment a guy in a BIG Lincoln came around a corner and hit me. He had just moved up to Seattle with his mom to go to UW Hosp for treatment for sickle cell anemia. No license, no insurance, not much time to live left either. Shit, talk about feeling sorry for someone. Insurance had no problem paying but they never got a cent back, except for my premiums of course. My rates did not go up. My rates have never gone up for filing a claim. They do sometimes get raised when the annual renewal time comes around and everyone gets a raise.
So to make a long story even longer, just file your claim, let the insurance company fix and pay for your car and worry about getting money from the guy. You should be fine. Just make sure you aren't hurt. You don't want to settle and find out three weeks later your neck or back is hurting. Sometimes it takes awhile for that stuff to show up. You probably shouldn't talk with your agent about those 10 foot cliff drops while skiing. You know, just in case. ;)

So what insurance company should I go with? (switching from USAA)

Summit,

esurance dot com

The kid should be sentenced to be your ski caddy for the next 5 years. You hike, he hikes, but he carries your shit.

"Oh kid, this looks deep. Can you run to the car and get my Big Stix 103's. Oh, and put a rush on it bitch."

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Originally posted by SummitCo 1776
So what insurance company should I go with? (switching from USAA)

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DON'T

I've never had a problem with USAA and they're tons cheaper then anyone else!