I am going NUTS!!!!

I just got home from my accident tonight.

The 1990 Nissan 240 ran the redlight and now my car is trashed! I am so pissed, the car is just over 2 months old. Now I have to file a police report and deal with the insurance company. I guess it doesn't matter what happened, the insurance company will determine whose fault is it. All I have to say is it better not be mine! Anyhow, I just had to vent, thanks for listening! Be careful out there, it is not you, it is the other people you have to worry about.

 

Did the airbags deploy?

What a freakin bummer....

Sorry to hear about that. Is it totaled?

 

No, the airbags did not deploy because I was going 20MPH tops.

I don't know if it is totalled, I will have to wait for the insurance appraiser to look at it. However, the tow truck driver, who is also a mechanic and a body shop tech told me that most likely the insurance company will not total the car and the damage is roughly $9K, and it will probably be in the shop for 3-4 weeks! What am I going to do now, I have been spoiled by the luxury and performamce of the S.

 

Sorry to hear that man!! It really sucks too, your car is only two months old. How bad is the damage?? Hope the insurance will pay to get all your car fixed.

 

I would go after insurance and try to convince them to total your car if possible.....$9K of dmg is alot, especially the Air-Bags didn't deployed....

Andy Kuo

 

How do you go about doing that? I have never done this before.

 

For $9k in damage, no ins company will total your car. I am an ins adjuster and a good rule of thumb is 20%. If the damage comes to within 20% of the value of the car, it is most likely a total. So, if you figure the value at $30k, for example, the damage would havd to be about $24k before the ins co will total it. I would file a claim against the OTHER driver's ins company!

 

Well, I guess it's all about insurance policies and coverage for different regions. For my car, I have put an additional of $15 a year for my premium, which covers my car for one year(only for new cars, and can have as many as 3 years... you just renew it every year). If my car suffers that much $$ worth of dmg, and/or the air-bags deployed, I actually have the option of fix the car, or total the car with insurance paying me the amount of the car w/out suffering any depreciation.

BTW, my premium is about $1220/yr(fully coverage), and 5 million coverage for Third Party Coverage.

AK

 

Sorry to hear about your accident, phantom. Even though it sounds like no one got hurt, it's still a major bummer. I hope it turns out ok for you with the other guy being at fault. Keeping the fingers crossed that the insurance will cover all repairs. Hang in there neighbor.

 

I know it will be hard to determine whose fault if he ran into a redlight... Make sure to get many witness as possible.....Witness is most important part of the claim....
Good Luck.....

 

Thanks guys, I will keep you all posted.

Nick, since you are such a great neighbor, could I borrow your TL-S on even days? I will use it Tues, Thurs, Sat, and you can use it the other days. Thanks, I will pick it up tonight!

 

Do the math here...if the damage is 9K and the car is worth 30K they are not going to total it out.

 

Just got back from my vaca and I'm sorry to hear that. I hope that it will be resolved soon.

 

I got two calls from my insurance company today, one from the office and the other from the appraiser. I was actually impressed by their speed. The one from the office wanted to know if anyone was hurt and if the statement I gave them on Sunday were all true. The appraiser wanted to let me know that he will be checking out my car tomorrow.

I got a Sunfire fromt he rental agency and I hate that piece of crap. I miss my TL-S... man, I wish I had stayed in Saturday night.

Hey, thanks for your support and compassion, I can't tell you how much that meant to me. It was hard to see my car in that condition, hope it doesn't happen to you guys!

 

Sorry, phantom, I have to turn down your proposal -- even my wife doesn't get to drive it THAT much.

Hope you're back on your feet (er, wheels) again soon.

 

Sorry to hear about your TL. How bad is your TL hit? If the frame is bent, insurance will total it. Let us know what they tell you.

 

btw.. insist on "genuine acura parts" as per the manual

 

I just got off the phone with my insurance rep and told me that I was not at fault and I will be getting a check as soon as the appraiser sends in the info. No points, no deductable...

Here is the kicker, the appraiser could not find the pricing for the 2002 Acura parts. So no I have to tow it to an Acura dealer and they will work with the appraiser. This is going to be a long process.

I will keep everyone posted as soon as I find out anything else.

 

A bent frame, even on a unibody car, doesn't guarantee that the insurance company will total it. That's why body shops have high-tech frame straightening equipment that cost them a fortune to purchase. They can even straighten the all-aluminum space frame Audi uses on the A8. True, a car with a straightened frame will probably never be the same again and I doubt I'd keep a car that sustained that much damage.

 

OK, here's the latest...

I called Herb C Acura in Framingham and I spoke with one woman and she had no clue what was going on. I asked her if I could tow my car to the dealership and have them work with the appraiser, she said no, all she wanted to do was redirect me to the parts department. "They will give you the prices of each part..." lady, I don't have the information, the appraiser told me to call you guys and they will work with you. "I will transfer you to the service department and they will give you the price." That was all she knew how to respond. I didn't want to carry on with her any longer so I told her to forget about it and guess what? "Let me transfer you to the..." I agreed so I would not have to listen to her.

Michelle at the service department was very pleasant and told me that they will tow my car to the dealership and they will work with the appraiser. "We do that all the time." I was like OK, why did you guys hire the other woman? Anyhow, Michelle called my insurance company and gave them my license plate number and they told her that the plate is a stolen plate. So she called me back and after 30 minutes of calling different people I finally called Michelle back and made a three way call to the insurance company. Me, Michelle, and the insurance lady were all on the phone to discuss the "stolen plate" matter. Well, The woman at the insurance company told me that they found out my license plate from some girl who works there that knows me. I was surprised but didn't really care because now they can start on my car appraisal and and start woking on it.

Now I am waiting for Michelle to call me back and let me know how much and what the damage is and they will collect the check right from the insurance company.

Sorry for the long post but I thought this may help someone else out in the future if this ever happens to you guys... hope not. I have never experienced anything like this and I find this to be a HUGE hassle.

 

Wait. You lost me with the three way call part of the story and the stolen plate. Why would the insurance company say the plate was stolen? And what does this have to do with them getting your plate from someone you work with?

Erik

 

Sorry, let me explain in more detail. I tried to shorten the story but I guess that didn't work.

Since my plates are brand new I had no idea what the number is so I checked the police report and submitted the number on the report as my plate number. Well, the cop's writing was horrible so I could not distinguish between 4 and 7 so I told them 7 when it is 4. With me so far?

OK, then, all three of us were on the phone to try to resolve this stolen plate matter and the woman at the insurance company told me that they actually found out what my real plate number is because one of the girsl that work at the insurance company knows me and they somehow tracked down the plate number. Weird but cool.

I hope I have clarified the story. Sorry for the missing pieces.

 

Sorry about your accident, but it is a good thing no one was hurt. After those accident pics of the guy from the integra, I cringe when I click to read an accident story here.

 

Thanks soundspeed. I am going through TL-S withdrawl.

 

Where are the pics?

 

Sorry to hear about the accident if I was you I would call teh insurance company and ask them for a car that was about the same as the type S. I don't think the sunfire is comprable do you? They should give you something that is atleast the size of a Maxima or Accord.

 

I did and they just avoided the question. I think insurance company should give you a rental that is comproable to the one you had but I guess that's not the case. Also, they will only cover 30 days and $900 max. After that I would have to contact the other driver's insurance company... it is a huge hassle!!

 

You are not going to believe what happened...

I got home yesterday and I got a letter from a law firm stating that they have been retained by the other driver and her passenger to seek out personal injuries compensation due to my neglegence of operating of my motor vehicle. Son of a @#$%&. Those two were not hurt, and they are not now. They saw my car and the way I was dressed and all of a sudden they were injured. BULL$H!T!!

On the other hand, I got the appraisal done and the total came out to $5,377.53, almost $3K worth of new parts. The parts will arrive sometime next week and the whole repaire process will take around 2-3 weeks.

I am going through TL-S withdrawl and I can't even think anymore... not that I ever could have but that's not the point. Are there any kind hearted samaritans out there who can take me for a ride?? Is that too much to ask? ~sob~

 

Hey dude sorry about the accident glad no one is hurt....well now they claim to be hurt. First thing is to check to see if your frame was bent, they do have machines that will straighten them out but the car will never be the same. So if the frame was bent you might want to get rid of the car. As far as the suit, if the police report states the accident wasn't your fault you are fine, in NY we have a no fault law. Also you should sue the other person for damages to your car. Just my .02.

 

What's sad is that in most states even a driver found at fault in an accident can sue the other driver for personal injury.

I was in Florida with my Illinois registered Q45 and hit the back of a beater Econoline van at about 10MPH. Even though the police report said "no injuries" in either vehicle, the redneck in the truck tried to sue me. Being in another state caused the whole thing to go away because the bottom-feeding lawyer they retained was working on a contingency and was too cheap to go after me. Make sure you provide their attorney with "nothing" - you're not obligated to devulge any information not on the accident report. I received a letter from the redneck's attorney asking me for all of my liability insurance coverages on my home and car with the policy numbers and agent's names and phone numbers. They also wanted a detailed description of all of my assets and holdings. Yeah - right. Like I was going to make it easy for them.

 

They said the frame is slightly bent but no big deal... well now I am not so sure. However, I asked the girl at the dealer what if I am not satisfy with the repair and she told me that they would do anything to correct any problems. Let's see, I may have to fight with my insurance company on this.

As far as suing the other driver... on what grounds? I would hate to waste my time and $$.

 

Have you told you insurance company about the letter from their attorney? You shouldn't have to deal with a suit at all. Your insurance company should be your first line of defense.

I've never been at fault or had anyone try to sue me in the two accidents I had. Then again, one of the accidents, the girl hit my car while it was parked. I would have to be amused if she had tried to sue ME for that.

Erik

 

I have informed and faxed the letter to my insurance company so they are aware of it. I just feel that I am being taken advantage of and NO ONE takes advantage of me. I guess it is really about the principle of things not really the money.

 

Sorry to hear about your car BUT.... trust me the matter of the lawsuit is more important right now. I was involved in an accident a few years back where both cars were totaled and the other driver was clearly at fault and they sued me anyway. If you dont do anything about this they might be able to claim "damages" and your insurance company will pay them and then your premiums will go up!
I didnt know that the people i was in an accident with were suing me until about a month later. They were trying to get more money from my insurance co. My ins agent called and told me, so i said i had pictures (which i did) of the accident scene. My ins company told their lawyer this and they dropped their claim!
Hope everything works out.

 

Argue with your adjuster and TRY to get the car totalled! Last September some blonde bimbo ran a red light and turned into the front corner end of my Infiniti Q45. The damage from that was close to $10K and it was not totalled. Sad to say the Q was NEVER the same and was in the shop every month. Fortunately, we had a massive flooding in Houston and our Q was flooded. At first we were saddened and then it was totalled and we were panicked......and then we bought our '02 Type S, Black on tan.
Now we are happy again.

So, back to your dilemna, at all cost try to get this totalled. No matter how well built a car is (like our Q45), it will never be the same. Just keep thinking of going to the dealership and being able to buy another TS....that will keep you fighting.

TL4Mo

 

Can you really argue with the adjuster and have him total the car? They said it is a minor bend and they can fix it and I would never know the difference. Are they lying?

 

You can't force your insurance company to total a brand new car. There's a formula they use (damage vs. car value) to determine if a car is "totaled". Since your car is so new, and the damage not that severe, there's probably not a lot you can do. Someone on either this board or the CL board is an insurance adjuster and did mention that you can make a claim for "reduced value" caused by the accident. The insurance company basically reimburses you in advance for the lower amount you'll receive when you sell the car because of the damage. Good luck.

 

I got the official police report today and I think the cop is saying that I ran the red light. There is no way in hell I could have run the red light because I was at a dead stop of a red light. Also, the distance traveled from the stop line of the other driver is further than the distance from my stop line so how could I have run the yellow light and cause the accident? This is getting out of control and it sucks!

 

I feel your pain.

In '94 I was coming to an intersection with three lanes, a left turn only lane, a straight lane, and a straight/right turn lane. I was in the left turn only lane slowing down because the light was turning yellow, when a minivan that was in the straight lane already past where the solid white lines separated the lanes decided that it wanted to be in my lane instead and cut me off. My '92 Dodge Colt with no ABS was not going to be stopping and I hit the van in the side. CRUNCH!

Anyway, the van was full of five 16 year old girls and one boy from Rhode Island (this was in CT) and their excuse was "We're from Rhode Island, we didn't know you couldn't cross a solid white line." Please! The cop (a young male) gave them a written warning for crossing the white line and gave ME a verbal warning for "failure to stop for a yellow light"! I surely did stop, I wasn't anywhere NEAR the yellow light yet when I came to a HALTING stop thanks to the van.

So anyway, THEIR insurance company decides that I am 100% at fault and sues me. It took a YEAR to straighten out, but my insurance company fought for me and I got my deductible back and my premiums never went up. Your insurance company WILL fight for you because they don't want to pay for other drivers' mistakes.

Good luck!

 

Did you get the name/numbers of any witnesses? Does the police report mention any witnesses? The only way you could cast doubt on the police report (since the police weren't actually there, right?) is to bring in actual witnesses who can validate your version of the events.

Otherwise, the police report is very compelling evidence, I would think.

Erik