albeik

Hi everyone,

Driving along belmont street/rt9 on the 3rd lane in worcester with my brother to get something to eat. Next thing I know I see an Altima coming out from the left from a parking lot and it looked at first he was taking the first lane onto route9 -- but decided to take the second lane instead -- however next thing i know 1/3 of his car is on my 3rd lane!!!!

Next thing i know he hit me and scratched the whole right side of my car including the passenger side-mirror!! I am glad i waxed the car -- the scratch is not as deep! What is interesting is that his left side of the car was really in a bad shape... his left fender was broken very badly (looked like a deep cut!)

I had my t616 phone at the time and took three pictures of my car! (sorry for the quality)






I really feel sad.. :'( I am glad that I had my passenger side window down so non of the mirror pieces could've scratched the glass window.

The guy was driving an enterprise rental vehicle. I have all his information. The police officer pretty much told him in his face that he is at fault no questions asked!

Being this my first accident -- I need to make sure that I am doing everything right. The enterprise rental place is closed so i left a message and i'll call them tomorrow morning to get their insurance information.

Is their anything else I need to do till tomorrow morning?

EDIT: Moderators: Why aren't my images showing??

ryder1650

Sorry man. Good thing the cop layed down the law.

ryder1650

Oh I can see the images just fine.

arkk

The cop laid down the law, because he is the law!Sorry to see this, good luck on the repairs.

marquis

albeik, sorry to hear about that. Hope it all works out alright with the guy driving a rental. Keep us posted on how things play out.

albeik

I made a quick diagram of what happened! Sorry if I am venting -- but hopefully this can be fixed and make it look like new!

http://www.dockex.com/albeik/acuratl/accident.jpg

Xpditor

Get checked by your doctor in case you have some injuries that don't show until days later. His fees will be the responsibility of the offending driver.

Make sure and insist on genuine Acura replacement parts, not aftermarket.

They will be anxious to settle with you quickly before you can talk to a lawyer. Many adjusters will write you a check on the spot in exchange for a release of liability.

Make certain that ALL of your damages are covered, even hidden ones, and then some. If the accident caused you to be late for work or suffer indirect losses, include them as well.

Don't be in a hurry. Get an older person whose judgement you trust to guide you in order to get the best settlement.

Bottom line: you expect "to be made whole". You want the car just as it was before the accident. You have the right to pick your own repair facility but they will try and direct you to theirs. Call YOUR insurance company and report the accident. If you have collision insurance, you always have the option of claiming on that and letting your insurance company fight with them. Your insurance company will find out about it anyway since there is a police report.

When your car is laid up for repairs, you are entitled to a rental of like kind and quality so that you are not inconvenienced.

This is generic advice. I am not a lawyer. You should consult with an attorney for more specific information as it applies to your situation.

XP

albeik

Xpditor: your suggestions and comments are excellent. Thank you.

When I called my insurance company -- they asked me for the insurance name that enterprise uses and asked me to call enterprise to find that out -- however, they are closed and have to wait until tomorrow morning. As soon as I get the information from them -- I'll contact my insurance and inform them of everything.

Check!

An older person from the rental insurance company?

Is their at any point I need to contact my Acura Dealership? My car is a lease -- should that make any difference?

I have never done this before -- how much would that cost me?

Sorry for the questions -- just wanted to make sure of everything... thanks everyone for your excellent comments and time!

lindros2

A couple things - the SAME thing NEARLY happened to me on Friday - some a-hole hit brakes as he pulled into the second lane and came within < 1 inch of my car. Thankfully nothing happened.

One more thing:

MAKE SURE THEY (his insurance) CUT YOU A CHECK FOR DEPRECIATION IN VALUE DUE TO BEING INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT.

We did this with a new car that was backed into and turned into a $300 check.

Most likely it will be his insurance company (not rental vehicle) that will provide coverage. That is, unless he doesn't have auto insurance. Could also be his credit card (ie: AMEX, bank card, etc.).

-josh

Mike_TX

In your origial post you said the Altima came out from the left, but in your diagram, he came out from your right. Be sure you get your story straight with the insurance people! In fact, I was wondering about him cutting across your lane and then coming back into your right side, from your description.

Btw, cool Diagram!

Mike

albeik

oops.. ur right.. he came up from the right -- not the left... good catch... the diagram is true.. i just went to check back the roads and will update it to better reflect the environment...

albeik

I just updated the context on my site and the diagram -- thats going to be one of my pages on my accidental report... (others cannot be shown due to personal information of both the drivers)

http://www.dockex.com/albeik/acuratl/

anything else i should add -- do i need to explain more?? never done this before -- thanks everyone!

albeik

Here is an update:

I have an appointment tomorrow with someone to inspect the car for an estimate. I am going to pretty much point out that:
1. All damaged parts must be replaced with geniune acura parts and accessories.
2. I deserve to have a rental vehicle of the same stature and luxury as an acura tl.
3. I had to take day off from work to do this and this is costing me money -- do you think I should bring this up as part of the costs tomorrow?
4. What about the depreciation costs due to the accident?

I am also trying to figure out a good place to do the body work in and around Worcester. Can all body work places use Acura parts if asked to do so?

svtmike

I wouldn't hold too firm on that rental car demand. Get one that serves your needs and no more; that's only reasonable.

Definitely go for the lost value. It would also be prudent to be checked over by a doctor as well, and under no circumstances sign any release for later medical problems.

Mike

Bonedoc

albeik,

sorry about what happened. I live one town over, and travel that part of Rt 9 often, and it can be scary.

Why not take to car to Ron Bouchard's Acura in Auburn? They will certainly work with you to make sure the repairs are as close to factory as possible, even if they don't do the work on site. Good luck.

SidS1045

I lived in Worcester for 21 years. Franchi's, on Shrewsbury Street, is the best one around. I had a few body repairs done there, and their work is so good you can't tell the car was ever in an accident.

Sorry to hear about the crash, but Franchi's will fix you up.

apwalsh

I would suggest having someone help you correct some of the grammar in that document. No offense, but a more professionally written document will get more attention. You can't always write a document the same way you would describe it verbally. Write facts in order of actual occurance, not "and on top of it all....."

Also keep in mind the police officers at the scene do not assess blame for the insurance companies. They review facts and assess fault by gathering all info and putting the pieces together themselves. One piece is the officer's report, so it is a bonus that he interprets the other driver to be at fault.

Good luck, I hope everything turns out well for you

albeik

That where I got the car from -- and will be going back to them tomorrow morning and look at the car.

Thanks -- I'll provide the document to someone professional to review it and correct it.

Thanks everyone!

carcar

Please keep us updated on how everything turns out....Sorry to hear this happened to you; accidents are ALWAYS time-consuming to sort through and get everything back to normal, i know how you feel.

Regards,
carcar

albeik

Just an update guys:

- Got the estimate: $3226.90
- I am giving it to the shop next monday (9th)
- They are giving me either a 2004/5 Nissan Altima or Maxima for rental (depending on what they have at the time)
- The goal is to get the car as perfect as possible! So adding costs here and their was not a problem
- All of this done in a span of two days!

I called up Acura of Auburn and they recommended me "Frachni Bros. Auto Body Inc." -- and from what I hear they do excellent work.

So -- if God Wills -- by next friday I'll have my car back as new!

batting_cleanup

Enterprise Rentals. My first thought is this was some driver that was already involved in an accident and was driving a rental car provided by an insurance company while their own car was being repaired. I know Enterprise rents cars for other reasons, but they are used a lot for that reason. Between your pictures and the ones on the WDP car I think I have to leave the site for a while.

dlouly47

Your accident is IDENTICAL to what happend in my accident. I was driving on a 3 lane road and the other guy was coming out of the side street as well. I was in the farthest left lane and figured ok.. the guy is coming out and there is 2 other lanes closer to him open so didnt think nothing of it.... But the dude kept on coming into my lane .... until I saw the front corner of his car aiming at my passenger side door.. I punched the gas and he sideswept the rear right fender and bashed the wheel well as well as my 600 Dollar rim in. It was totally his fault and his insurance accepted the liability for all costs.. SO I got my deductible back but its been a whole month and a half and I have yet to receive re-imbursement for my outta pocket rental costs.... And also seems as if they are not returning my phone calls regarding my questioning status of the claim.. DOes anyone know how long it takes for them to re-imburse rental fees????????

Well good luck on the car bro.. hope you find a good body shop.. They are going to have to replace the whole sidepeice - thats what they did to mines...

PuffyY

Dude, good luck getting something of the same stature and luxury. When I had my accident 3 weeks after I got my car, it was completely the other party's fault, and everything was paid for by the other party. I had full insurance, including $30/day rental. But Hertz couldn't get me a car that's of similar stature, had a Ford Focus for the 1st day 'cause they ran out of cars, AFTER I RESERVED a full size car. Drove around in the Focus for a day, pissed as hell. Then I called the next day and the best they have in stock is a Maroon Pontiac GrandPrix, leather auto, had some power but that's about it, can't even compare to my car, not just from price point or luxury, etc. I was told by someone else about this line about replacing your vehicle w/ similar thing, but I guess the car dealer can try to give you something "similar", even if it's $10k cheaper than your car.

tkx

Sorry to hear about your accident ;(. As for your statement it is always in your best interest to keep your statements as short as possible. Another thing is that it doesn't really matter what the police says... the insurance company doesn't always use them as a deciding factor.

One example, I was on a motorcycle earlier this year, and a guy didn't stop coming out of a parking lot and ended up causing us to collide... i went under his car, he ran over my thigh and I rolled out from under the car motionless for a little bit.

Anyways, in the end the police automatically took sides with the driver of the car because he was an older gentleman, whereas I am a 26 year old ricer... All-in-all his insurance company gave me a small settlement (which in no means could cover the pain that I will have during my life) and the fault lies on him.

Another example is very similar, except a lady was coming on the opposite direction of me and made a left turn into my car... the police told me that it was her fault, etc, etc.... anyways this one is still being evaluated and our insurance companies are both not claiming responsibility... drives me nuts... she turned onto oncoming traffic... thought it would be a open and close case....but Nooooooo.

Also on the rental car... if you think that you aren't getting an appropriate car... you are... they have a grid that they compare vehicles to.... believe it or not but a Honda Civic is equivalent to a Toyota Echo... ya.... IF you don't want to drive the car that they are giving you, then ask to be upgraded to the next level... you will have to pay, but it's very nominal..