Drunk Driver Hit us

by Urias Jr
(Texas)

My wife, my sister and her daughter and I, were involved in
a three car accident caused by a drunk driver. Police report says it was the drunk drivers fault.

Drunk driver(1st Car) hit 2nd car, which was then pushed
into our(3rd car) lane, causing us to hit 2nd car. Our car was paid off and we only had liability with our insurance. In this accident our car was totaled, no rental car was provided and we were forced to finance a new vehicle with our financial aid.

We have set up claims with the Drunk driver's insurance and ours as well. Drunk driver insurance keeps going back and forth with false accusations, different stories (claiming we are to blame for half of the accident)...After the accident, our car was toed to the city lot.

Driver 1’s insurance said they would get the car out of the lot. They stated that we should get it out ourselves. We didn’t budge. So they get it out and say we need to pay half of the lot fees. We didn’t(that went on for about a month), they eventually got it out. Then they declared our car a total loss, but that we were 50% to blame for Driver 2’s car and this has been there stance for 10months.

They change up their story every time...they don’t contact
me or my insurance...they never call us back...this has been an ongoing struggle for 10 months. If I was half to blame for the accident wouldn’t my insurance be getting calls from drivers 1 or 2's insurances or how come I or my insurance haven’t been contacted about us being 50% liable.

PLEASE HELP! Nobody was injured only bumps and scrapes and
ambulance bills....mainly for my sister's daughter who was 8yrs old at time…..What do I do? Nothing has been resolved

b>Answer:

Hello there. We are sorry to learn the difficult time you are having with the insurance company. This is one of the reasons why we have decided to write this website. Insurance companies in general bully people around and get away with all of these in part because consumers let them. It is a good idea to learn your rights and fight back.

There are several issue that we believe are at stake in
you claim. First is the issue of liability or fault. The “normal†process is that when there is a dispute on the facts, then the adjusters must look at the independent evidence (the police report), unless they have strong evidence against it (sometimes police reports have mistakes). This is not a set rule, but
it is again the normal process.

What we believe is happening in you case is that the
insurance company believes that you, the middle car had already hit the car in front of you, then the Drunk driver hit you from behind. That is the only way you can come up with a 50% fault split in these set of facts. There are two very important pieces of evidence to determine this (aside from what you said and
what the Drunk Driver said).

1- Â The police report which can be persuasive depending in
what it says, exactly. So you need to get your hands in a copy of this report. Call the police station and ask were they police records are kept. Then go request one if you do not have one. Make sure you understand everything on this report. Visit for this page to load
an overlay sheet to decipher the police codes once you have it.

2- The recorded statement of the person in front of you.
That driver statement will perhaps be the most important piece of evidence (absent other independent witnesses). The key question will be: How many impacts did you feel? If the driver in front only felt one impact, then this would be evidence that the vehicle behind was pushed into him. But if that driver felt two impacts then it was one when the car directly behind hit them, and the second when the third vehicle hit the second car.

We do not know what evidence the insurance companies have.
We are not sure you do either. So, put them on notice (write a certified) letter asking them to detail why you are 50% at fault. They should have done this by now.

The second issue is Texas Modified Comparative Fault Statute. In Texas, if you are 50% - 50% at fault, then each party recovers
against each other for 50%. If one party is 51% or more, then that party is completely barred of recovery (injuries and the damages to the car).

In your situation, there is recovery if the insurance company is saying 50% -50%. If that is the case, they will go after you to pay
50% of the damages of the vehicle in front of you (if there were any). You insurance company will have to defend you under your liability coverage. When there is a dispute like this one, insurance companies will go to arbitration and let a neutral adjuster decide. If the adjuster decides 50% - 50% then insurance companies issue payments according to that decision. If they decided 100%, then
the responsible party must pay for the damages.

Call your own insurance company and find out why you are
not in arbitration. If your insurance company does not answer, then report them to theTexas Department of Insurance

Make the insurance companies put their final decision in
writing. You will have more power to protect your rights.

Good Luck.

Casey & Hector.