If party 2 admit fault are they required to issue rental?

by Kathy
(Vandalia, Ohio )

For purpose of this email, I am party 1. I was parked at my doctor’s office and this is a scenario of what happened. an elderly lady driving a ford Taurus (I am pretty sure of the model but not definite).

After she came out from physical therapy, she got into her car, put the car into reverse and then passed out with her foot on the accelerator.

Her car proceeded to cause the following damage: she first hit a van parked next to me causing that van to run into my van parked next to it, it pushed my van approximately 4 ft. and caused damage to the driver side slider door, the entire rear quarter panel and in the wheel weld.

Her car then did a 360 at which she hit an ambulette pushing it onto the concrete of the entrance to the building, then hit 2 brick pillars, then hit the Nissan parked next to her causing damage to the entire driver side from front to back, causing her to then do a 180 with her car ending up half on the lawn of the building and half on the blacktop. I am not sure at what point she awoke and thankfully she is not hurt.

The insured and the insurance both admitted fault. Here is the problem; she apparently does not have enough to coverage to take care of all the damage she caused. I was the second person to call in and file a claim about this incident to her insurance company. I got a call from her insurance company who said that even though she is at fault I will have to file a claim with my insurance company to take care of the damages.

My vehicle is not drivable and I do not have rental coverage on my policy. The insurance company of the lady at fault will not even pay for a rental van for me. I am confined to an electric wheelchair and my van is my only means of transportation.

Now I will have to be confined to my house for something that is not my fault. Since her insurance company is responsible for this problem, what can i do to at least make them pay for a van that I can drive that has a ramp and hand controls.

It is bad enough that I am now going to have to pay a deductible and then my insurance will have to pay for the damages, I also will not be able to leave my house unless I want to pay for a rental out of my own pocket. This is ridiculous please help me.



Answer:

Hello Kathy,

Well, first – I am very sorry to hear about this car accident.

The person who hit you is responsible for all the damages caused to you that directly arise out of this collision. The key word here is “the person” and not the insurance company. The insurance company is bound by the limits they have, and they will probably have to apportion (give every a percentage of damages) awards.

This clearly does not compensate you for all your vehicle damages plus the rental expenses. At this point, you really need to at least get your own carrier involved and have them go after her insurance if necessary. This can really help if you have rental coverage. I know that getting your carrier involved for an accident where you are completely 0% at fault is not the common scenario, but since the damages are so high, the other insurance (and the lady) might not have a way to get you paid.

You should probably contact a lawyer to help you with this. There are issues in this claim and you need to have some help, otherwise the insurance company might not give you what is rightfully yours. At the very least, you need to send them a letter about your situation and how not having a vehicle that you can use has you house bound, and now you cannot go to the doctor, get medicine, work, and now you are probably having injuries over this. Sometimes this will move the insurance company to “take care” of you first.

Again, contact your insurance and lawyer before moving forward with your claim.

Good Luck
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