Two rear end collisions on same day

by Desneige

I was unfortunate last Thursday to be rear ended twice. I filed a police report for both accidents. The second driver hit and then took off.

It was an icy and snowy day. I had taken the car to a body shop between the two accidents. My entire bumper needs to be replaced.

The second driver was found, admitted to the accident and gave his insurance info to the cop filing the report. I'm waiting for a copy of the completed report in the mail.

The body shop estimated the damages to be about $1000 to fix. My adjuster came out to see the damages today. He gave me a check for about $200, and said that I will have to pay my $500 deductible-despite not being at fault in either accident.

He said that I'll likely be reimbursed when the insurance companies finish haggling it out. If I deposit check is that agreeing with amount provided? What if insurance companies cann't agree on who pays what? I'm flabbergasted that this has become my headache and it's hurting my pocketbook. What do you advise.


Answer:

Hi Desneige,

I am sorry to hear about the two accidents. Boy, speak of a bad day!

Well, your case is not that bad because you have an estimate between the two accidents. Insurance companies are supposed to put you back in the position you were before the accident. The first person that hit you owes you for a good bumper (the same that you had before the accident). The second person that hit you owes you for what you had (a broken bumper because of the first accident).

Regarding your insurance company, you will be subject to two deductibles. You had two different accidents and you are subject to a deductible per accident, unless the insurance company waives the second deductible. It could happen.

With that being said, the dispute will be between the person that hit your first and the person that hit you second. They must determine how much MORE damage did the second guy caused. You can show the first estimate and the difference between the two will reveal that.

This should not be very difficult to figure out. The only problem is that in the mean time you would have to pay for your deductible out of pocket. This is the normal process, and I know this is very much aggravating. There is no way to get around this. You do have to pay for this, until they figure it out.

You asked if cashing the check would mean that you agree to the amount. It does not. It only means that they are making a first payment. The claim is not settled until your car is fixed at 100%.

Usually, you have to be careful when you are cashing checks for bodily injury claims, but not as much for property damage. Do read the back of the check and make sure there is no language about this being the final payment.

I hope this helps some.