I am looking for guidelines filing a claim in Small Claims Court.?

Question

My car was parked at the time when it was hit by one of the cars involved in a accident. My owned insurance covered my deductible cost, but I have to recover the car rental cost (while my car was being repaired) from the other insurance company.

It has been almost a year since the accident, and the case finally went to arbitration. Since there were no witnesses to the accident, the arbitrator ruled no fault - each insurance would cover their own cost. Because of this ruling, the insurance company of the vehicle that actually struck my car, is refusing to reimburse my car rental fees (approx. $200) because they were not "at fault".

I am looking to recover my cost through Small Claims Court.
Any advice will be deeply appreciated. Also, does anyone know if it's reasonable to claim for time loss from work - as I had to take time off to attend to the auto body shop and car rentals, etc...also, I anticipate that I will have to take time off from work for Small Claims Court.

Answer 1

Try legalzoom.com

Answer 2

Generally you are entitled to the reasonable cost of the rental car and time necessarily lost from work due to injury or lost transportation; not to time lost due to your prosecuting a small claims action.

** Note: This is a general discussion of the subject matter of your question and not legal advice. Local laws or your particular situation may change the general rules. For a specific answer to your question you should consult legal counsel with whom you can discuss all the facts of your case. **

Answer 3

The link below are guidelines for California. If this is not your state, it may still give you some clues about how the system works and what kind of claims you can make.

Answer 4

The specific rules in each court are different.

If you go to your local county small claims court, they will provide you with a packet of material that explains the process.

Answer 5

The rules go by state