why should i pay when i got rear ended?

Question

3 car acident 3rd car hit and run. 2nd car does have insurance but they will pay %30 of the whole cost. The insurance claims tht it was not their cliants fault. And why is car insurances are afried of prop 51 and why? I allways thought who ever hits you form behind is responsible.

to any one who wants help me. I did not
cause the acident i had total of 2 car distance betwen my car and the car in front of me and this acident happend in
FWY thanks

to any one who wants help me. I did not
cause the acident i had total of 2 car distance betwen my car and the car in front of me and this acident happend in
FWY. and also i did not backed up to any car. thaks

Answer 1

I read some of the strangest answers in this forum. People in general do have strange ideas about insurance, claims and accidents, but one would think that if someone takes the time to put in an answer here, they would be certain of their information.

For example: I do believe I read in here the idea that in a 3 car pileup such as yours, the 3rd car insurer pays for damage to the rear of the car in front of it, the 2 car pays for damage to the rear of the car in front of it, etc. That MIGHT be true. Again, note the key word MIGHT. That means it MIGHT NOT true.

Why? Simple common sense answers. Here are 3 possible scenarios showing the MIGHT and the MIGHT NOT, as above.

What if the 3rd car hit the 2nd car with such force that it pushed the 2nd car into the 1st car and there is no indication that the 2nd car would have hit the 1st car otherwise? In that case the 3rd car insurer owes for the damage to the rear and front of the 2nd car and the rear of the 1st car.

What if the 2nd car hit the 1st car in the rear then the 3rd car hit the 2nd car in the rear? In that case, the 3rd car insurer owes for damage to the rear of the 2nd car but not damage to the front of the 2nd car. The 2nd car insurer will owe for damage to the rear of the 1st car.

A third possibility is that the 2nd car hit the 1st car in the rear. Then, the 3rd car hit the 2nd car with sufficient force to push it back into the 1st car. In this case, the 3rd car insurer owes for the damage to the rear of the 2nd car and some percentage of the damage to the front of the 2nd car and the rear of the 1st car.

I believe a careful reading of the above three scenarios will reveal the reasoning behind this. It sounds as though your situation is the 3rd of the three scenarios.

You should be extremely circumspect in taking any "advice" off this or any other forum (even this bit of advice it seems - haha). However, I would "advise" that you consider placing your claim with your own insurance company under collision for the damage to your vehicle. I would advise that you not accept the 2nd car insurer's offer of 30% as you will have to sign a release to receive payment. That will prejudice your insurer's ability to subrogate. Subrogation is the process by which your insurer seeks to recover money they paid out from a responsible party(s).

If you place your claim with your own insurer under collision, they will pay for the damage to your vehicle less your deductible. They will then seek to recover that money from the 2nd insurer and, if the 3rd car is ever identified, from that car's insurer. You will get your deductible back when they recover. Doing it this way will keep that percentage as a negotiable amount (who says it's 30%, why not 50%?) allowing your insurer to have a hand in properly adjusting this claim.

By the way, in reference to the last sentence of your question: "I always thought who ever hits you from behind is responsible." Here is a common sense example that foils that oft quoted but wrong idea. What if you were backing up when you got hit from behind?

Answer 2

Generally that is the case, but some insurance companies can argue wether, or not you were traveling at a safe distance, or not. Its dumb I know because even if you were there is still the chance of being pushed into the other driver in front of you, from the impact of the driver that rearended you. The reason theyr'e only paying 30% is because there driver is not 100% liable, he hit you, but didn't cause the accident.. Most likely your gonna have to except what ever payment they offer, and then file on your own collision policy with your insurance. Maybe the adj from there can offer some info on how to get full payout, but most likely not.. Otherwise you can try a lawyer, but a lot of lawyers don't like to touch car accidents unless there is personal injury, and there not miracle workers... Just cause you hire a lawyer doesn't mean the insurance compay is gonna spit out full payment.. They have lawyers two, and most likely more than one for these types of situations... Good Luck, Oh, and filing on your own insurance doesn't exactly mean your rates will go up...

Answer 3

From the description you gave it sounds like everyone was moving at the time of the accident. If this was the case the only vehicle that would get off scott free would be the vehicle at the very front. In this scenario the only way the vehicle in the center would be free from liability is if they can prove, usually through witnesses, is that they were fully stopped (not in the middle of braking) when they were hit and were pushed in to the vehicle. The key being that they were fully stopped. If they cannot prove this they would be considered at-fault for the damages caused forward, but they would be considered not at-fault for the damages caused to their rear, as opposed to being not at-fault for both damages. This applies to any vehicle in the middle of the chain. The vehicle at the very rear of the chain is 100% screwed, which is probably why the 3rd guy ran like a coward.

Answer 4

If your the the lead car then no you should not be liable. If you are the second car of three it can be argued that you did not allow a safe enough distance from the first car and are therefore liable to some degree of car #1's damages. The third car which caused all of this should be at fault for everything and therefore liable for everything.

Since one vehicle hit and ran, it's most likely you'd have to file an unisured motorist claim on your policy. You should probably speak with your agent and then your claims handler's supervisor.

Answer 5

The question you need to ask is who caused the accident. It sounds like the hit and run vehicle. The second car would not be labile just because they hit you. They hit you because the car behind them pushed them into you. How many impacts did you feel? If you felt 2, then the second car does have some liability. Rate the impacts was the first impact minor compared to the second impact or vice versa. I would always pay based on number of hits and strength of impact.

Answer 6

Yep, last guy in is usually responsible. The last guy was a hit and run. Last guy is not available to pay. You'll have to rely on your collision coverage and pay your deductible.

No idea what "prop 51" is, so I can't help you. The only one I know of relates to property tax limitations.

Answer 7

Here is the REAL deal: If a line of cars is going along and the end car rear-ends the one in front of it, the last car is at fault ONLY for the car he or she rear-ended. The next car in line is then at fault for the car he or she rear-ended as a result of BEING rear-ended. The next car is then at fault for rear-ending the car in front of him or her. Get it? In other words, even though you were rear-ended, causing you to rear-end someone else, YOU are still at fault for rear-ending the person you did, because had you been following at a safe distance, the chances are you would NOT have rear-ended the person in front of you, regardless of being read-ended yourself. Sorry, but this is the way it works. No idea what Prop 51 is. If the insurance company of the rear-ender refuses to pony up for the damages to the rear-endee (as it were), then the rear-endee should go to their own insurance company for advice. I hope you were smart enough to file a police report at the scene of the accident. Without it, you could be in trouble. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, call the police and file a report no matter how minor the accident seems. Seemingly minor accidents can becomes much bigger later on, even though at the time everyone smiles and says "Oh, I am glad you were not hurt." You can bet that later on, THEY will claim all sorts of injuries, etc. Get a report without fail!

Answer 8

Get a lawyer involved. Also get yourself checked at a hospital for back or neck injury (even if there is nothing wrong you will want to know it.)

Lawyers have a habit of getting insurance companies to behave.