I was found not to be more than 50% at fault for a motor vehicle accident.?

Question

The finding was by the insurance board of appeals.However, my own insurance company refuses to return my $500 deductible, claiming that they are only obligated to reverse the surchargable points that were leveled against me when they originally completed their investigationl. I live in Massachusetts. Can anyone cite me a statute or regulation that I can send to my insurance agency to get my deductible back?

Answer 1

You should be able to recover 50% of your deductible. It depends though, I know that Massachusettes is NOT a pure comparative state, it might be best to contact your insurance company - discuss with your claims adjuster and have them explain the situation to you. if they are unable to refund the deductible to you or part of it, you SHOULD be able to recover from the other carrier.

Your insurance company is not required to reimburse you or waive your deductible, however if the other part is at fault, their insurance company should be the ones reimbursing your deductible.

If it were CA I'd be able to give you a better answer! sorry.

Answer 2

Your insurance policy will spell out the financial responsibility of the insurance company and your financial responsibility.

If you sustained damage to your vehicle on a collision claim, your deductable ($500) has to be met before the insurer pays anything.

If a car you hit sustained damage and it was your fault, your liability insurance kicks in, and the deductable ($500) has to be met before your insurer pays anything.

Bottom line: the $500 deductable was your responsibility regardless of who was at fault. The only exception would be if the other driver was at fault - then THEIR insurance company would pay, and the other driver would have to pay the deductable.

This probably isn't the answer you want to hear, but better to get the truth instead of beating a dead horse.

By the way, you can set how much your deductable is - the higher the deductable, the lower your premium payments.