a drunk driver hit a light pole and caused it to fall in the road, which i very soon after ran over causing lots of damage to my car. my insurance company called this a no fault accident and paid for my damage. i paid a 500 dollar deductible. since the drunk driver didn't hit me i couldn't recover the deductible from his insurance, but is there any way i can sue him in small claims court?
2007-07-16 12:12:29 · 5 answers · asked by tom b 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
the light pole was complete unavoidable. it fell seconds before i hit it and it covered the entire road. also, i am in florida.
2007-07-17 19:40:33 · update #1
You could. However to take someone to small claims court you have to pay a fee, which typically ranges from 100-200 dollars. Plus you would have to take time off from work, school, or whatever you do to attend the hearing.
If you are just sueing for $500, you are probably better off just forgetting about it.
2007-07-16 15:02:01 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Actually, you might, depending on the state. Some states have very strict drunk driving laws, where any accident as a result of the drunk driver is included as part of the damage the drunk guy caused, even if the insurance company won't pay it because of their guidelines. If you have the time to file and the money to gamble on a small claims filing, it might be worth a try.
I would need more details, but there might be other avenues for getting back that deductible -- like, for example, if the cops were on the scene before you ran over the pole, and failed to properly guide traffic in the dark, you might have a claim against the city or county. You should also go back and look at your insurance policy and their definition of "no-fault" accident -- I find it hard to believe that they wouldn't consider something like a light pole in the road as a result of a drunk driver to be SOMEone's fault.
2007-07-16 13:14:27 · answer #2 · answered by Hillary 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You cannot sue the other driver. It is your fault that you ran over the pole laying in the road. Next time, slow down and pay attention. You have no legal claim against the other driver, even if he or she was drunk at the time they hit the pole.
I guess you could sue, but you won't win.
2007-07-16 12:30:18 · answer #3 · answered by msi_cord 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Probably not, since it's still your fault you ran over the pole. But small claims court is easy, so go ahead. What do you have to lose?
2007-07-16 12:18:36 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
you can sue anyone anytime in small claims court as long as your willing to pay the fees for the court
2007-07-16 12:20:38 · answer #5 · answered by elltea 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋