My neighbor bought a car at one of these buy here pay here places and they told him he had to have insurance before he left the lot, well he didn't and they let him drive it home anyway. He was supposed to come by the next day with proof of insurance but did not. He has been making weekly payments 4 about 2 months now with no insurance! Anyway he was drunk sat night and backed into my car in my driveway damageing it badly. My question is, Is it against the laW 4 the dealer to continue to let him drive the car like that with no proof of insurance? He is in jail and is gonna lose the car. How do I get my car fixed or am I s o l ? Please someone help TY
2007-10-08 06:43:21 · 12 answers · asked by DavidB 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Find an attorney where you can do a free consultation and get advice on whether you can sue the car lot. If they have a policy and didn't enforce it, they may be negligent. I wouldn't necessarily have an attorney handle this because you will probably end up paying out more in the long run than it is worth.
Get 3 estimates and make two copies of each estimate ~ you keep the original and one set of copies (for court if it goes that far).
Give a copy of the lowest estimate to your neighbor and tell him this is what it will cost to fix your car. Suggest he get a loan and pay you in full so you both can put it behind you. Try to get him to sign a contract stating he will pay you "X" number of dollars a month if he can't pay in full. If he won't agree to pay for damages, politely tell him you will see him in court and file your paperwork the next work day. I'd suggest you talk with him the first of the week rather than on a Friday or over the weekend, that way you can go in immediately and file your paperwork.
Once you win your court case, if he doesn't pay up within two months, go back to court and put a lien on any property he owns. Hopefully he owns his home and by putting a lien on it, he won't be able to sell it until he pays you and the lien is lifted. Discuss these possibilities when you talk with the attorney so you know before you start any of this just what your options are.
Good luck to you
2007-10-08 07:00:53 · answer #1 · answered by KittyKat 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Greetings Brother Ty
From what you have explaned it looks like you have a very good case. i'll try to explane this the best way i overstand it.
i have two questions for you, Do you have full or Nofault insurance, if you have full covering by the deductable and have your insurance company sue him for the damages or if you have the other should be able to get ti repaired because it was in the drive way. the other is the best one if you have home owner or renters insurance call them and let them know what has happened show the claims agent the police report that your car was hit on your property this will get it repaired. if known of this works you may have to sue the county for damages they took Jurisdiction to prosecute him for DUI either way you have a claim. I hope this is helpful, also you might want to do some reasearch of you own on log on to the web use Google or Yahoo, put in insurance laws or something like that good luck brother Ty.
Asiatic Moor
2007-10-08 08:02:13 · answer #2 · answered by Asiatic Moor 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He's screwed. The dealer has no control once the car has left the lot. He may be screwed also if he (the dealer) was also the financer for the car. Do you have insurance on YOUR car? If so file a claim with your insurance company to have your car repaired. Oh, and sue your neighor for the cost of your damages AND for any increase in the cost of your insurance as the result of your filing a claim.
2007-10-08 06:52:28 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, many insurance policies offer uninsured motorist coverage, i.e. they will cover the damage caused to your car if it is hit by an unisured motorist. All they need to process the claim is a police report. Call your agent and determine if your policy has this kind of coverage. Mine does (from USAA). If your policy does not have this kind of coverage, then yes, you are SOL. I would not consider pursuing a claim against a dealer unless your state has some very consumer friendly laws. In my state (Texas) the dealer is under no obligation to verify proof of insurance.
2007-10-08 06:59:05 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Car dealers are required by the lender to make sure cars are insured, so as to protect their investment. If no one is worried about losing money...maybe there was a big down payment.
Uninsured motorist insurance is very cheap to add to your policy.
2007-10-08 07:06:08 · answer #5 · answered by ted j 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is his responsibilty to have the car insured. He probably signed a contract stating he would keep full coverage on the car until it is payed off. He sounds like he will be SOL and owe a lot of people a lot of money. If you have full coverage on your car you should be fine otherwise you may need to take him to small claims court.
2007-10-08 06:53:22 · answer #6 · answered by burkee 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
File a claim in Small Claims Court. You will have to have the proof and Sue him personally for the damages to your car, that's the only way.
2007-10-08 07:06:46 · answer #7 · answered by 24Special 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Report it to your insurance company and they will fix your car and then go after him themselves. It is called "no fault"
2007-10-08 06:53:17 · answer #8 · answered by Daisy 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Good advise? No.
Bad advise? Sure, I say you sew the company that made the car for "1 Billion Dollars."
2007-10-08 06:50:34 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
Repeat after me "I need a lawyer, I need a lawyer, I need a lawyer!" Yahoo Answers is a great place to get general answers to general questions. It is the WORST place to get specific legal advice. Go see a lawyer.
2007-10-08 06:49:32 · answer #10 · answered by davidmi711 7 · 4⤊ 1⤋