Auto accident. insurance company questions?

Question

I was hit by someone running a red light. Major damage of my vehicle. Both airbags went off but both inside were injured and taken to hosp. After reporting the accident, I was called by my ins co., Nationwide, and was told by assigned agent and confirmed by personal agency, to deal directly with the at-faults insurance company-State Farm? I have always been told not to give info to the other. State Farm has already admitted fault. Also, any quidelines in asking for reinbursment for pain/suffering/loss wages etc. any adive is welcome. Should I speak with a lawyer - if so, when?

Answer 1

State matters greatly here.

Generally you can file through your company with no ill effects, they would just turn around and file everything through the other company. If you do this, you will have to pay your deductible up front, but it will be reimbursed once your company has been paid in full by the other company.

If you prefer to use them, just call and explain it. Theyre probably just trying to save you the initial deductible payment. This is the typical process unless one of the companies is not reputable (ie. American General, or most of the state run companies--in that case your company will rarely advise you to speak with them at all).

If a lawyer is needed, then you should speak with your insurance company. Youre paying them a lot of money every year to deal with things like. The only reason to get a lawyer separately is to try to cheat the other person/company. Youre not going to manage to cheat State Farm by suing separately, you'll likely end up worse off unless there is a coverage issue with the other person, but again your insurance company is better able to sue for that than you are--there is no limit to their pockets so they can get the best and carry it on as long as the other company.
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As I said, state matters greatly here. What Perfect says may be correct for her state; however, in my state your insurance company will provide an attorney for almost anything and the normal insurance procedures around here make suing inadvisable in almost all instances. You usually end up getting more here if you let the company handle it no matter whats going on.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

You should contact an attorney now. If you attempt to settle without the assistance of an attorney, you will not get proper compensation; you may get your medical bills paid and your car damage reimbursement, but if you were injured and suffer any type of permanent injury or lost wages, you will likely not be properly compensated. That is the goal of at-fault insurance companies: to put the blame on you, even if you had nothing to do with it, and to avoid paying you what you deserve. What you think is fair is laughable to them. If you desire any proper compensation for pain, suffering, or lost wages, you will need to contact an attorney to get what you deserve.

I would recommend you do not contacting the at-fault company, and if you do, DO NOT give a recorded statement. You have no legal obligation to speak to them, and doing so could be detrimental to any lawsuit you may potentially file.

Most attorneys have free consultations, so you might as well contact one and learn about the process through them. Keep in mind that cases can take years to conclude if they wind up in litigation. But if that's the difference between several thousands of dollars and proper compensation, it's a chance you may want to take.

(To speak on something Showtunes mentioned, your insurance company will provide an attorney if you are the one being sued. In this case, you are not, and your insurance company does not see any reason to get involved in a lawsuit. You will need to hire your own attorney, as Nationwide will not provide one to you. And you are not trying to "cheat" anyone; you are trying to be compensated for the pain and suffering you received as the result of someone else's negligence.)

Answer 4

Yes, they can do that. It's perfectly legal, and how every insurance company operates. They do that because they are obligated by the contract they have with their customer. That contract states that they will not pay any claims against their client until they have their customer's statement verifying the facts of the claim. Also, if they can't really be sure what happened, you can be sure they ain't going to pay any money for an accident that may not have involved their client. If you are unhappy with the situation, turn to your own insurance company for compensation.

Answer 5

You are absolutely correct in the fact that YOU should not be dealing w. the other insurance company. The other insurance company will want to pay as little as possible and anything you say could be used against you.

So are you suppose to fix you own car and submit a bill? What about medical bills? There are a million things.

You need to call your insurance company and speak to someone else. Your insurance company is supposed to get you fixed up, estimate damages and all sorts of things. THEY are supposed to go after the other insurance company. It is insane for them to ask you to call the other company..

Answer 6

If you have collision coverage on your vehicle, Nationwide cannot refuse to pay your claim.
If you have medical payments coverage on your policy, Nationwide has to pay your medical bills.
The value of a bodily injury claim depends on medical expenses, lost wages, type of injury, amount of pain and suffering.
You will have to make the bodily injury claim against State Farm.

Answer 7

1. call again to ur insurance companuy
2. document what they tell u to do
3. do it, but record everything
4. send a copy to your insurance company
5. ---- wait -----
6. sue the bastard that hit u