Can I sue, and who do I sue?

Question

I was rear ended a few months ago by a young girl who was leaving work. I was stoped at a stop light when she hit me. I had a friend of mine with me who witnessed the whole thing. She did stop, and produced all of her information, and begged me not to call the cops (she had a dwi, and was afraid she would lose her occupational license), and i took pity and didn't (because the damage wasn't severe). She also asked that I give her the opportunity to pay it out of pocket. Long story short, after I gave her the estimate, she stopped returning my phone calls. I went ahead and filed on her insurance, who has denied my claim. They say my friend is not viable due to him being a friend and a passenger, and she claims it never happened. They cannot look at her car, they told me she was in another accident a month ago and her car has already been fixed. Now I am at a impasse, and not sure what to do...

Answer 1

It's a bad situation to be in. You could sue, but if you were just rear-ended (I'm assuming it didn't cause too much damage) then it is likely that the cost of suing such as legal fees, as well as time off work etc would probably be a lot more expensive.

There is also the problem of proof. In civil cases you only need to prove that something happened on the balance of probabilities, but this can still be difficult, especially if it is just your word against hers (I know your friend was there - but as a friend their word will not hold a lot of weight unfortunately). I'm assuming you don't have photo's of both cars either. Photo's of the damage prove that some sort of accident happened but it doesn't prove whether she caused it or not. I'm also assuming that you don't have a document signed by her outlining the damage.

If you are willing to risk expenses (including hers if she is found not liable) contact a solicitor in your area. You could possibly sue for negligence.

You could also put in a complaint to the insurance ombudsman if you feel you were treated unfairly. Unfortunately the only people who can examine a car if the other party is not willing to submit is the police if they have a warrant so there's not a lot her insurance company could do.

You could put it through your insurance (assuming you're covered comprehensively) and have them investigate. However if they cannot prove she was at fault (which is highly unlikely without a police report) you will probably have to pay an excess and your rating will be affected which means a higher premium.

You could also try and file a police report now, however they would probably be unwilling to investigate given the elapsed time.

My advice would be to write a letter of demand firstly, asking for the money for the repairs. State the dates and facts. State how you acted in good faith and in accordance with her wishes and how you're disappointed that she has breached your agreement. Give her a time limit to get back to you. If you doesn't allude to the fact that you will be seeking legal advice. Sometimes a threat of legal action is enough to compel people to comply.

It is such a shame when you try to do the right thing and help someone out and they take advantage of your generosity like this. In the future, even if you don't call the police (as it's not always neccessary) make sure you get photos of the damage, contact details and just write up a brief statement of what happened and get the other person to sign it.

I hope it works out for you and good luck!

Answer 2

Easy way to handle - if you have collision coverage - file under your policy and let your insurance company fix your car. Then your insurance company will file back against the other carrier.

If the other company denies your company- then your company can file arbitration and a decision will be made by an independent panel. In the mean time - you have had your car fixed and have gotten on with your life.

Answer 3

Sue her. If you have evidence and a witness you could win in court and then bring your verdict to your insurance company. They usually honor court verdicts. It wouldn't be a bad idea to call the cops and make an official report and tell them the whole story with your friend as a witness.

Edit: Well, it looks like someone agreed with me because they cut and pasted my answer. Too funny.

Answer 4

Sue that lil ******. If you have evidence and a witness you could win in court and then bring your verdict to your insurance company. They usually honor court verdicts. It wouldn't be a bad idea to call the cops and make an official report and tell them the whole story with your friend as a witness.

Answer 5

Lol, either Lisa and Hobz have a psychic connection or they copy and pasted from the same place. I'd go with what the claims adjuster said and file with your insurance company. If they don't purse the lawsuit for you THEN go after her yourself for the deductible.

How does she claim that you got all her information if it didn't happen?

Answer 6

I'm sorry but you were had. Sue her ASAP. She would have been covered by workcover as she was leaving work, so her life goes on. Sometimes it doesn't pay to be nice. I feel for you. Good luck.