Philly Hit and run my Subaru BRZ rear ended

[morswestford]

yes ill mail them a demand letter before i file suit

Originally Posted by cjd

Major bummer. I'd guess you met someone trying to scrimp even more on insurance

I was thinking the 'no insurance' deal would simply be more helpful to getting a win, but you're right about actually getting paid. Have you tried reaching out to them directly? Cutting them some slack may work in your favor, if they pay up without the hassle of court, etc.

C

[zc06_kisstherain]

damm i hate these people. one of reason i keep my deductible at $500

[HunterGreene]

I guess there are a couple things I am confused about, namely why your insurance company wouldn't be the ones going after the uninsured driver for compensation, so that you don't have to do jack, other than sit back while your car is getting repaired. Yes, you played Russian Roulette and lost with a 2k deductible, but as you said its still less than the cost of repairs. Expensive lesson learned

Originally Posted by Babel

Insurance is such a fucking scam it hurts.

And have you been in an accident (not your fault) or had something happen to your car (Aka comprehensive claim)? I can tell you after two hailstorms a couple summers back (paid total $200 in deductible for over $10k in total damages), along with a couple accidents that were both my fault and not, insurance is worth what you pay for it, especially comprehensive.

I will go so far as to say that if you don't have comprehensive, you're taking an even bigger risk than running with a super-high deductible like the OP. And last I saw, comprehensive is not that expensive to add onto a policy.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by Babel

Insurance is such a fucking scam it hurts.

Insurance is not a scam if you take the time to educate yourself on what you're actually buying. Insurance is simply a hedge against risk. When you drive, you risk damage to yourself and your property. By buying an insurance policy, you pay a company to assume part of that risk for you, subject to certain terms that are spelled out in your policy when you sign up for it.

I would rather have insurance than not have insurance and then have a piece of shit uninsured motorist smash my car.

Originally Posted by HunterGreene

I guess there are a couple things I am confused about, namely why your insurance company wouldn't be the ones going after the uninsured driver for compensation, so that you don't have to do jack, other than sit back while your car is getting repaired.

If he files a claim with his insurance company, they will likely pay for the repairs to his car minus his deductible. Then they will likely sue the other driver for THEIR cost to repair his car. They probably won't include his deductible in their suit, because that's his loss and not theirs. So then he'll have to also sue the other driver to recover his deductible.

If the asshole didn't have insurance, he probably isn't going to be able to pay the judgment either. Winning in court is one thing. Getting the asshole to pay up is another.

Originally Posted by HunterGreene

And last I saw, comprehensive is not that expensive to add onto a policy.

Depends on where you are. The comprehensive rate is just like any other rate, in that it's priced based on your risk profile. If you live in an area with a high claims (like Louisiana), it could carry a pretty good sticker shock over basic liability.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

Insurance is not a scam if you take the time to educate yourself on what you're actually buying. Insurance is simply a hedge against risk. When you drive, you risk damage to yourself and your property. By buying an insurance policy, you pay a company to assume part of that risk for you, subject to certain terms that are spelled out in your policy when you sign up for it.

.

Just to add to this you are also paying a relatively small amount to avoid having to pay a massive amount if you cause damage to property or injure somebody else.
Your liability limit is probably in the neighborhood of $100K. I don't know many people that could fork that out if they caused an accident.

[gravitylover]

In NY we have to pay for uninsured motorist as part of our coverage so that if the other driver doesn't have insurance all we can be out is the deductible.

[V_86]

Originally Posted by morswestford

just found out today from their insurance provider that their insurance expired in january. it lapsed. i am screwed. now im forced to go through my own insurance, pay my deductible and sue them in small claims court which ill be doing next week.

Not necessarily. When an uninsured hit me in an old car, they took care of the deductible and such. But then again that was in CA.

But even if you do take them to small claims, if they didn't have money to pay insurance, they likely don't have 7k to pay you in total (or however much it is). Being ordered to pay does not mean they actually will. At least in CA, if you win in small claims (by my experience ONLY) the only recourse is to make it so their credit is ruined, but even then they don't have to pay you

[zc06_kisstherain]

why cant they just sell vehicle or face reality when they're in difficult financial situation?
and bring unnecessary burden to themselves or damage other people's life style/property. kinda stupid that they cant go to jail.

in America, you gotta be super rich or poor.
too poor to pay
too rich to pay

[michaelahess]

This certainly sucks and I feel for ya.

My wife's mustang was hit by a dumb kid on his bike, scraped the entire side of the car, I got all but one dent out, can't see it unless you look hard, and buffed/touched up the paint to near perfection. Paid my 1k deductible and got back 1700 out of the 2700 damage. My record and my wife's was clean so didn't get hit with an increase. Cops didn't do anything except NOT redact the minor's name, he was a minor and they didn't see it so did nothing. My insurance investigated but got nowhere.

Doing the repair work myself made me come out ahead. That's not usually the case. This is why everyone needs to understand insurance and how the deductible works.

1. Never trust ANYONE to have insurance. Base your costs on this basic principle.

2. ALWAYS have your deductible saved up and set aside. Heck it can make you money at least if you put it in a high interest savings account or some other easily accessed money market account.

3. If you can't afford your high deductible, or your insurance with a low deductible, YOU CAN'T AFFORD THE CAR, find something that fits your budget.

Rant over. It sucks, but YOU have to be prepared, don't expect the other guy/gal to be.

[Packofcrows]

WHAT A SCUMBAG!~

[Trueweltall]

Originally Posted by michaelahess

Paid my 1k deductible

Why so high?!

[djsyndrome]

Originally Posted by zc06_kisstherain

why cant they just sell vehicle or face reality when they're in difficult financial situation?

Because parents don't teach children to live within their means.

[Joyride86]

Originally Posted by djsyndrome

Because parents don't teach children to live within their means.

And in the Saab owner's case, how to be a responsible/decent human being.

[thomasmryan]

After driving for a few decades, my insurance premium expenditure is well over a 100k.

I was hit by a non papered person a couple years ago and MY insurance pulled that like/kind crap. No love for my insurance company.

The police where 'unable' to find the dude but I sure did. I demanded that my deductible be returned. I got his name, home address, where he worked for walmart gift cards and his phone number. No love for incompetent 'detectives'.