Was rear ended. Need help with options

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by salmuabe

Completely agree. It's a crap shoot in Texas, where something like 1 in 4 drivers is uninsured.

That is a bit exaggerated, but it is still disturbing how many drivers are uninsured. Fortunatly the number is going down.

Number of Uninsured Drivers on Texas Roads Drops

Statistics compiled in June, 2014 indicate 13 percent of motorists, or about 2.6 million Texans, are driving without minimum insurance coverage, which is a violation of state law. One year ago, the state reported that about 22 percent of all drivers, or 4.2 million people, had no insurance.

[Casper27]

Just an FYI: part of the services that you pay your insurance agent for will often, if not always, include subrogation services. This is for when an accident can't be settled between insurance companies and goes to court, and your insurance will appoint a lawyer to represent your case. I was in an accident about four years ago (the other driver plowed through a red light into the passenger side of my car) and it ended up being resolved in a jury trial 18 months later. My insurance-appointed lawyer met with theirs in mediation and offered a 50-50 split in costs which they denied, then they had to pay the entire amount plus legal fees after the jury decided the accident was the other party's fault. Without my insurance company's involvement the other driver's insurance could have strung me along as long as they wanted. Just something to think about in case an accident happens again.

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by Casper27

Just an FYI: part of the services that you pay your insurance agent for will often, if not always, include subrogation services. This is for when an accident can't be settled between insurance companies and goes to court, and your insurance will appoint a lawyer to represent your case. I was in an accident about four years ago (the other driver plowed through a red light into the passenger side of my car) and it ended up being resolved in a jury trial 18 months later. My insurance-appointed lawyer met with theirs in mediation and offered a 50-50 split in costs which they denied, then they had to pay the entire amount plus legal fees after the jury decided the accident was the other party's fault. Without my insurance company's involvement the other driver's insurance could have strung me along as long as they wanted. Just something to think about in case an accident happens again.

Another note regarding subrogation Subrogation . In Texas the insurance company is required to attempt to recover your deductible as well. That is then paid to you when the insurance company collects it from the other insured's policy. Attempting to collect your deductible is fairly automatic for most insurance companies/underwriters so make sure you inquire about it if you are not found at fault.

One other suggestion is that regardless of the seriousness of the accident if you plan to claim it ALWAYS call Law Enforcement immediately at the time of the accident to have an on site LEO report incident generated even if there are no injuries. If LEO can not respond get the name and dispatch center you called as well as the time. It is very sad that LEO have to be overburdened but there are too many drivers out there not willing to take responsibility for their poor driving! You might drive away thinking you met a nice and responsible person but their account of what happened can change in a heart beat when they learn what can happen to their insurance premiums, license, etc., later if you file a report or make a claim. If you can get LEO on site you will be surprised how many people will tell the truth or twist their story and the LEO will sort it out and know they were at fault!