Fender Bender: Need advice from Insurance people or Lawyer (etc) (crime, law)

[mathjak107]

im not a lawyer so i couldnt even tell you the difference between case and statutory...only thing i can tell you is my own in court experiences....

no where did i say officers couldnt write reports i only said i couldnt use it in court...... after the judge recited those reasons to us we understood why


my wife is the csi fan.... she actually wants to go back to school when we retire for forensics

[omigawd]

Originally Posted by pdcnret

I certainly hope that you're not basing all of your "legal"conclusions on what Judge Judy says. Next you'll tell me that you know all about police investigations because you're a regular viewer of CSI.

LOL!! And herein lies the problem..... people watch entirely too much television --- especially "court" shows and "cop" shows and then think they are experts in the law. Just an FYI to all you Judge Judy, People's Court, and Judge Alex fans: these shows are meant for ENTERTAINMENT value, plain and simple. The shennanigans that go on in those "courtrooms" (studios) would get a regular judge at the very least disciplined.

As for those "cop" shows.... Give me a break........

I've worked in the legal field far too long for anyone to be able to tell me what is/isn't admissible in court, especially something so elementary as Small Claims Court. Like I said, in Small Claims, the judge knows who is standing before him/her. If it's a person who comes to court properly, the judge is going to treat them as such. Other than that, it's up to the judge's whimsy.

[gea12345]

omigawd should get off his/her horse and stop being a pain.

just explain simply that the police person could not use hearsay. why? because he didn't indpendenly observe it.

However if the police was called as a witness, s/he can use the report to refresh his/her memory in court and excited utterances can be used to show whether the defendant is lying.

So yes, reports can't be used by themselves, but in conjunction with the real person. However, some reports can be used if the person is dead and that is the only record.

hope this helps!

[mathjak107]

no need for personal attacks just the facts are what should be posted..., omigawd is just expressing what she believes to be true and her own expierences.... her points well taken.... these discussions should be used to increase our knowledge about stuff whether facts may be right , wrong or even a little off base.... thats what helps us learn about stuff we really know just bits and pieces of... im no lawyer and have bits and pieces of all kinds of stuff but hopefully when we all put our bits and pieces together we come up with a worthwhile conclusion... to have a baby you dont need to know all the details about the formation of a baby...

we dont need to know all the legaleeze, or the cases or the finer points of case or statutory law...

what is important to this whole discussion and the one thing everyone should walk away with from it is this: and thats the point of the forum discussions, the bottom line right?

if your going to court , any court in nys for that mAtter BE FOREWARNED ...

maybe the judge will read the report ,maybe they wont but if your basing your case heavily on statements made at the scene that are contained in that report you may end with no evidence if they choose not to accept it without the officer....

bottom line is to beforwarned is to be forearmed , just make sure you can still build a case around your other evidence.... i think that pretty much sums it up.


spelling is another thing i know bits and pieces of ha ha ha

[LIguy257]

Whoa I just remembered to check back on this thread--I see it's escalated a bit, haha. Healthy discussion is always good.

Anyway, I'm gonna file my claim tomorrow, so now it looks like i'll have to pay out the thousand bucks for my deductible, then take her to small claims.

It might not be enough, but at this point I'd be going into the court with the following:

- Date/location/circumstances surrounding the incident.

- A full description of description of the conversation that took place (including her pleading with me to not call the police since her insurance had recently lapsed and she hadn't had time to get it reinstated).

- Her license plate #, as well as a full description of the vehicle. Also her phone number and the address gave me. I emailed this information from my cell phone to my email address so that's dated and time stamped.

- My cell phone logs showing that I called her the day after the accident, as well as two days later when she didn't follow up after that. I also show that I left her about five messages over several weeks, as well as two other three-five minute calls, where I spoke to her sister. I will also provide detailed descriptions of the extact conversations that took place.

- I can also attest to the fact that she was doing laundry that night to help her pregnant daughter, who was on bed rest at the time. She also indicated that her son was having trouble with his business.

Obviously some of this stuff is not pertinent to the accident itself, but if it's a matter of who is more believable and who is "more" at fault, I'm hoping all this stuff combines at least proves that we were in an incident (as opposed to her showing up and trying to pretend she has no idea who I am). I have a sick memory, and I can have a sharp personality when I need to--there's nothing she can bring to the table at this point.

So I'm hoping that by demonstating the sheer volume of information I have regarding who she is and what is going on in her life, I'm making it impossible for her to try to deny being involved (if that's her plan). I believe the pictures of the damage to my car will also prove that there is no way the accident could have been my fault, unless I drove into her sideways.

RE: the police report, I don't know who's right, but I'm gonna file it anyway. I think that by doing that, it shows that I at least mean business because most people wouldn't file a false police report (felony?) to claim a thousand dollars. I don't know if they'll use it but like I said, I'm a bit crazy with documenation so I'm just gonna add it to the folder. One more thing to make my case look better then hers.

With no security footage and no officer at the scene, I guess it comes down to my word against hers and unfortunately for her I'm a bit OCD with documenation and details so unless she shows up with some bad ass trick up her sleeve, I should be victorious. To be honest I don't even care if we're BOTH found at fault--as long as she has to pay something. It's such a f***ed up ****ty thing to do to someone who did YOU a favor. And it's downright stupid to do it after giving them your name, address, plate number, etc..

Now that it's clear she's not gonna pay on her own, my only hope for this is that she has to pay *something*. .

[twingles]

I've worked in auto insurance for many years. GEICO probably won't walk away - they can re-coup what they paid out for very little money by going after her for what they paid plus your deductible. Insurance companies can't afford to "walk away" from every uninsured numnut on Long Island, KWIM? But - even if they for some reason did, you can still go after her in small claims for your deductible.

If you don't want to go thru insurance at all all you need is her address to sue her in small claims. But collecting even if you win is another story.

When I worked for Large Insurance CO and people would call and tell me they'd been in a crash and the other party offered to pay cash, I ALWAYS told them to forget it. NO ONE EVER PAYS. Even if they have the money, people just don't believe how much it takes to repair a car.

SOrry if this is repetitious I didn't read other replies.

[pdcnret]

Originally Posted by LIguy257

Whoa I just remembered to check back on this thread--I see it's escalated a bit, haha. Healthy discussion is always good.

Anyway, I'm gonna file my claim tomorrow, so now it looks like i'll have to pay out the thousand bucks for my deductible, then take her to small claims.

It might not be enough, but at this point I'd be going into the court with the following:

- Date/location/circumstances surrounding the incident.

- A full description of description of the conversation that took place (including her pleading with me to not call the police since her insurance had recently lapsed and she hadn't had time to get it reinstated).

- Her license plate #, as well as a full description of the vehicle. Also her phone number and the address gave me. I emailed this information from my cell phone to my email address so that's dated and time stamped.

- My cell phone logs showing that I called her the day after the accident, as well as two days later when she didn't follow up after that. I also show that I left her about five messages over several weeks, as well as two other three-five minute calls, where I spoke to her sister. I will also provide detailed descriptions of the extact conversations that took place.

- I can also attest to the fact that she was doing laundry that night to help her pregnant daughter, who was on bed rest at the time. She also indicated that her son was having trouble with his business.

Obviously some of this stuff is not pertinent to the accident itself, but if it's a matter of who is more believable and who is "more" at fault, I'm hoping all this stuff combines at least proves that we were in an incident (as opposed to her showing up and trying to pretend she has no idea who I am). I have a sick memory, and I can have a sharp personality when I need to--there's nothing she can bring to the table at this point.

So I'm hoping that by demonstating the sheer volume of information I have regarding who she is and what is going on in her life, I'm making it impossible for her to try to deny being involved (if that's her plan). I believe the pictures of the damage to my car will also prove that there is no way the accident could have been my fault, unless I drove into her sideways.

RE: the police report, I don't know who's right, but I'm gonna file it anyway. I think that by doing that, it shows that I at least mean business because most people wouldn't file a false police report (felony?) to claim a thousand dollars. I don't know if they'll use it but like I said, I'm a bit crazy with documenation so I'm just gonna add it to the folder. One more thing to make my case look better then hers.

With no security footage and no officer at the scene, I guess it comes down to my word against hers and unfortunately for her I'm a bit OCD with documenation and details so unless she shows up with some bad ass trick up her sleeve, I should be victorious. To be honest I don't even care if we're BOTH found at fault--as long as she has to pay something. It's such a f***ed up ****ty thing to do to someone who did YOU a favor. And it's downright stupid to do it after giving them your name, address, plate number, etc..

Now that it's clear she's not gonna pay on her own, my only hope for this is that she has to pay *something*. .

I'm assuming by your post that the damage to your car exceeded a thousand dollars. As I've posted before, that threshold requires you to file an accident report with the state (that's not the same as filing a report with the police.) Failing to do that is a misdemeanor and if you don't, you may be subject to having either your license or registration or both suspended.

Bottom line is that you may have more to worry about than a dented fender.

[Hi, my name is...]

Originally Posted by pdcnret

I'm assuming by your post that the damage to your car exceeded a thousand dollars. As I've posted before, that threshold requires you to file an accident report with the state (that's not the same as filing a report with the police.) Failing to do that is a misdemeanor and if you don't, you may be subject to having either your license or registration or both suspended.

Bottom line is that you may have more to worry about than a dented fender.

And if this guy gets charged with anything it's another example of how the law is flawed. I've been hit and decided to let the person who hit me handle it outside of insurance and the police. Luckily for me I was dealing with an honest person. The damage to my car was over $1,000 too... so I guess I better watch over my shoulder for big brother

[pdcnret]

Originally Posted by Hi, my name is...

And if this guy gets charged with anything it's another example of how the law is flawed. I've been hit and decided to let the person who hit me handle it outside of insurance and the police. Luckily for me I was dealing with an honest person. The damage to my car was over $1,000 too... so I guess I better watch over my shoulder for big brother

And why is the law flawed? The state has a legitimate interest in knowing about accidents on its roadways, just as it has a legitimate interest in ensuring that drivers are licensed and cars are insured.

While you mock the post, see how quick your tune changes if a suspension notice arrives in the mail. You may have gotten away with not filing this time, but the next time you may not be so lucky. The law is the law ... just obey it and you won't have any problems. It's that simple.

[djdairyp]

Originally Posted by pdcnret

The law is the law ... just obey it and you won't have any problems.

OBEY!!!

spoken like a true fascist