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This past weekend, I was rear-ended (in my new car ) by a girl on the highway. We came around a bend and traffic came to a complete stop. She came around the bend a few seconds behind me and WHAM! She didn't have much time to stop, but her tires screeched so I'm guessing her vehicle hit us at about 45 MPH. No known injuries - just whiplash for the four that were in my car. She was unregistered and cited.
Anyway, her insurance company has been calling me twice a day starting on Sunday. They're asking me how I'm feeling, blah blah blah. They keep saying they want to offer pain and suffering money, in addition to any medical costs. I don't plan to sue because I'm not like that, but I find it strange that they're trying to throw money at us. I've never heard of an insurance company doing this (they didn't when I was rear ended last year).
Anyone take a "pain and suffering" payout from an insurance company? What's in the fine print? How much do they offer?
QUIT taking their calls and do NOT TELL THEM ANYTHING ELSE. Tell those in the vehicle with you to do the same. Get an attorney and go from there. Whiplash IS AN INJURY and one that can have long term problems associated with it.
QUIT taking their calls and do NOT TELL THEM ANYTHING ELSE. Tell those in the vehicle with you to do the same. Get an attorney and go from there. Whiplash IS AN INJURY and one that can have long term problems associated with it.
That's what everyone is telling me, but I think that might be overreacting a bit. You really think a lawyer is the right way to go?
I knew a girl once who was broadsided by a car when she was making a left turn into a driveway.....by the car behind her.
She saw a doctor and was given a clean bill of health.....she signed off with the other driver's insurance company.....not sure how much money she got......anyway.....this was many years ago.
About two years later she had to have one of her kidneys removed because it had been badly bruised in that accident.
So.....I wouldn't be too quick to settle.
I agree with the others.....see an attorney before you say or do anything.
Well first, it isn't her health insurance who's offering to give you "pain and suffering." It's her car insurance company. So this thread really belongs in a different forum, because it implies that you are confusing health insurance with car insurance, which are two very very different things.
Second, I don't know how she was able to have any kind of insurance on a car that wasn't registered, since insurance companies don't insure drivers for driving illegally. And driving an unregistered vehicle is illegal. This could be why the insurance company is calling you: because they violated their own policies in covering an illegally-operated vehicle, which makes them liable for a lot more than just their usual policy's pain and suffering. In other words, the car insurance company is in deep doo doo, and is scrambling to dogpaddle their way out of it.
Definitely get a lawyer.
*edited to comment - yeah I know you can get insurance on an unregistered vehicle, if you're planning on storing it in your yard, in certain communities. But that's not the topic here, this topic is about someone who was -driving- an unregistered vehicle, and insurance companies that insure unregistered vehicles, are not expecting anyone to actually drive them. You can get temporary registration for transporting a vehicle from one owner to another, so that isn't even a plausible explanation.
Anon - correct. However there is no "legal" forum here, so this was the closest. Feel free to "red mark" me and report it if you feel it's not in the right spot. Or Mods, feel free to move it.
Anyway...I have received a phone call twice today, as has DW and our two friends who were riding in the vehicle as well. The want to record all of our statements. Very strange.
I've never been the "lawyer type" but everyone seems to be telling us that that's the way to go. I, however, am not sure it's worth it.
They want to settle because they know you have a claim. They hope you will take guaranteed dollars now vs. uncertain dollars later with your lawyer collecting a percentage.
You need to decide when and for what you will settle. Maybe consulting a lawyer will make you more comfortable with your decision. Make sure you know upfront what you will owe for the advice.
You don't need a lawyer. They are offering you that money so you don't sue them. It's a lot less expensive for them to offer a settlement then it would be to go to court. Just don't sign the paper they will want you to sign absolving them of any future claims for medical bills. I would also make sure everyone in your car goes to the doctor. They need to have proof they were injured in the car, they should probably go today if they have not already. The insurance company for the girl that hit you should pay for that 100%. Depending on what state you are in, you probably want to give your insurance company a call and file a claim through them. In our state you would have to because there were injuries in the crash but not all states have PIP. If you involve your insurance company, they will use their lawyers to talk to the lawyers from the other company. Just don't sign ANYTHING yet.
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) by a girl on the highway. We came around a bend and traffic came to a complete stop. She came around the bend a few seconds behind me and WHAM! She didn't have much time to stop, but her tires screeched so I'm guessing her vehicle hit us at about 45 MPH. No known injuries - just whiplash for the four that were in my car. She was unregistered and cited.
