Today started off with my doctor measuring my weight and telling me I'd lost another 13lbs in 8days. This after I'd lost 13lbs all month prior to that. I was dancing off the walls!!!
So I came home from the dr and settled into my home office. I had just hung up with a customer on the phone when there was this terrible grinding clunking noise and a vibration came through my house strong enough to rattle the windows.
It seems a woman driving a minivan similar to mine had "a bird fly in the window" and she panicked [we heard from police later]. She pressed on the accelerator instead of the break... careened down the hill bouncing off a neighbours fence slamming into my car parked in my driveway and driving my fan back 10' into my drive way shed. Crushing stuff stored at the front of it. The bouncing off the collision into a light standard parked next to my car before finally coming to rest.
So everyone feels my van will be written off and due to mechanical problems it will likely be a payout by the insurance co well below the market value of the van.
I am so stressed... I'm about to collapse into a gooey heap and cry.
Dayna.
Comments
Good luck
I don't know where you live, but in California an accident like that could be an act of God and you wouldn't be able to collect anything. My wife was in an accident several months ago and the person at fault is claiming just that. It seems he passed out and vered across a meridian sheering off a light pole and a hydrant. He continued into the front end of the car next to my wifes car and pushed it into her car, a Lexus. The damage was over seven thousand dollars. The collision part of her policy repaired the car, but she had to rent a car while it was being repaired. The total rental was over fifteen hundred dollars. She needed the car as she's a mobil notary and drives quite a lot each day. Our insurance didn't cover the cost of the rental, so it was out of her purse and the driver at fault claimed act of God so his insurance wouldn't have to pay the claim. I'm sure we'll have to take him to small claims court with the hope of recovering our loss, Arecee
Act of God?
The meaning of "Act of God" is considerably different from what this guy seems to be claiming. A judge might actually sanction an insurance company that tried such a laughable explanation in court. Insurance companies don't want to piss off judges so they will be reluctant to take such a claim to court. You and your wife need a lawyer that has a bit of courage and some common sense but as described this is just a scam.
Good luck, but you shouldn't need it, just a competent lawyer. A good one will know that they can be paid as part of the judgement and will be all teeth and nails to go after this guy.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
hugs hon
pulling for you hon.
The bad and the Good
At the moment all you can see is the bad. Things could have been a lot worse with you or the driver being serious hurt or injured. Now I am very greatful you are still alive to write this terrible tale.
I once had a very large tree fall on my house directly above the bed I was sleeping in. Fortunately the sturdy house prevented the tree from landing on me. From in my bedroom I couldn't even tell a tree was sitting inside my attic directly above my bed. If the frame of the house hadn't stopped it where it did, I probably would have been dead. Your car stopped that other lady. A little one way and she might have gone through a wall of your house and killed you. You are alive and well. You will get through the hard times and financial struggle. You will wake up tomorrow and go on with your life. Cry, hug your loved ones, and find peace. You may have some hard times ahead, but you will make it through.
You are making outstanding progress with the weight loss. You are becoming a healthier person because of it.
If you look for the bad you will surely find it, so look for the good discovering a whole new world.
Congratulations on the weight loss and surviving such an incident without injury.
Keep Smiling, Keep Writing
Teek
I'm not sure where you live,
I'm not sure where you live, but I'd suggest contacting an attorney. They can try to write your van off and give you less than it would take to replace it, but as you aren't at fault, you should be able to demand that they _replace_ the vehicle, not just hand you a check barely big enough for a down payment.
Also, make sure that your insurance company is aware of the entire process - they have lawyers as well, who _should_ try to make sure that the other insurance company doesn't try to absolve themselves of the issue.
Make sure that you have photos of everything that was destroyed, no matter how cheap it might have been. They _hate_ itemized lists, especially if you can give the exact cost, as well as where it from where it needs to be replaced.
As for the mechanical problems - how do _they_ know what problems you have or don't have with the van? Especially if it's been crushed. You tell them that before it was hit, you had a functional vehicle that you could drive. You no longer have a drivable vehicle, so you need them to give you a drivable vehicle.
(It's a different story if it's your own insurance. They'll do all sorts of interesting things.)
Oh - make sure your insurance has the police report as well.
Good luck!
I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.
Agreed
Especially the part about the lawyer. No one like lawyers, until they need them. The reason they exist to keep you from being messed over by other lawyers.
Bad luck?
I know how you feel.
If I fell in a barrel of tits, I'd come out sucking my thumb.
I agree about the van. You should be able to demand your van be replaced, since you are no way at fault. Same with the stuff that was crushed in the shed as well as reparations to the shed itself.
I wish you the best of luck.
Nick
(I'm still going through the process of claiming against the idiot who caused the accident I had last year and may still be next year ...)
In Some States, Homeowners Insurance Will
cover any property damage for anything that is on your property, including a car. It damaged the shed on your property too. You had no control over what happened. I see stories on the news every week with drivers either falling asleep, accidentally hitting the gas and not the brake or under the influence of drugs and alcohol.