High risk insurance and no response from "insured."

[Boxcarbill]

What is the name of your state? TX

Seventeen year old driver backs up and hits parked car on apartment bldg parking lot. Police called and investigates and cites seventeen year old for failure to leave information and writes up police report (plastic tailight cover fragments embedded in truck bumper, exchange of paint colors and confession of the 17 y.o. after being mirandized. Seventeen y.o. is adult under TX penal code.) An adult female (mother ?) is the registered owner of the pickup driven by the 17 year old and is the "insured" with a high-risk insurance provider.

The parked car has liability and uninsured/underinsured insurance only so cannot file under own policy until the other insurance co. denies liability. Their position is our insured has not contacted us. The accident was December 14, '02 The car cannot be driven, legally, because tail lamp assembly is out. Repeated calls (recorded) usually results in reaching voice mail of adjuster. On rare occassion when can reach someone, adjuster response is "We haven't talked with our insured." Opinions? comments? suggestions?

(Insurance law is not my area of expertise, although it is fast becomming so )

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

File a Small Claims action against the 17 year old and the owner. That will do one of two things - - first, it will cause him and the owner to come out of hiding and defend, or, second, cause him to inform his insurance company about the accident.

Good to see you BCB!

IAAL

 

[Boxcarbill]

My response:

File a Small Claims action against the 17 year old and the owner. That will do one of two things - - first, it will cause him and the owner to come out of hiding and defend, or, second, cause him to inform his insurance company about the accident.

Good to see you BCB!

IAAL

Looks like I may have to. But since, rulings in J.P. court (small claims court) can be appealed, trial de novo, up to the county court at law, I think I will file in county court at law. No sense, in letting the opponent have a free preview of my case.

Thanks, IAAL.

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Looks like I may have to. But since, rulings in J.P. court (small claims court) can be appealed, trial de novo, up to the county court at law, I think I will file in county court at law. No sense, in letting the opponent have a free preview of my case.

Thanks, IAAL.

My response:

What's the jurisdictional minimum amount in controversy for filing directly in "county court"?

For example, here in California, on let's say, $2,000.00 in damages, I couldn't file directly in Superior Court - - the amount doesn't reach the threshold "minimum."

So, since this isn't your area of law, check with the clerk of "county court" to see if you can file directly in that court. If not, you may be forced, due to jurisdiction, to file in Small Claims as your starting point.

Besides, the whole idea of filing in Small Claims court is to "draw him out" - - to force him to report the accident to his insurance company. That was my point.

IAAL

 

[Boxcarbill]

My response:

What's the jurisdictional minimum amount in controversy for filing directly in "county court"?

For example, here in California, on let's say, $2,000.00 in damages, I couldn't file directly in Superior Court - - the amount doesn't reach the threshold "minimum."

So, since this isn't your area of law, check with the clerk of "county court" to see if you can file directly in that court. If not, you may be forced, due to jurisdiction, to file in Small Claims as your starting point.

Besides, the whole idea of filing in Small Claims court is to "draw him out" - - to force him to report the accident to his insurance company. That was my point.

IAAL

County Court at law has jurisdictional amount beginning at $500.00. I easily clear that hurdle. I was really hoping to avoid litigation by writing a certified letter RRR to the apt. address as well as to the address given to the Dept. of transportation on October 28, '02 when the truck was purchased and registered. Since Papa bear has done pen time, I doubt that baby bear is going to react to a certified letter or even to suit being filed but I thought it worth a try.

 

[Boxcarbill]

Miracle of miracles

Their " insured" that the insurance company claimed that they had been unable to reach responded to my certified letter, mailed on Friday, and accepted Tuesday and I heard from the "non-standard" insurance company today that they would be accepting liability. (Big surprise.)

They are going to send "our adjuster" out to evaluate the car damages and he said that it is that evaluation in which they will "write a check." I explained that I had gotten three evaluations from repair shops for repair of the damages as well as the NADA bluebook value and Edmund's bluebook value and researched the fair market value of the vehicle, in the same condition, in my area and so I knew exactly the bottom dollar that I was willing to accept. So while the amount that they OFFERr may be that of "their" appraiser, that does not mean that it is the amount that I will accept. (I really don't like the folks and trust them even less than I would a forger to be left alone in a room filled with checkbooks.)