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Insurance not Wanting to Cover Mechanical Damage

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gtzdad

Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX

Two weeks ago I was rear-ended by a woman while stopped at a red light. I was driving a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder and she was driving a Ford Expedition. My car was drivable, and right after the accident I simply drove to work after everything was wrapped up at the scene. When I put my car in reverse to go to lunch, it started making a weird noise that was not present before the accident.

When I placed my car in the shop for repair, I wrote down all of the details about the noise I was hearing, how it wasn't present before the accident, etc...

The shop forgot to have the noise diagnosed by the service dept. so I ended up having to keep my rental for an extra 4 days, 2 of which the insurance company will pay for. (Get to that later)

After the diagnosis, it was found that the U-Joints were bad and needed to be replaced. They told me they were simply worn out and unrelated to the accident. I reminded them that this noise was not present prior top the accident, so I can only presume that it was the accident that caused the damage. They said there was no way to prove that, and I asked if there was a way to disprove it and they said no.

I then performed research that corroborates my theory that the damage can be caused by rear-end collisions. I have not presented that evidence because I just picked my car up today and plan to try and talk with the dealer and insurance companies about having it replaced based upon my research. Should they decline to repair the damage that I know for a fact was not there prior to the accident, what are my options in dealing with them legally to fix the problem?

Also, the initial work order I filled out, I requested they investigate the source of the noise because it was not present prior to the accident and they "forgot". So the shop had to keep my car through Labor Day weekend and the insurance company will only pay for 2 days out of the 4. I don't believe that I should come out of pocket for anything because it was he dealer who dropped the ball on that not me, and it was the insurance companies customer who caused the damage to my car.

Am I right to think that they (dealer for dropping the ball or the insurance company) should pay for the rental? I turned it in today after they called me today saying it was finally ready.
 


justalayman

Senior Member
a worn out u-joint is not the result of an accident. A u joint can be damaged but you said the mechanic stated it was worn. Determining which is which is simple.

as to noises; an accident causes all sorts of problems. It may have caused a misalignment in the drivetrain that put stress on the u joints so they started making noise. That doesn't mean the u joints were damaged by the accident.
 

ecmst12

Senior Member
MOST of the damage was there before the accident. The accident may have pushed it over the edge, but if the joints were worn out before, they were worn out before. At the MOST, they might pay for a small amount of the cost to repair. But more likely you're on your own. Repairs are part of the cost of owning a car.

Perhaps the shop will cover the extra 2 days of rental since they are the ones who forgot to do what you asked them to do.
 

gtzdad

Member
As I understand it, a U joint can be damaged through a rear-end collision by way of drive shaft damage. The suspension is designed to flex during accidents, however the metal drive shaft is not, so if the drive shaft was put in a bind from the collision, it could no longer be true in shape, therefore causing the wear on the u joints to dramatically increase.

I don't doubt that they were wearing out, however I do believe that the accident prematurely caused their failure. No-one can pinpoint exactly how much longer the joints will have survived, but after speaking with other Nissan dealerships, I should get WAY more than 111,000 miles out of them.
 

JustAPal00

Senior Member
As I understand it, a U joint can be damaged through a rear-end collision by way of drive shaft damage. The suspension is designed to flex during accidents, however the metal drive shaft is not, so if the drive shaft was put in a bind from the collision, it could no longer be true in shape, therefore causing the wear on the u joints to dramatically increase.

I don't doubt that they were wearing out, however I do believe that the accident prematurely caused their failure. No-one can pinpoint exactly how much longer the joints will have survived, but after speaking with other Nissan dealerships, I should get WAY more than 111,000 miles out of them.
Exactly! So you continuing to drive is what caused the damage. You have an obligation after an accident to mitigate the damage. You drove the car to work and back and they wore out. They were probably worn quite a bit already but you just finished the job. So see they weren't damaged in the accident but afterwards when you were driving the vehicle.
 

justalayman

Senior Member
gtzdad;2641487]As I understand it, a U joint can be damaged through a rear-end collision by way of drive shaft damage.
but damage is not wear.

The suspension is designed to flex during accidents, however the metal drive shaft is not, so if the drive shaft was put in a bind from the collision, it could no longer be true in shape, therefore causing the wear on the u joints to dramatically increase.
only if you drove the vehicle with damaged parts that put the u joints in a bind

I don't doubt that they were wearing out, however I do believe that the accident prematurely caused their failure.
as justapal said; it was not the accident that caused the premature wear but you driving the vehicle without repairing the damage that was causing the excessive wear.

No-one can pinpoint exactly how much longer the joints will have survived, but after speaking with other Nissan dealerships, I should get WAY more than 111,000 miles out of them.
If yours showed noticeable wear other than what can be attributed to the wear from you driving the vehicle with a misaligned drive line, they were already worn out, even with 111,000 miles on them.
 

flyzer05

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX

Two weeks ago I was rear-ended by a woman while stopped at a red light. I was driving a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder and she was driving a Ford Expedition. My car was drivable, and right after the accident I simply drove to work after everything was wrapped up at the scene. When I put my car in reverse to go to lunch, it started making a weird noise that was not present before the accident.

When I placed my car in the shop for repair, I wrote down all of the details about the noise I was hearing, how it wasn't present before the accident, etc...

The shop forgot to have the noise diagnosed by the service dept. so I ended up having to keep my rental for an extra 4 days, 2 of which the insurance company will pay for. (Get to that later)

After the diagnosis, it was found that the U-Joints were bad and needed to be replaced. They told me they were simply worn out and unrelated to the accident. I reminded them that this noise was not present prior top the accident, so I can only presume that it was the accident that caused the damage. They said there was no way to prove that, and I asked if there was a way to disprove it and they said no.

I then performed research that corroborates my theory that the damage can be caused by rear-end collisions. I have not presented that evidence because I just picked my car up today and plan to try and talk with the dealer and insurance companies about having it replaced based upon my research. Should they decline to repair the damage that I know for a fact was not there prior to the accident, what are my options in dealing with them legally to fix the problem?

Also, the initial work order I filled out, I requested they investigate the source of the noise because it was not present prior to the accident and they "forgot". So the shop had to keep my car through Labor Day weekend and the insurance company will only pay for 2 days out of the 4. I don't believe that I should come out of pocket for anything because it was he dealer who dropped the ball on that not me, and it was the insurance companies customer who caused the damage to my car.

Am I right to think that they (dealer for dropping the ball or the insurance company) should pay for the rental? I turned it in today after they called me today saying it was finally ready.
When the damage occurred you should of handed your car over to your insurance that way you aren't reliable for any situation that may occur. Now you need to see if your insurance will repair it, if not you may need to contact the person that hit you and come to an agreement. Worst case take her to small claim. Best of luck!
 

Hole9yard

Member
if as you say a drive shaft became untrue which caused the u joints to wear. did you have the drive shaft replaced. A untrue drive shaft doesn't become true again
 

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