Limit on rental car reembursment?

[Rockstar]

I live in Maryland and had an accident in Maryland. I was rear-ended by another vehicle, and the other driver claims responsibility. He was driving a U-Haul with their coverage (through Elco.) I have Nationwide with full coverage and elected their 'Blue Ribbon Service' (which they go ahead and get the car repaired at an approved shop while they follow through with the claim.) They told me I had a limit of 30 days on the rental car and anything beyond that I had to pay, but the car will most likely take longer than 30 days to get back from the shop. Is this true? Is the at-fault driver not responsible for the rental car for the duration that it is in the shop? If I am entitled to the rental car for the entire time, what do I need to tell my insurance company?

TIA

 

[spawn_x]

well first of all why does the car need to be in repair for longer than 30 days? Sounds like your body shop is just lazy to do the work and wants to fix it as slow as possible.

You could always sue the other party for whatever the insurance company doesn't pay.. however i'm curious as to WHY you'd need more than 30 days rental.

 

[Rockstar]

I'm not sure that they will take more than 30 days but it seems likely at this point. The shop hasn't gotten all the parts for the car in yet. They all had to be ordered so the work hasn't started. Also they were pretty busy at the time the car was dropped off. It's been my experience that shops are usualy busier than they are lazy. I have a friend who is a mechanic and they get paid for the estimated time for the job, not how long it actually takes. He makes good money doing twice the jobs by doing them in half the time. I'm sure it's the opposite if they are lazy and not doing their work, so it wouldn't make sense to me if that was the case. I can't say I can vouch for this shop, but it seems like whoever they're getting the parts from are the ones dragging their feet. This shop was an authorized shop for my insurance company, I took it there so I wouldn't have to get a bunch of estimates or wait for an adjuster to get out to me. I was hoping to expedite getting the car back.

 

[spawn_x]

Is/was your vehicle drivable after the accident or you only need a rental while its in repair?

 

[Rockstar]

It was undrivable per the shop since one of the back tail lights was gone and the trunk did not stay shut. So I've had the rental car since the accident, that's the main problem.

 

[tammy8]

Read your policy and see what the limits are. In most states (and by reading many new residences of my area's policies) the policies are very similar. Most say that the transportation/rental reimbursements are limited to $30 a day or $900 an occurance.

 

[spawn_x]

so sue him for whatever the insurance company won't cover.

 

[stephenk]

go to your adjuster and demand that your carrier pay for the additional rental beyond the 30 days.

If your repair time estimate is less than 30 days, you shouldnt pay for rental if it is taking the insurance company's repair shop too long to get the parts it needs. I doubt if you took the car to a dealership, it would take this long to fix.

The reason for the delay is not your fault but your carrier's approved shop. The carrier I work for pays for extra rental if the delay is caused by the carrier or its repair facilities.

 

[BennyDi]

I have seen instances where the rental is paid for by the company of the party at fault, even though the repairs are being paid for by the claimants insurance company and later, subrogated. Not all companies are willing to do this, but some are. It's worth a try.