What is the name of your state? Washington DC
I was rear-ended about a month ago in Washington DC. I am a college kid, 20 years old, and had two friends in the car with me. We stopped at a stop light - there was one or two cars in front - when a woman hit us from behind. Her Honda was going at around 15 mph or so (not sure exactly) and hit my car's bumper. We pulled off to the side and I took down her license plate and driver's license number. She said she didn't have her insurance card on her, but we swapped cell numbers. I looked at my BMW, there didn't appear to be too much damage, but I said I was going to check it out within the next few days. She said that the accident was her fault and that her brakes were bad, which is why she couldnt stop in time - and I have two witnesses to that, as well as the passengers in her car. We talked the next day and she told me that her husband and her wanted to pay out-of-pocket for the damages because they jst got new insurance and didn't want their rates to go up. I didn't think that was a problem - I just wanted my car to be fixed as quickly as possible. I was told by a repair shop I was going to need a new bumper, plus it looked as though my muffler may have been shoved up as a result of the accident, and they gave me an estimate. After about two weeks of repeatedly calling her and leaving messages and getting no response, I called my insurance company, GEICO. They could not track down her license plate number OR her driver's license number. They called her on her cell phone, and she called back and left the adjuster a message, which was apparently not understandable. After that, they still couldnt get in touch with her so they said they would put it down as an uninsured driver, since I don't have collision coverage, and they had no way of finding out who her insurance carrier is (the adjuster tried calling several other companies to see if she was insured). The deductible for me is $500, which is pretty pricey for a college student. I don't feel I should have to pay the deductible OR the costs of my insurance going up because A)she admitted responsibility and B) it was her fault. I'm going to file a small claims suit against her, but is it better that I sue for the deductible or cancel my insurance claim and sue her for the total costs of repair (I guess the average of 3 estimates?) I'm not trying to make things difficult for this woman, or myself, but I just don't think anyone should be allowed to get away with damaging property and not facing responsibility. I tried numerous times (I'd say about 20-25 times, and about 12 voice messages, over the period of 2 1/2 weeks) to get in touch with her, and I think that this is my last resort. Any other advice too would be extremely helpful.
I was rear-ended about a month ago in Washington DC. I am a college kid, 20 years old, and had two friends in the car with me. We stopped at a stop light - there was one or two cars in front - when a woman hit us from behind. Her Honda was going at around 15 mph or so (not sure exactly) and hit my car's bumper. We pulled off to the side and I took down her license plate and driver's license number. She said she didn't have her insurance card on her, but we swapped cell numbers. I looked at my BMW, there didn't appear to be too much damage, but I said I was going to check it out within the next few days. She said that the accident was her fault and that her brakes were bad, which is why she couldnt stop in time - and I have two witnesses to that, as well as the passengers in her car. We talked the next day and she told me that her husband and her wanted to pay out-of-pocket for the damages because they jst got new insurance and didn't want their rates to go up. I didn't think that was a problem - I just wanted my car to be fixed as quickly as possible. I was told by a repair shop I was going to need a new bumper, plus it looked as though my muffler may have been shoved up as a result of the accident, and they gave me an estimate. After about two weeks of repeatedly calling her and leaving messages and getting no response, I called my insurance company, GEICO. They could not track down her license plate number OR her driver's license number. They called her on her cell phone, and she called back and left the adjuster a message, which was apparently not understandable. After that, they still couldnt get in touch with her so they said they would put it down as an uninsured driver, since I don't have collision coverage, and they had no way of finding out who her insurance carrier is (the adjuster tried calling several other companies to see if she was insured). The deductible for me is $500, which is pretty pricey for a college student. I don't feel I should have to pay the deductible OR the costs of my insurance going up because A)she admitted responsibility and B) it was her fault. I'm going to file a small claims suit against her, but is it better that I sue for the deductible or cancel my insurance claim and sue her for the total costs of repair (I guess the average of 3 estimates?) I'm not trying to make things difficult for this woman, or myself, but I just don't think anyone should be allowed to get away with damaging property and not facing responsibility. I tried numerous times (I'd say about 20-25 times, and about 12 voice messages, over the period of 2 1/2 weeks) to get in touch with her, and I think that this is my last resort. Any other advice too would be extremely helpful.