New York State
My local municipal board has refused to pay replacement costs after admitting liability and promising to do so in a letter dated the day caused damage to my property.
It is using the disclaimer on the insurance check to do so, which reads; "Full and final payment of any and all claims resulting from an accident occuring on or about 10/12/04"
Before signing and cashing the check my wife and I called the municipal to clarify the meaning and to find out if cashing the check would exempt any further claims. The municipal stated that it didn't know and refered us to the insurance representative handling the case. We believe that when this occured, that representative became an agent of the municipal. We were told by that agent that signing and cashing the check did not release any other claims involving this issue. The disclaimer, we were told, was only to protect the insurance company from duplicate claims. In fact, we have recieved further reimbursment from the insurance company since the cashing of that check.
I had suspected the municipal's intent to avoid full reimbursement and as a result, I have contacted the New York State Public Services Commission. It responded by issuing a grace period in order to reach an agreement. That grace period expired at the time of the municipal's refusal to pay, which was Friday the 7th.
I suspect but need to confirm the fact that lawyers are allowed in our local small claims court.
Because of this, I feel quite intimidated by the idea of taking this to small claims, if in fact, lawyers are allowed in.
I am not sure if I should let the NYPSC handle this or if I should file in small claims. In any event, I need to know the legal definition of an "agent".
Any advice is welcome. Anyone who can cite the definition of an "agent" I would be most grateful to.
Dan
My local municipal board has refused to pay replacement costs after admitting liability and promising to do so in a letter dated the day caused damage to my property.
It is using the disclaimer on the insurance check to do so, which reads; "Full and final payment of any and all claims resulting from an accident occuring on or about 10/12/04"
Before signing and cashing the check my wife and I called the municipal to clarify the meaning and to find out if cashing the check would exempt any further claims. The municipal stated that it didn't know and refered us to the insurance representative handling the case. We believe that when this occured, that representative became an agent of the municipal. We were told by that agent that signing and cashing the check did not release any other claims involving this issue. The disclaimer, we were told, was only to protect the insurance company from duplicate claims. In fact, we have recieved further reimbursment from the insurance company since the cashing of that check.
I had suspected the municipal's intent to avoid full reimbursement and as a result, I have contacted the New York State Public Services Commission. It responded by issuing a grace period in order to reach an agreement. That grace period expired at the time of the municipal's refusal to pay, which was Friday the 7th.
I suspect but need to confirm the fact that lawyers are allowed in our local small claims court.
Because of this, I feel quite intimidated by the idea of taking this to small claims, if in fact, lawyers are allowed in.
I am not sure if I should let the NYPSC handle this or if I should file in small claims. In any event, I need to know the legal definition of an "agent".
Any advice is welcome. Anyone who can cite the definition of an "agent" I would be most grateful to.
Dan
