Bicyclist and Pickup Truck

[meddjay]

My state is confusion ....but that is another story.

Hi all, ah yes..its me the person helping the bicyclist hit by the pickup truck! Anyway, I got all the necessary documents together, gave an over the phone statement and then sent in the documents with the demand letter for the amount we are requesting on the claim

. Well, this is my question: I sent in the documents and claim letter the other day to the insurance adjuster, and in the interim my friend got a letter from the insurance company saying they will pay the medical directly and nothing else. The insurance company KNEW I was sending in the formal demand letter along with the documents (hospital bills, pictures etc), but it was like they thought if they beat me to the punch by sending out their letter first, then that would be that! My friend recieved this letter like yesterday and the insurance company probably recieved the demand letter I sent them today, so whats the deal on that? Isn't this just the first step in the negotiation process? I figure to use the amount they said they would pay for the medical bills as their first offer in the negotiations. But the amount they said they would pay and the amount on the demand letter is a difference of about 20,000! And not only that, they say they will pay the medical bills directly and not award the claim amount to my friend! My friend plans on paying some of the medical bills but he needs money to live on also. So if worse comes to worse and this is all he ends up with, can they do that..I mean pay the hospital directly? And what is the deal with the letter? Thanks for your advice all.

 

[ellencee]

meddjay
Your friend, the person who rode his bike on the wrong side of the road, saw the truck, and depended on the driver of the truck to stop just because he, your friend, imagined the driver would, needs to accept the payment for his medical bills and say thank you.
I suppose if you continue to represent him, your friend could end up with nothing. Insurance companies have attorneys; your friend doesn't and he's the one who would need one should this go to court, where he will surely lose or gain nothing more than medical bills.
You can forget all this extra money. It isn't going to happen. And, yes, the insurance company has the right to pay directly to the hospital or other medical/health provider.
Your friend had ample time to stop and let the driver of the truck have the right of way, as it was his to have. Your friend caused his own accident and brought forth his own injuries. He does not deserve to be financially rewarded for causing his own injuries.