help

[paw1194]

I'm from NY and I wanted to know is it legal for an insurance company not to go look at your car just because you didnt take a picture of your car. even though you paid your insurance and no one told you about taking any pictures. they say they cant come look at the car and i have to take care of the damages my self but yet i'm paying $500 for full coverage.


Please help me!


[Edited by paw1194 on 05-08-2001 at 09:01 PM]

 

[ALawyer]

An insurance company does NOT fix your car. It does agree to pay for covered damages to your car, less the deductible, and the money is normally either paid to you or the shop to fix it.

The policy itself should set out exactly what the process to get a claim filed and paid is and that is what the insurance company and you agreed to. (I know you didn't read the policy, but that's your responsibility.) USUALLY the company has the right to insepct the damage to make sure the damage was covered and is real, and that all they are paying for is the damage that was recent, as there are lots of cases of fraud, and some very unsavory repair shops. And they want to be able to go after anyone else responsible, in whole or in part.

It's not just the picture. Now that you understand where they are coming from, have a frank discussion with the adjuster. If you don't get satisfaction -- and you may not get everything -- complain to the NY State Insurance Department.

 

[paw1194]

bronx,ny--I SPOKE TO THE INSURANCE COMPANY AND THEY SAID ITS BECAUSE OF THE PICTURE I TOLD THEM NO ONE NOTIFIED AND THEY SAID THAT THERES NOTHING THAT THEY CAN DO. HOW CAN THEY KEEP ACCEPTING MY PAYMENTS AND NOT TELL ME. IT THAT WAS THE CASE I DONT THINK I SHOULD HAVE PAID FOR FULL COVERAGE BECAUSE THATS WHAT I WAS PAYING FOR BUT DIDNT GET. THE CAR IS PRACTICALLY TOTALED $12,000 WORTH OF DAMAGES THE PERSON THAT CAUSED ME TO HIT THE HIGHWAY DIVIDER LEFT THE SCENE. IF THE CAR IS TOTALED WILL THEY STILL COVER THE LOSS?

[Edited by paw1194 on 05-12-2001 at 06:54 PM]

 

[Jeter]

A photo inspection is mandatory for vehicles that fall under certain criteria, such as new vehicles or vehicles that are only a few years old. Your insurance policy outlines this. It's not the company's responsibility to notify you of this seperately. They can keep accepting payments because you keep sending them. It doesn't mean you're fully covered. If the car is totaled, you're probably out of luck.

Jeter

 

[rmsbuffalo]

I've been told that for any financial transaction, there has to be 2 sides, one side being a payment and the other side being whatever is purchased. A company cannot continue collecting payments simply because you keep sending them without giving you something in return. It would seem to me that if you failed to provide them with supporting documentation that was required by the policy, you should have been notified and your payments should have been refused until you provided them with their required documentation. By you sending them payments and them accepting them without notification to you that documentation was missing, they caused a reliance on your part that you in fact were covered. This would be comparable to denying you an opportunity to secure any coverage with any company. (If you're under the impression you're insured, why would you buy more insurance?)

A pretty standard guideline that I've always been told is that a Policy that's paid for is a binding policy. Though the Policy may state that the pictures are required, I would hazard the guess that it says that the Insurance company can cancel the policy in the abscence of such pictures, not that it can refuse a claim without canceling the Policy.

I would contact hte NY State Insurance Dept.

Just my opinion...

 

[rmsbuffalo]

I've been told that for any financial transaction, there has to be 2 sides, one side being a payment and the other side being whatever is purchased. A company cannot continue collecting payments simply because you keep sending them without giving you something in return. It would seem to me that if you failed to provide them with supporting documentation that was required by the policy, you should have been notified and your payments should have been refused until you provided them with their required documentation. By you sending them payments and them accepting them without notification to you that documentation was missing, they caused a reliance on your part that you in fact were covered. This would be comparable to denying you an opportunity to secure any coverage with any other company. (If you're under the impression you're insured, why would you buy more insurance?)

A pretty standard guideline that I've always been told is that a Policy that's paid for is a binding policy. Though the Policy may state that the pictures are required, I would hazard the guess that it says that the Insurance company can cancel the policy in the abscence of such pictures, not that it can refuse a claim without canceling the Policy.

I would contact the NY State Insurance Dept.

Just my opinion...