Insurance Closed Claim

[12knots]

In the state of California.
Driving through an intersection in the #1 lane. The other party in #2 lane swerved to avoid a car entering her lane at intersection and hit me.
She provided false? insurance info only showing a policy number on her phone and stating she was with USAA insurance.
As damage was not major, on the spot I offered to settle outside insurance as a measure to minimize financial impact to her and obtained two estimates the next day which I emailed to her. ~$3000
She replied to my email stating that she had contacted her insurance company and wanted to settle the matter through insurance.
On the 3rd day after, I contacted my insurance company Geico and they were able to determine that her vehicle was actually covered by a Geico policy based on her license plate number.
I only have liability coverage on my vehicle as it is not worth much.

I gave my statement online via chat, and the online representative stated that I was not at fault.
Checking my claim online on the 4th day, I see that the status of the claim is "Closed."
My presumption being that she has given some conflicting testimony and Geico will not cover the damage.

I have sent a message to the adjuster via the Geico website to reopen the claim and also to provide the statement provided by the other party.
I also emailed the other party in the accident requesting clarification on who their insurance provider is.

I presume that at it's worst it degenerates into a hearsay argument with no settlement for me.

Any suggestions on next course of action? I don't think hiring an attorney is worth the possible null outcome. Small claims court?

 

[adjusterjack]

Don't chat. Don't email.

Call the claims department and keep calling until you speak to a human and find out what's happening.

Worst case scenario you sue her in small claims court.

You won't need a lawyer and the CA court website has a great self-help page for small claims.

https://www.courts.ca.gov/

 

[Zigner]

Assuming that the "she" that you keep referring to is "thd other party in #2 lane", then, based on your description of the accident, she is not at fault.

 

[doucar]

Are you saying that a car that swerves into my lane to avoid a car coming into their lane is not liable for the damage she does when she hits me instead?

 

[LdiJ]

Are you saying that a car that swerves into my lane to avoid a car coming into their lane is not liable for the damage she does when she hits me instead?

No, Zig was talking about the "other party in the 2nd lane". The one that you said the person that hit you swerved to avoid. He got confused by the "shes".

 

[Zigner]

Are you saying that a car that swerves into my lane to avoid a car coming into their lane is not liable for the damage she does when she hits me instead?

Yes, that's what I'm saying.

 

[Zigner]

No, Zig was talking about the "other party in the 2nd lane". The one that you said the person that hit you swerved to avoid. He got confused by the "shes".

No, I'm saying that the person who hit the OP was not at fault if there was actually another vehicle that forced that car to swerve.

Car #1 = OP
Car #2 = Vehicle that was forced to swerve and collide with the OP.
Car #3 = Vehicle that forced car #2 to swerve.

Car #3 is at fault.

 

[quincy]

California is a comparative negligence state so it is possible that more than one car shares responsibility for the accident. The percentage of fault would need to be determined but the middle car is not necessarily free of all liability.

 

[12knots]

Car #1 = OP
Car #2 = Vehicle that was forced to swerve and collide with the OP.
Car #3 = Vehicle that forced car #2 to swerve.
Car #3 is at fault.

Yes, this is the circumstance I was trying to relate. Apologies for any miscommunication.
I never saw the #3 vehicle as it allegedly approached from the right at an intersection making a right turn into lane 2 (2 lane road), but it was stated by #2 that it was the reason she swerved into my lane.

On a related note, the day after I reported the accident online I saw that the status of the case was "closed."
Checking the status again this morning, it still indicates closed, however I received an email last night from Geico stating that they "have not yet received a statement from the other party on this claim." Initially, I presume this means #2, but possibly #3 who is likely to be unknown.

My concern in starting this post was the discovery of the indication of a closed status online so soon after filing. I am now confused in regards to why it would be closed without a statement from the other insured party. I will take AdjusterJack's suggestion and call tomorrow.

 

[adjusterjack]

I never saw the #3 vehicle as it allegedly approached from the right at an intersection making a right turn into lane 2 (2 lane road), but it was stated by #2 that it was the reason she swerved into my lane.

It would help to see a diagram of the positions and movements of the three vehicles. Without that I would suggest that it's not possible for anybody to attribute fault to any of the drivers. This site makes it very difficult to post attachments unless you mount it on a hosting site and provide a link; it's easy to upload from your computer.

I am now confused in regards to why it would be closed without a statement from the other insured party.

It shouldn't be. But, even if it is, it can be reopened with a keystroke.

 

[Zigner]

California is a comparative negligence state so it is possible that more than one car shares responsibility for the accident. The percentage of fault would need to be determined but the middle car is not necessarily free of all liability.

Fair enough.

 

[Zigner]

Yes, this is the circumstance I was trying to relate. Apologies for any miscommunication.
I never saw the #3 vehicle as it allegedly approached from the right at an intersection making a right turn into lane 2 (2 lane road), but it was stated by #2 that it was the reason she swerved into my lane.

On a related note, the day after I reported the accident online I saw that the status of the case was "closed."
Checking the status again this morning, it still indicates closed, however I received an email last night from Geico stating that they "have not yet received a statement from the other party on this claim." Initially, I presume this means #2, but possibly #3 who is likely to be unknown.

My concern in starting this post was the discovery of the indication of a closed status online so soon after filing. I am now confused in regards to why it would be closed without a statement from the other insured party. I will take AdjusterJack's suggestion and call tomorrow.

It's Sunday - the status isn't going to change on the weekend.

 

[Zigner]

Yes, this is the circumstance I was trying to relate. Apologies for any miscommunication.
I never saw the #3 vehicle as it allegedly approached from the right at an intersection making a right turn into lane 2 (2 lane road), but it was stated by #2 that it was the reason she swerved into my lane.

On a related note, the day after I reported the accident online I saw that the status of the case was "closed."
Checking the status again this morning, it still indicates closed, however I received an email last night from Geico stating that they "have not yet received a statement from the other party on this claim." Initially, I presume this means #2, but possibly #3 who is likely to be unknown.

My concern in starting this post was the discovery of the indication of a closed status online so soon after filing. I am now confused in regards to why it would be closed without a statement from the other insured party. I will take AdjusterJack's suggestion and call tomorrow.

Also, your initial post stated that a third car was involved as a fact, while this post says that you have no idea if a third car was actually involved. Please take the time to make sure that your statements actually convey the information that you wish to convey.

 

[ALawyer]

As it's doubtful the insurance company of the driver that hit your car will simply write a check large enough to satisfy you, the best way to make something happen will be to file a Small Claims Action against that driver. The driver will then report the suit to his/her insurance company, and it likely will offer to settle the matter, with the issues being what was the damage to your car which will depend primarily on what it would cost to repair it (assuming that it should not be "junked") and that depends on its pre-crash value.

You'll likely need competent proof of the cost to repair it (assuming you don't have a paid repair bill) should the matter not settle and come to trial.

The filing fees in Small Claims Court are based on the amount of damages you would be seeking:

Amount of Your Claim	Filing Fee
$0- $1500	$30
$1500.01- $5000	$50
$5000.01- $10,000	$75