Tort Claim: Is State Farm liable for damages caused by the third party company they hired for roadside assistance?

[alkaspencer]

State Farm hired an outside agency (Agero) to do roadside assistance. Roadside assistance was incredibly unprofessional, with no professional experience and ended up doing damage to my car, breaking a nug and nut off the wheel. State Farm is now trying to deny responsibility and avoid paying for the damages. After reviewing legal resources, I've come to understand that the Tort Claim would fall under State Farm as long as there is reasonable evidence pointing towards whether the employer (state farm) has the right to control the manner in which the employee performs their job. Which would then change the title of Agero to a "respondeat superior". Im also under the impression that they are acting in bad faith due to Lack of useful communication, Misrepresentation of the insurance policy, and potential Unreasonable denials of coverage. Would Agero be considered a respondeat superior within these terms? Is state farm responsible given their contract with them and given they never apprised their relationship with Agero to myself, a policy holder?

 

[Just Blue]

State Farm hired an outside agency (Agero) to do roadside assistance. Roadside assistance was incredibly unprofessional, with no professional experience and ended up doing damage to my car, breaking a nug and nut off the wheel. State Farm is now trying to deny responsibility and avoid paying for the damages. After reviewing legal resources, I've come to understand that the Tort Claim would fall under State Farm as long as there is reasonable evidence pointing towards whether the employer (state farm) has the right to control the manner in which the employee performs their job. Which would then change the title of Agero to a "respondeat superior". Im also under the impression that they are acting in bad faith due to Lack of useful communication, Misrepresentation of the insurance policy, and potential Unreasonable denials of coverage. Would Agero be considered a respondeat superior within these terms? Is state farm responsible given their contract with them and given they never apprised their relationship with Agero to myself, a policy holder?

What state?

 

[LdiJ]

State Farm hired an outside agency (Agero) to do roadside assistance. Roadside assistance was incredibly unprofessional, with no professional experience and ended up doing damage to my car, breaking a nug and nut off the wheel. State Farm is now trying to deny responsibility and avoid paying for the damages. After reviewing legal resources, I've come to understand that the Tort Claim would fall under State Farm as long as there is reasonable evidence pointing towards whether the employer (state farm) has the right to control the manner in which the employee performs their job. Which would then change the title of Agero to a "respondeat superior". Im also under the impression that they are acting in bad faith due to Lack of useful communication, Misrepresentation of the insurance policy, and potential Unreasonable denials of coverage. Would Agero be considered a respondeat superior within these terms? Is state farm responsible given their contract with them and given they never apprised their relationship with Agero to myself, a policy holder?

I am also a State Farm policy holder and while I have used roadside assistance and been reimbursed multiple times, I am under no impression that they require the use of any particular roadside assistance company.

Even if State Farm recommended the use of any particular roadside assistance company that would not make them that company's employer.

 

[adjusterjack]

. Would Agero be considered a respondeat superior within these terms? Is state farm responsible given their contract with them and given they never apprised their relationship with Agero to myself, a policy holder?

I'm a 35 year veteran of the insurance industry. Take this as the gospel. Your only claim is against the roadside assistance company for negligence.

Include State Farm as a defendant if you like and argue your theory before the judge if you like. But you will fail and State Farm will be dismissed from the lawsuit.

My advice. Go after the roadside assistance company in small claims court for your costs if you have already made a written demand of that company and was denied. If you haven't made a written demand for your repair costs, find out the name and address of the company owner from your state's corporation commission. Send him the repair bill and a written demand for payment. If he doesn't pay, sue the company in small claims court.

PS. If all that was damaged is a single lug nut it isn't going to cost enough for the "federal case" you're trying to make of it.

 

[Zigner]

Honestly, if the lug & lug nut were damaged, then the nut was probably frozen. That damage is not necessarily the fault of the tow company.

 

[not2cleverRed]

I'm a 35 year veteran of the insurance industry. Take this as the gospel. Your only claim is against the roadside assistance company for negligence.

Include State Farm as a defendant if you like and argue your theory before the judge if you like. But you will fail and State Farm will be dismissed from the lawsuit.

My advice. Go after the roadside assistance company in small claims court for your costs if you have already made a written demand of that company and was denied. If you haven't made a written demand for your repair costs, find out the name and address of the company owner from your state's corporation commission. Send him the repair bill and a written demand for payment. If he doesn't pay, sue the company in small claims court.

PS. If all that was damaged is a single lug nut it isn't going to cost enough for the "federal case" you're trying to make of it.

I second this!

One would think an outfit that wants to keep their contract would repair the damage themselves, to keep the # of complaints down.

And that has been my experience when they've screwed up. (Breaking a window counts, right?)

 

[Litigator22]

At the risk of belaboring your petty gripe let me ask if you think that State Farm would be so foolish as to enter into a master/servant relationship with the people that perform the roadside services and thus subject it to imputed liability?

Undoubtedly those services are contracted out to independent subcontractors. And there is no such fictitious liability such as the doctrine of "respondeat superior" imposed upon the contractor for the negligence of the subcontractor.

There are circumstances by which the contractor can be held responsible for the negligence of the subcontractor, but they are not even remotely present here.

 

[Zigner]

Additionally, I'm sure State Farm's policy is clear about their non-liability for the acts of independent sub-contractors.