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mccled · Jun 14, 2010, 01:15 PM

Two nights ago, I was leaving work. I turned into a two lane left turn lane. The light turned green and I along with a car beside me and a car in front of me turned. A lady coming down the opposite side of the road ran the red light and smashed into my car. I was driving my fiancee's vehicle. We worked together that night and I was running across the street while she finished up work. Although she has never made any claim before, the insurance company does not want to pay for the damage of the car. The police could not determine from the statements who was lying and who was not. There was one witness to the collision but he did not want to get involved because his driver's license was suspended and did not want to get into trouble himself. Is there any way for him to witness this after the fact? Otherwise the car will not be paid for. Is there anyway to fight the insurance company on this matter. We have been living together for 6 months and putting my name on the insurance was not something we thought to do until after we were married. It is her car and I rarely drive it. HELP

ebaines · Jun 14, 2010, 01:29 PM

The fact that you are not on the insurance poilcy merely means that your fiancée is going to have to be the one to work through her insurance company, not you. One way to approach this is for your fiancée to work through her insurance company to have the damage repaired (minus her dedectible) and then her insurance company goes after the other driver's insurance for reimbursement. If the two insurance company's agree that the other lady was at fault, then the lady's company will reimburse your fiancee's company for the cost of repairs, and then your fiancee's company reimburses your fiancée for her deductible. However, if they can't agree, they either go to arbitration for a final determination, or they settle for some intermediate value, which means it's likely that your fiancée won't get her deductible back, and it's possible her rates will go up.

As for a witness statement "after the fact" - if you have the witness's contact info, I would simply include it in the report to your fiancee's insurance company,and let them sort it out.

ScottGem · Jun 14, 2010, 01:34 PM

On what grounds is the insurer denying the claim? Unless her insurance is specifically written to cover ONLY her as a driver (unusual) they should still cover the claim.

The witness comes into play only if you need to go to court to establish liability.

ebaines · Jun 14, 2010, 01:38 PM

I assume what the OP meant is that the other driver's insurance company is refusing to pay, not his fiancee's company. Which is why I suggest working through the fiancee's insurance company. Mccled: is that right?

ScottGem · Jun 14, 2010, 01:41 PM

Originally Posted by ebaines

I asume what the OP meant is that the other driver's insurance company is refusing to pay, not his fiancee's company. Which is why I suggest working through the fiancee's insurance company. Mccled: is that right?

I took this sentence: "Although she has never made any claim before, the insurance company does not want to pay for the damage of the car." to mean he was referring to his fiancee's insurer.

mccled · Jun 14, 2010, 02:06 PM

Yes. The problem is... my fiancée has no insurance in her name. She is covered under her parent's policy, but after contacting their insurance, they refused to pay because they do not insure the car. My insurance company says that because I do not have her listed as a driver and we live together, they will not cover the repair costs at all. They said it is SC law, which is ridiculous that I cannot let her drive my car across the street (literally) and not worry that she will not be covered. I did not know to add her to my coverage, as we have only lived together for 6 months. I intended to eventually put her on my policy after we were married. People have roommates all the time... Does that mean they have to be listed as a driver on the policy if their roommate ever borrows the car for any reason. We are in serious trouble and don't know how to get out of it. A wedding in 6 weeks and now this happens.

mccled · Jun 14, 2010, 02:15 PM

I said that all wrong. I am the fiancée. I let my girlfriend drive my car to the store to pick something up while I finished up work. We both work at the same place so we had car pooled together. She was done and I was not. 10 minutes later I get a phone call, saying she had gotten in a wreck less than a half mile up the street. I went over there immediately. The police found it to be no one's fault because he could not prove one way or the other who was lying. There was one witness to the crash, but he refused to step forward because his driver's license was suspended and he should not have been driving. When I called the insurance company to report the accident and make a claim, they said that they would not cover the repairs to my car because it was not me driving. My fiancée and I have lived together for 6 months. She may borrow the car from time to time when I have more gas, but very rarely. She is on her parent's policy and drives a car her parent's gave her. Their insurance policy says they will not cover the cost of the car because they do not insure my car. My insurance company says they will not cover the cost of the car because I was not driving. Supposedly, if we live together I have to list her as a driver, even though she borrows the car no more often than a friend or family member. She moved in in January and I renewed my policy in February. I didn't think to make any changes. This is the first accident I have ever reported EVER! Seems a little ridiculous that I have been paying insurance for 12 years and the one time I need them, they won't cover. Is there anything I can do? Anyway to fight this??

ebaines · Jun 14, 2010, 02:41 PM

OK, your fiancee's policy (under her parents) won't pay because the damage isn't to a car they insure. That's the way it works. Insurance goes with the car, not the driver. So that's a dead end.

In general when you loan your car to someone, they are generally covered under your policy, as long as they had your permission to use the car, and as long as they are not a regular driver of the car. However, check the language in your policy - it probably requires that any drivers living in your household must be listed on the policy or they won't be covered. Without language like this parents wouldn't bother adding their own children to their policy. And yes - if you share an apartment then you should not loan your car to your roomates if they are not listed on your policy.

If that's the way the policy reads, then your recourse is to go after the other driver. That way your insurance company is out of the picture. Get in touch with the other driver's insurance company and file a claim. You may have to end up suing the other driver to get reimbursed for the damage.

mccled · Jun 14, 2010, 02:49 PM

Which brings me back to my original question. There was a witness who did not want to come forward because his license was suspended and did not want the cop to question him. Can he be a witness after the fact? It is a coworker of my fiancee's... I am just worried they won't accept it. We are looking into getting video tapes from nearby businesses, but the situation seems hopeless.