Can you appeal an auto accident claim?

Question

I Was involved in a car accident. The police report doesnt show anyone at fault. The other drivers insurance company denied my claim. No tickets were given to me or the other driver although the other driver was at fault but lied about it because there was no witnesses. Its just her word against mine. I Called a lawyer, they couldnt do anything. Is there anything else i can do?

Answer 1

It does not matter that your insurance company has denied her claim, or the subro request from the other insurance company.  Refer the subrogation request over to your insurance company.  They will handle it for you.  You do not need to get involved.  Assuming they cannot work this out,  the opposing insurer should file inter-company arb.  An independent arbitrator will decide liability.   If they do not file inter-co arb, and instead they file suit, again refer this over to your insurance company.  You need to get them involved.

I find it a bit odd that no attorney will take your case.  You have a serious injury, and liability appears to be 50/50.  She took a left in front of you, but you broad sided her.  

What state do you live in?  In some states, 50% is a bar to recovery, in others if you are found even 1% at fault, you are barred.  Perhaps this is what is going on with your claim.

Answer 2

Could you come back and describe how the crash happened? We may be able to offer more advice if we know the circumstances.

I was involved in a crash where I was not at fault and the at fault driver was not charged, as the Police Officer who was the first on the scene and in charge of the investigation did not charge the at fault driver, despite me having 5 witnesses (car in front, car behind, car  behind the car that hit me, a guy walking his dog and a person on the other side of the road)

The at  fault drivers insurance company tried to sue my insurance company, however, once I drew the diagrams and faxed them the testimony of 5 witnesses, they soon dropped that.

Answer 3

I hope you have insurance because if you do, they will handle the whole thing.  Call your insurance ASAP !

Answer 4

Where is your insurance company in all this?  You pay a premium, and the company has legal help.  Or were you foolish enough to carry liability only, mistakenly believing it was car insurance?

Her insurance company cannot suspend your licence.  It is up to your insurance company to defend against their demand for payment.

Answer 5

First did you get a copy of the accident report. If not you can get it from the police department. It should state who was at fault. If it does not you can find a lawyer that will take your case if you pay him up front. If he thinks there is a case to go after he will do it for a share of the settlement. You can take the other driver to court for the repairs of your car. And you can sue the insurance company as well. This is not saying you will win. The accident report need to say who was at fault. The police officers can be called into court as well. If they were called to the accident seen.

Answer 6

If there's no evidence of the other driver being negligent, then there's nothing else YOU can do to collect from her insurance company. If you have collision insurance, yourself, though, you can get your car fixed under your own policy, and your insurance company can attempt to collect from her carrier. In fact, if you have collision insurance, you're supposed to let them handle it, period. They are your legal representative. You didn't need to call an attorney, yourself, because your insurance carrier will do that, if necessary. They usually have lawyers on retainer for this kind of thing. They encounter it all the time. You have to pay your deductible to use your own collision insurance, but if your carrier collects from her company after fixing your car, they will also collect & reimburse you for your deductible. Often, the insurance adjuster can tell who was at fault by where the damage was on each car, and other details of the accident. Her carrier has no incentive to settle on the damage with you, esp. if you were not injured. The sooner you talk to your carrier the better your chances of having them collect for you. It's a long shot to be successful with this kind of thing handling it yourself. Good luck!