Car accident question... please help? insurance info if available?

Question

ok, my husband,son and i were going to walmart 4/26/08 when a guy ran a stop sign and we hit him... our car wasnt damaged but the guy that ran the stop sign's was. He didnt want to turn it in or anything so since ours wasnt harmed and it was no big deal we let it go(thinking we were doing a favor). Well, not sure how but he found out my husbands name and is now calling him wanting to turn it in- apparently the price to fix the car is higher than he wants to pay. He's acting like he can get us in trouble or something. Is this true? if so we didnt think it was a big deal at the time due to no harm to our property... what advice can someone give me? please anything helpful is appreciated. Is it possible to backdate something because i wouldnt care to do so if possible... it's not going to effect our insurance since it wasn't our fault so i wouldnt mind... but... is this possible? Btw, the state is WV and I have insurance with Safeco.

Answer 1

I can't add a thing to what MSAD told you.  Choose it as best answer, follow the advice, and move on.

Answer 2

Always report an accident to the police.  The guy ran a stop sign and he wants you to pay for his damages?  Report this all to your insurance company ASAP and let them deal with this guy.

Answer 3

Always report the claim to police or get witness contact info in case something like this happens. Unfortunately, at this point you should report it to your insurance company so they can investigate the claim and protect you.  If there are no witnesses or police report it will be a word vs. word claim, and you company will take your word and find the other driver at fault and close the claim.  Technically you should report the claim to your insurance company the same day but it’s not too big of a deal – you won’t get in trouble for reporting it late, it happens all the time.  The guy can call the police but unfortunately for him they will not do anything b/c it’s been too long since the accident. just report the claim to your company and they will handle it.

Answer 4

Doesn't matter what state your in.  You carry insurance to protect you from things exactly like this.  Any accident you have, you need to report it..no matter what the damage is.  Call your insurance company, they will take an accident report for the date the incident happened.  They'll want to inspect your car.  Think about this, why is he asking you to report it if it was his fault and his repairs are too high?  Has he been in another accident & created more damage?  If it's not your fault, your insurance company is not going to do any repairs.  Seems to me he's trying to pull a fast one & claim it was your fault.  If it had been reported right away, photo's would have been taken by your insurance company to avoid situations like this one.  Another question...if the repairs are too high, let him go to his insurance company....bet he doesn't have one!

Answer 5

The other car ran a stop sign and wants you to pay for it?  Granted there is more to the story that what you said in that one line.....but if the other guy is the cause of the accident - your company will not pay him.

Call the guy - get his name, address, phone number, year/make/model of is car, what part damage. Tell him you are going to report it to your insurance company and will have them call him.

Then call your company and report the claim to the. Give them all the information on the guy so they can contact him.

If you want to -- call the guy and then give him the name, phone number and claim number.

Now--- you never have to speak to him again. You do not have to discuss anything with him.

If he calls you after that--- you tell him to call the adjuster.

The insurance company will do an investigation. That includes getting your statement and the statement of the other driver.  They will also photograph both vehicles and possibly do a scene investigation.

If the accident is your fault- they will pay the guy. It will protect you from a law suit.

If the accident is not your fault - they will deny his claim. If he files a lawsuit - they will hire a lawyer to defend you.

This is what insurance is for.  Let your company deal with it. Just be sure to let the adjuster know any concerns you have and cooperate in the investigation of the claim.

Answer 6

Some fatherly advice: ALWAYS report an accident, ALWAYS take photos of the scene and damages if possible and ALWAYS contact your insurer. They are there to protect you when this sort of thing happens and they need as much timely information as possible to keep you out of court.