Insurance situation.. need some help

[Inspired]

I was about to grab lunch and noticed a large white scuff. The car next to me is white but the owner is no where to be found. Decided to contact apartment management but they had no clue who the owner of that car is so they called the local PD to locate the car.

The police came to the scene and ran the plates and found the address of the white car. The owner of the white car came out right away when he saw police near his car and right away denied hitting my car.

Long story short, the police told him to open his door and it aligned directly to scuff on my doors. The police gave him 2 options to either admit fault and exchange insurance information or he can file a case against him as a hit and run. He took the first route and we ended up exchanging insurance information and drivers license.

1 week later.. I tried filing a claim against his insurance (AAA) since I didn't want to deal with rate hikes and pay $500 deductible, but it got denied right away. The owner of the white car denied everything that happened. The AAA agent is a PITA to deal with. He already denied my claim before he spoke with his own customer.

Well, my last resort is to file a claim with my own insurance since it only cost about $600 to repair and my deductible is $500. Is there any other options?

[Blake]

was there a police report? that's probably the only course of action you have at this point. if there is any sort of police report, go back to their insurance with it and tell them that police were involved and the person claimed fault on the scene. also tell them you have witnesses (the manager).

[Brey335i]

If the police came out to the scene then there should be a police report...

[Inspired]

Originally Posted by Blake

was there a police report? that's probably the only course of action you have at this point. if there is any sort of police report, go back to their insurance with it and tell them that police were involved and the person claimed fault on the scene. also tell them you have witnesses (the manager).

I just called my local PD ten minutes prior to making this thread. There is no police report in system but the operator transferred me to the officer's voice mail that came to the scene. Left a voicemail hoping he will call back.

I am wondering if he sheds some light to the situation..will the opposing party's insurance still deny my claim?

What a PITA for a door scuff..

[Blake]

Originally Posted by twinturbo335

I just called my local PD ten minutes prior to making this thread. There is no police report in system but the operator transferred me to the officer's voice mail that came to the scene. Left a voicemail hoping he will call back.

I am wondering if he sheds some light to the situation..will the opposing party's insurance still deny my claim?

that's pretty much what i assumed. minor call, easy resolution, and no one requested a report. just hope the officer gets back with you and tell him what's happened. he'll probably get pissed off at the deadbeat jackass (most cops don't treat people kindly that lie) and either write a report or letter for you...hopefully. otherwise, ask the apartment manager if she'll bear witness for you and play hardball with the insurance. also remind them that you didn't get their insurance information verbatim by accident...it was exchanged to you.

other option (probably the best option in the interim) is to call your insurance, file a claim, give them all the information you have, tell them police were involved, you have witnesses, and let them go after their insurance. worst possible resolution is you drop the claim and pay out of pocket, but insurance companies have attorneys retained for these very instances.

[Gregxi]

Hopefully the cop will call you back, he is your only hope. If he can tell the insurance rep that the idiot admitted guilt you should be fine
Unless someone is injured the police rarely write a report

[Inspired]

Originally Posted by Blake

that's pretty much what i assumed. minor call, easy resolution, and no one requested a report. just hope the officer gets back with you and tell him what's happened. he'll probably get pissed off at the deadbeat jackass (most cops don't treat people kindly that lie) and either write a report or letter for you...hopefully. otherwise, ask the apartment manager if she'll bear witness for you and play hardball with the insurance. also remind them that you didn't get their insurance information verbatim by accident...it was exchanged to you.

other option (probably the best option in the interim) is to call your insurance, file a claim, give them all the information you have, tell them police were involved, you have witnesses, and let them go after their insurance. worst possible resolution is you drop the claim and pay out of pocket, but insurance companies have attorneys retained for these very instances.

I told the officer to write a police report at the scene but he denied since he admitted fault already.

I tried to talk to AAA agent but he won't budge. He said "since there is no witness that saw it happening I have to deny your claim.. just file a claim with your own insurance." I have dealt with numerous opposing parties' insurance company and AAA got to be the worst. Do you think changing agent will help this case? This guy is literally a d-bag..

There were actually 4 witness that day but the AAA agent said it doesn't matter since no one saw it actually happening. My girlfriend, police officer, and apartment manager was at the scene also.

I already open a claim with my own insurance and the only route is to pay $500 deductible and they will "try" their best to get it back.

[Blake]

Originally Posted by twinturbo335

I told the officer to write a police report at the scene but he denied since he admitted fault already.

I tried to talk to AAA agent but he won't budge. He said "since there is no witness that saw it happening I have to deny your claim.. just file a claim with your own insurance." I have dealt with numerous opposing parties' insurance company and AAA got to be the worst. Do you think changing agent will help this case? This guy is literally a d-bag..

There were actually 4 witness that day but the AAA agent said it doesn't matter since no one saw it actually happening. My girlfriend, police officer, and apartment manager was at the scene also.

I already open a claim with my own insurance and the only route is to pay $500 deductible and they will "try" their best to get it back.

well in this case, i would send the officer a dozen donuts and a note saying 'pretty please write me a report of the incident'. maybe send him a can of mace too. cops love mace.

[onesuperboi]

Any pictures? You might consider suing the guy in small claims court.

[M3Bahn]

Any video cameras?

You could maybe get a statement from police officer that his door lined up perfectly with damage and send it to AAA.

[Kroy]

Originally Posted by twinturbo335

I told the officer to write a police report at the scene but he denied since he admitted fault already.

I tried to talk to AAA agent but he won't budge. He said "since there is no witness that saw it happening I have to deny your claim.. just file a claim with your own insurance." I have dealt with numerous opposing parties' insurance company and AAA got to be the worst. Do you think changing agent will help this case? This guy is literally a d-bag..

There were actually 4 witness that day but the AAA agent said it doesn't matter since no one saw it actually happening. My girlfriend, police officer, and apartment manager was at the scene also.

I already open a claim with my own insurance and the only route is to pay $500 deductible and they will "try" their best to get it back.

would the officer help if you wanted to sue for hit and run?

[Inspired]

Originally Posted by Blake

well in this case, i would send the officer a dozen donuts and a note saying 'pretty please write me a report of the incident'. maybe send him a can of mace too. cops love mace.

Originally Posted by onesuperboi

Any pictures? You might consider suing the guy in small claims court.

I have pictures of his car next to mine and picture of the scuff that has paint transfer from his car. The edges of his doors have no more paint. It was down to the metal. Wonder how many car he scuffed..

Originally Posted by M3Bahn

Any video cameras?

You could maybe get a statement from police officer that his door lined up perfectly with damage and send it to AAA.

No video cameras.

I am wondering, can he just write the police report now? Will it still be valid to use?

Originally Posted by Kroy

would the officer help if you wanted to sue for hit and run?

Please tell me more.....

[Kroy]

Originally Posted by twinturbo335

I was about to grab lunch and noticed a large white scuff. The car next to me is white but the owner is no where to be found. Decided to contact apartment management but they had no clue who the owner of that car is so they called the local PD to locate the car.

The police came to the scene and ran the plates and found the address of the white car. The owner of the white car came out right away when he saw police near his car and right away denied hitting my car.

Long story short, the police told him to open his door and it aligned directly to scuff on my doors. The police gave him 2 options to either admit fault and exchange insurance information or he can file a case against him as a hit and run. He took the first route and we ended up exchanging insurance information and drivers license.

1 week later.. I tried filing a claim against his insurance (AAA) since I didn't want to deal with rate hikes and pay $500 deductible, but it got denied right away. The owner of the white car denied everything that happened. The AAA agent is a PITA to deal with. He already denied my claim before he spoke with his own customer.

Well, my last resort is to file a claim with my own insurance since it only cost about $600 to repair and my deductible is $500. Is there any other options?

You basically said that there was 2 choices to be had. If the cop gave that choice, it's reasonable to believe he would have written a report for hit and run. I'm not really sure how it works so I may be wrong. I'm also not sure how long the grace period is to file a report. Just my 2cents.

Also, if you have this other guys' info, try to negotiate with him. Tell him you don't want to file a hit and run claim because of the hassle, but if he insists on lying he leave you with no other choice as you fight tooth and nail to avoid the unjust of paying for his mistake. Try to convince him to save both parties time and money by doing the right thing.

[jpsum]

Your insurance agent is correct. Unless someone saw it happened, even a police report won't do it. The report would simply state that the car color and the door swing matches, it doesn't mean anything. The cop never saw it happened. The guy never admitted it to the police. What good would the report do? To be honest, I think it's dumb for the cop to even file a report as such. If they have to file a report every time they respond to a call, when will they have time to eat donuts?

Even in the case of Princess Diana, they took paint samples from her MB to the lab and could only narrowed it down to a certain TYPE of vehicle - not the exact car.

I hear ya. It sucks. I had my first car's rear quarter panel totally smashed in a parking lot - no witness, no video tape.

There's nothing you can do to make him pay unless he admits it. That's why you have hit and run insurance.

Just my 2 cents.

[Inspired]

Originally Posted by jpsum

Your insurance agent is correct. Unless someone saw it happened, even a police report won't do it. The report would simply state that the car color and the door swing matches, it doesn't mean anything. The cop never saw it happened. The guy never admitted it to the police. What good would the report do? To be honest, I think it's dumb for the cop to even file a report as such. If they have to file a report every time they respond to a call, when will they have time to eat donuts?

Even in the case of Princess Diana, they took paint samples from her MB to the lab and could only narrowed it down to a certain TYPE of vehicle - not the exact car.

I hear ya. It sucks. I had my first car's rear quarter panel totally smashed in a parking lot - no witness, no video tape.

There's nothing you can do to make him pay unless he admits it. That's why you have hit and run insurance.

Just my 2 cents.

He admitted fault to the police and the evidence points that it was his door that hit mine. (Door align perfectly, white paint transfer, edges of his door paint chipped off)

[MichaelSNU]

In CT I would take him to small claims court and then subpoena the police officer to trial. Most people represent are pro se (self represented) in small claims count so most information is posted on your state's judicial website.

[Inspired]

Originally Posted by Kroy

You basically said that there was 2 choices to be had. If the cop gave that choice, it's reasonable to believe he would have written a report for hit and run. I'm not really sure how it works so I may be wrong. I'm also not sure how long the grace period is to file a report. Just my 2cents.

Also, if you have this other guys' info, try to negotiate with him. Tell him you don't want to file a hit and run claim because of the hassle, but if he insists on lying he leave you with no other choice as you fight tooth and nail to avoid the unjust of paying for his mistake. Try to convince him to save both parties time and money by doing the right thing.

I wouldn't be so mad if he mans up to his mistake. But denying that the whole situation didn't even exist..

I am going to fight this till the end.

[M3Bahn]

Originally Posted by twinturbo335

He admitted fault to the police and the evidence points that it was his door that hit mine. (Door align perfectly, white paint transfer, edges of his door paint chipped off)

Exactly, admitting fault in front of a police officer is no joke.

[M3Bahn]

Originally Posted by MichaelSNU

In CT I would take him to small claims court and then subpoena the police officer to trial. Most people represent are pro se (self represented) in small claims count so most information is posted on your state's judicial website.

[jpsum]

Originally Posted by twinturbo335

He admitted fault to the police and the evidence points that it was his door that hit mine. (Door align perfectly, white paint transfer, edges of his door paint chipped off)

sorry, missed that part. Ask the cop to make you a report then.

But it's strange that the cop can MAKE him admit fault. He can tell him to exchange info. Because you should never admit fault in an accident. All he had to do is exchange info. Are you sure he admitted fault? Exchanging info does not mean you did something wrong. What were his words?

[yakev724]

Imo, no need to go to court.

Speak to the officer and have him agree to make a written/recorded statement (if not a full report) with any insurance company, restating what happened when he was there.

Open a claim with your insurance. You should only have to pay deductible in cases where you are 10-20%+ at fault. This should (obviously) be closed with full liability of the other guy, and if your insurance is decent, neither your rate, or wallet, will be affected.

Once your insurance company is involved, you can provide any and all evidence you have, and let the insurance companies battle it out. If a settlement is reached (though from what you've said, don't really see how this would happen) where you are partially liable, don't settle and instead threaten with court.

DON'T REPAIR THE DOOR until the other insurance company agrees to cover whatever % you settle on. Instead, get an ass-high quote and show it to the adjuster that shows up to assess the damage. That way the damage as assessed by your company will be as high as possible (= more money for you).

Only after you have a check in the mail should you proceed to repair the damage (for however much you'd like to spend; if you play it right, you should make quite a bit of profit, but keep in mind your car's history will be affected by the claim).'

**Since you haven't contacted your insurance yet, you should weigh the costs of [80-90% of highest repair quote - actual cost to repair the damage] vs. [reduction of car's value with history of incident]. Might be able to get a new door in good shape and in the right color for $200. Exactly what happened to a family member recently. $3k quote and $400 for 2 doors ready to bolt-up.

EDIT: Just spoke to someone with a bit more experience and they essentially repeated Seminole's (vv) reply. My advice really only affects an accident where both drivers are there, and a formal report is taken after. In this case, you're probably better off going straight to small claims if you want to pursue it. Let us know how bad and where the damage is. Maybe we'll find a new door for you for cheap and you can get out of this easy(ier)

[Seminole]

You're SOL unless you decide to go all out at this point, I.E. sue the person in small claims.

Literally the same thing happened to me. My girlfirend and I left my apartment one night to go out and we noticed a white Mazda 3 parked close to her Corolla. I made a comment about how shitty they parked and for some reason remembered that it had a Ford license plate frame. Fast forward 4 hours and we come back and there is a huge mark down the side of her car with white paint transfer, the Mazda is nowhere to be seen. This was a complex with probably 300-400 units, so we weren't sure if the owner lived there. Called the police out to get a report about it and he basically just made a note saying how I saw a white Mazda with a Ford frame and said to give him a call if the car came back. We decided to drive around the lot and see if we could find the car, and as we were driving around we saw the car enter the complex. We quickly flagged the officer before he left and told him the car just came back. The officer and I walked up to the Mazda and he made a comment about the Ford frame on it saying that was pretty observant on my part. As we walked to the front corner of the car we saw there was damage on the car consistent with it hitting a car while backing up. The officer took out a tape measure and the damage was at exactly the same height on both cars. The girl had left a piece of mail on her driver seat, so the officer knew which apartment she was in and went over and arrested her for hit and run.

Despite ALL that her insurance Geico never paid out. They basically said the same thing as AAA is in your case, "Nobody saw it so we aren't paying". The bitch from Geico even went so far as to insinuate that we could have hit her client and if we were unhappy to "go ahead and sue us".

Karma got Geico back later when another one of their clients hit my girlfriends car in the same parking lot (picture below). Lucky for us, the idiot was so drunk she didn't know that she had hit our car and left her's parked and went to bed. The officer that responded to that said in 15 years of being an officer he's never seen anything like it. Believe it or not, Geico tried to fight us on this claim too, saying "Despite the police report, our client denies hitting your car so we won't pay." I asked them for an e-mail where I could send the pictures I took. The agent called me back once she got them and started to laugh saying there's no way they can fight it and I could expect my check in the mail.