Do insurance companies deny liability automatically?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

We were driving down the road the other day, when a person travelling the other direction decided to make an impromptu U-turn and T-boned us.

Nobody hurt, 1,500 dollars damage to our car. So I figure that's a pretty open and shut case. Only now her insurance company is claiming it's our fault.

And the only sense I can make out of that is that insurance companies automatically deny fault in all cases, hoping that some will decide not to take it to arbitration for whatever reason. They're too busy or don't know how the system works or something. Is that how it works nowadays?

[GOPisEvil]

1. If your insurance company pays you, they will seek recovery and

arbitrate if necessary.

At least that's what my company does.

What reasoning did the other carrier give for denying liability?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

4. Oh, they didn't give a reason.

The did the same thing a few years ago when a drunk driver crossed the lane and hit my daughter head on.

Claimed it was her fault for not swerving out of the way. I figured it was some fluke insurance company corruption but from the looks of it it's fairly common.

Oh, this is Safeco, if anybody's interested.

[GOPisEvil]

6. You have two choices.

1. Fight them yourself and demand a reason OR
2. FIle a claim with your insurance company and let them subrogate.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

8. Yeah, we're getting it worked out.

We've already paid a deductible with our insurance company to have the car fix, which we get back when they finish arbitration.

I'm just wonder why the other insurance company would both paying lawyers for the arbitration when they know they're going to lose it.

My guess is that there are working teenage mothers out there and other people who don't have the time or skills to understand how it works and thus just give up.

[GOPisEvil]

9. Yeah, I work in subrogation, so I encounter this a lot.

I work in property though, not auto.

Some companies don't mind because we will service our customer faster than they will, but if it ends up in arbitration, it's pointless.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

12. Yeah, we've gotten good service from Geico.

We just wanted to get the repairs over with so we paid the deductible and it was finished next week.

[trof]

2. Many do.

[Broken_Hero]

3. In my experience yes...

my wife was rear-ended in 2003. My wife was stopped, at a red light, when she got rear ended...it seemed to be an open shut case, and to boot, the lady that hit her also worked at the same place my wife did.

And to boot even more, that lady wrote my wife and email the next day apologizing for hitting her, and said it was her fault...and the next day, the ladies insurance company blamed my wife for the accident, and I was like WTF, she was stopped at a red light! But, my wife, smart woman that she is, had saved the email that the lady sent her, and sent it into our insurance company...and that cleared it all up....

[Broken_Hero]

5. on another note though

my wife had another accident last year, it was a hit and run, not her fault, and our insurance company did the dance with us for five months, before we got our money...but their tactics were like this...

They would tell us to do A B and C, and mail in some forms...than a week later, we would get those forms back, saying oh, you forgot to do D E F and G, and then we would do D E F G, and mail it back, and then we would get it back a week or two later, saying we did things wrong...its like, they told us to fill out our paperwork wrong, so they could stall paying us the money we needed...

[Zomby Woof]

7. They do not

In cases such as rear-end collisions, where liability is clear-cut, the insurance company will accept liability if their party (aka the first party) is negligent - in that case, the party which did the rear-ending.

Or if there is a red light or stop sign dispute, the testimony of witnesses can tilt the decision against the first party, and again, the carrier will accept liability. When there are no witnesses, the first party's testimony will carry the decision. Police reports rarely influence a decision, but they are useful in supporting one person's testimony over another. Police reports are hearsay, however, whereas recorded statements are under oath and carry more authority.

Arbitration results when the two carriers dispute liability. The adjuster at your carrier should be in contact with the other party's carrier adjuster to discuss the liability decision. If they do not agree, the arbitration is conducted by a neutral third party, and the decision is binding. Because of the added expense, insurance companies try to avoid it, but it is preferable to escalating to a lawsuit. A complaint can be filed with your state's DOI if you feel the adjuster with either carrier did not conduct the investigation fairly.

Also, if your state has pure comparative negligence, they can always work out a shared percentage of fault. The party with 51% or more of fault is automatically the negligent party.

You are on to something with the workload - that can be a factor, but should never be an excuse. I have extensive claims experience, and making a liability decision should always be done fairly and timely regardless of workload - California allows 40 days, which is normally more than enough. If a decision is not made, 30-day extensions must be explained in writing.

Find out your state's guidelines about investigating claims. Each state's DOI should have a website.

Good luck. Sometimes it comes down to who the carrier is, and specifically the experience and quality of the adjuster.

[GOPisEvil]

10. Yeah, we know nothing, NOTHING, of this.

:P

[Zomby Woof]

11. Guess my memories are not repressed easily!

:evilgrin:

[GOPisEvil]

13. Wanna hear something scary?

I'm about to be fully licensed. Eventually in all 50 states. :scared:

[Zomby Woof]

14. Sweeeeeeeet

Get yer ass out here! Cold Stone and sushi awaits! :D

[GOPisEvil]

16. Two of my favorite things!

:bounce:

[Zomby Woof]

17. And your third is...

My white ass on a San Diego beach! :P

[GOPisEvil]

18. In jeans and tennis shoes.

:bounce:

[Zomby Woof]

19. Next time I am wearing a thong

One of those DU thongs on sale in the DU store. :D

[GOPisEvil]

20. Nothing beats a thong with a donkey on it.

:D

[Zomby Woof]

21. Move over Donkey Kong

:P It's time to do the Donkey Thong.

[GOPisEvil]

22. *shudder* Just thought about jumping over barrels in a thong.

[flvegan]

15. Yes, but it's subrogation.

They'll deny it to you. It's up to YOUR insurance company to deal with them.

Your insurance company should foot the bill to fix the car, pay damages, etc, then they should be fighting it out with the other insurance company.

Nobody admits anything anymore, just in case.