I
posted a while back about how my wife was involved in an auto accident. Well, now I have issues with that person’s auto issuance paying for the auto rental. We were without our van for 30 days while it was at the shop. During those 30 days my wife used a rental to shuttle the boys around. I would have guessed that his auto insurance would be responsible while I was without the van, I was wrong! I’m not going to mention the person who got into the accident with my wife because it is not his fault that the auto insurance he subscribes to sucks but I have no qualms mentioning his auto insurance!
Last week I got my credit card bill and to my chagrin there was a charge for the auto rental. I called the
Avis shop and the manager there volunteered to call the insurance company. I got a call back saying I needed to fax the estimate of damages to the insurance company and that it should be taken care of. I did this and didn’t hear back from the insurance company.
I called the insurance a couple days later to follow up and was informed they also need any supplemental estimates made on the van. Again I faxed these along to them and again I didn’t hear back from them. I called the next day and was informed that they would only cover 20 of those 30 days I was without the van. I proceeded to call my insurance company to get guidance as to what I should do. I was informed from my insurance company that most reputable companies not only take into account how long the estimates on the vehicle repair should take but also weekends, holidays, all supplemental estimates, and any backorders that may have occurred
but the letter of the law says they are only responsible for supplying a replacement vehicle for as many days as the estimate states.
I called my auto body to get any additional information as to why the repair took as long as it did and with this new gathered information I called back his auto insurance. After getting nowhere with the claim adjuster I asked to speak to his manager. That also didn’t go over very well, she bluntly told me “Since I didn’t purchase the rental rider on my policy I am subject to the whims of another insurer’s policy and we will only cover 20 days”. Now I was under the impression that the rental rider was to cover my rental costs if I was at fault at the accident and my car was un-drivable or my car broke down. Since I have
AAA I didn’t think it necessary, how foolish of me. I am now forced to go after the individual driver, attached is the letter:
Dear Older Gentleman
I am writing in regards to the auto accident that occurred between you and my wife Susan Bentley92 on June 27, 2005. I have been in the process of trying to recover the costs associated with the accident from your insurance company. To this point they have been very unresponsive. There is still an outstanding balance of almost $400 I had to pay without reimbursement.
Because the accident was deemed your fault and the fact your insurance company has been unwilling to pay the amount to cover repairs and auto replacement I have been forced to request payment from you. I have included a copy of the receipts to the auto body as well as the auto rental. The total cost that I had to pay comes to $397.39. I would appreciate it if you could remit this amount to me as soon as possible.
If you have any questions about this you can contact your insurance company, Hanover Insurance., at XXX-XXX-XXXX. Mr. Dan Foley is handling the incident and the claim number is #XX-XXXXXX. If you would like to talk to me directly I can be contacted at XXX-XXX-XXXX.
Sincerely,Now I must say that I feel awful to have to do this. First, the Gentlemen is 87 years old and I have no idea what his financial position is and these charges could put a large strain on him. Second, this is a huge waste of my time to have to do any of this. Third, this should have all been covered by the insurance!
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