mwalsh said:
DaveinOlyWA said:
i see you two live in different states so laws WILL vary. in my state and if my situation were the same as the OP's, MY insurance company would not be involved since I am not at fault. all my dealings would be with the other guy's insurance so my paying any deductible would not apply
See, that's what I PAY my insurance company for...to handle all that back and forth crap with the other guys insurer. So, yes, I'd temporarily have to pay out my deductible. But then my insurance company gets it back from his and sends me a check.
EXACTLY. And if people do this to try to avoid their own insurer finding out the accident...they will anyway.
First, in many states the accident itself is recorded on your DMV record. If the police come out and take a report, it will likely be noted on your DMV record. In California you are REQUIRED to fill out an SR-1 form with the DMV if the accident results in any injuries including fatalities, and/or the damage to any involved car exceeds $750 (VERY easy to do today). That form, which is to ensure all involved parties are carrying the state's minimum insurance coverage, will cause the accident to be recorded on your DMV record.
Second, I believe insurance companies share loss claim information with each other. So when it's time for you to change companies, they will know about any recent claims you may have made.
Plus as also mentioned previously, by going through your own insurer and paying the deductible, your car will be repaired right away. If you go through the other party's, you have to wait until they agree their insured was at fault. I only went through the other party's insurer once, when I got sideswiped while on a 2 week road trip. By the time I got back home, there was a message on my answering machine that they agreed to fix my car. But had I not gotten such quick notification from the other party's insurer, I would have coughed up the $500 deductible and let my insurer do the rest of the work.
About the only other time you should go directly to the other party's insurance is if the car you were driving at the time lacked collision coverage, since you won't really have a choice.