Insurance companies not returning calls after accident despite full coverage

Ask the Hackrs Insurance
1

hi, I feel like I have gotten into a complicated situation and feel cornered because both insurance companies are not doing anything to help resolve the situation.

Around 10 days ago me and my fiancé got in a car accident on a highway while taking an exit.

My fiance was taking an exit and I was in a passenger seat when traffic in front of suddenly came to a full stop and car in front of us slammed on breaks which made us do the same. Another car behind us crashed into us and pushed our car into the car in front of us. Police came and both our cars and car behind us got towed. Our car had front and side airbags depoloyed.

My fiance is 5 months pregnant and we wont to a hospital afterwards to have her and the baby checked out. Hospital ran different tests and monitored baby’s heart rate. Thankfully everyone is ok.

Our car is registered to my name and my fiance is not on my insurance policy from Progressive.

The car that crashed into us has AAA and first they told me over the phone that they accept the responsibility and I should release my car for them to take it to start working on it.

AAA also gave me a rental but the next day they called saying they will not take my car for repairs and wont approve rental because there arent enough funds to cover expenses because car in front of us is claiming from AAA as well.

The guy who hit us was in his early twenties driving an old accord. Im guessing he can easily prove in court that he cant afford to pay for my damages and has no assets to his name.

Progressive is telling me since my fiance was not on policy I will have to pay for expenses out of pocket even if I have full 100/300 limit with 30k uninsured/underinsured coverage.

My fiance doesnt live with me, she lives with her parents in NY where her dad has a car insured in full coverage with Geico and according to NY laws every active drivers license holder is on the policy automatically.

Im sorry for very long post it feels like I have to post all details here for kind hackers to be able to offer good legal advice.

My question is which insurance company is supposed to repair or pay off my car?
Is it normal that my insurance progressive is not returning my calls and should I hire a lawyer if they keep ignoring me?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

2

Get a car accident lawyer. They will handle everything and will take a percentage of your settlement.

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3

So what does Geico say?

This is probably the way, given the number of parties involved.

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5

I haven’t called Geico yet because I thought one of the two insurances would pay for everything and then bill each other depending on circumstances

6

Progressive is just being difficult, as they are known to do. Insurance follows the car, not the driver. Pretty obvious that your fiance had permission to drive your car and should be covered under your policy in this case.

With all the parties involved I would probably do as others have mentioned and get an attorney in this case.

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Progressive is responsible for the repairs on your vehicle. The actual driver is irrelevant. That said, they may attempt to disclaim alleging that you should have added her to your policy as a regular permissive user. If she doesnt live with you, they will have a hard time doing that. Progressive is acting in bad faith based on the facts you have presented.

There are two types of UM/UIM coverages on the policy. One is for bodily injury to you or your passengers when the other drivers is uninsured or under insured while the other is for property damage to your vehicle if the other driver is at fault.

As a side note, while it wont have any effect on this accident, you should immediately increase your UM/UIM coverage if the 30k you are referencing is the BI coverage. You will be able to buy UM/UIM coverage up to your BI limits which appear to be 100/300. Many NJ drivers on are simply uninsured. Many, 30k+ (likely much higher), have “special” polices called “dollar a day” which provides for ZERO liability coverage to you. This is available to anyone on Medicaid. Anyone can also purchase a basic policy which provides only 5k in property damage, no BI coverage for you. Essentially you must protect yourself. I would encourage you to purchase at a min, 500k in BI and UM/UIM coverage, otherwise you risk being left holding the bag if you suffer a catastrophic injury.

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8

Contact a lawyer before relying on internet stranger’s advice. You have no idea who is right or who is a Facebook University graduate.

9

I have always assumed that problems like this are part of the deal when an insurance carrier is selected solely on price.

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10

Progressive is not necessarily cheap and they generally quickly respond. Every insurance company will do anything in their power to disclaim coverage. Insurance should in fact be chosen based on price and you want to maximize your coverage for the money you spend.
What is cheapest for one will not necessarily be cheaper for another. All these companies use different actuarial tables to assess risk. That’s why it’s important to cross shop. I received quotes for the same coverage ranging from 1200 to $6,000.

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11

You’re making my point.

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thank you very much for your detailed reply full of knowledge. the responses I have gotten on LH are much more informative than reddit where I have been a member for more than a decade. LH is my new go to for anything car related thanks to its awesome community.
thank you hackrs

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Your post implied that progressive is some sort of low rate company…

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I have AAA in CA, so YMMV. If your fiancé is a driver on her dad’s policy, then she is not covered for any other vehicle other than what is on the dad’s policy. If your fiancé and her dad are the policyholders, then your fiancé is covered for any car she drives.

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