Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

Big Mac · 12:18 AM

Yesterday afternoon I was involved in an auto collision when a FedEx truck negligently backed into my car. I saw him to my left and then heard the back up warning beeps. He was in the path to collide with the side of my car, and I only had around two seconds to act. The only thing I was able to do was accelerate to try to get out of his way, and for a split second I thought I may have cleared him but then felt the impact. He creamed the left side of my bumper, the panel just above it and a bit of the back of the bumper, doing what I'd approximate to be anywhere from $1800-$2500 in damage. This is the first real collision I've ever experienced. The guy was trying to back into a space of a loading dock (unfortunately I had gone into the wrong driveway in an industrial area when I was looking for a particular company and just intended to go to the end and turn around to go out) and obviously he did it recklessly.

At first the rat bastard tried to evade responsibility, absurdly claiming he wasn't at fault, but later he stopped making any statements. I was adamant from the start that he was completely at fault. Interestingly, I noticed that he had an iPod clipped to his belt and earbuds sitting on his collar, which strongly implies to me that he had likely been listening to his iPod while driving. He wasn't listening to it after the crash. I got pictures of the iPod and the earbuds. A highway patrol officer came and filled out an accident report but said he would not make any findings as to liability. I took 27 pictures of the scene with a disposable camera I luckily had in my car. I have prepared a full statement on the collision, three rough diagrams, the damage report and the pictures to give to my insurance adjuster. Is there anything else I could be doing to make sure things go smoothly?

Rumor · Nov 28, 2008, 12:12 AM

Always remain polite with the adjuster for their company, otherwise they may railroad you. Other than that, it sounds like to took all the correct steps. On the scene pictures should help immensely.

Edit: Oh, and his chances of being at fault are pretty high. He will most likely be found at fault for "Unsafe Backing".

Big Mac · 12:20 AM

Thank you very much, Rumor. Good info and very reassuring; I'll be sure to add the unsafe backing keywords to my statement.

Rumor · Nov 28, 2008, 12:17 AM

I was an insurance agent for five years here in Cal. If you start to get stuck or something seems to be going wrong, you can shoot me a PM and I will give you an advice I can.

Big Mac · Nov 28, 2008, 01:26 AM

Great to know, thank you again.

brassplayersrock² · Nov 28, 2008, 01:39 AM

Glad that you are okay Big Mac

Big Mac · 04:58 AM

Thank you very much for your concern, bpr. It could have been a lot worse, so I guess I should be thankful from that perspective. Still a royal PITA, and I love my car.

brassplayersrock² · Dec 2, 2008, 05:15 AM

Any updates Big Mac?

Big Mac · Dec 2, 2008, 07:35 AM

Not yet, but I'm going to speak to the adjuster today. I'll keep the thread updated.

Btw, you know in T.V. shows when people call 911 and get put on hold? That happened to me, for about a minute. I didn't think that actually occurred with any substantial frequency. It would have really sucked to be on hold if I had been injured.

shifuimam · Dec 2, 2008, 07:56 AM

If you ever get into an accident where you're actually moving, never say you're going over the speed limit, even if it's by one mile an hour.

The last accident I was involved in (I've been in three major accidents since I turned 16), I told my insurance agent that I might have been going 34-37mph, and the speed limit was 35mph. Because of that, they said I was 10% at fault. I still got a $1300 check for the damage to my car, but I've pretty well learned my lesson.

And, yeah. I've been put on hold before when I called 911. I called on New Year's Eve to report a drunk driver (one of my boyfriend's friends), and I was put on hold.

Big Mac · Dec 2, 2008, 08:00 AM

Thank you for info, Shifuimam. Hopefully the information in this thread will help one of us in the future.

Big Mac · 07:20 AM

Update: I spoke to my insurance company's adjuster yesterday. She was very nice, first explaining the details of coverage to me (I may have a Life Insurance license but I don't have a Property and Casualty license so there's a lot I don't know about car insurance), telling me what local body shop to take my car to for an inspection, and then getting a recorded statement from me. I will say that it was a good thing that right after I got home I wrote down that lengthy report with all the details I could remember because a number of the questions she asked about the collision in the taped interview portion were much easier to definitively answer due to me writing the details down previously. The best part about the conversation is that I mentioned the pictures I took on the scene, and she said that they probably wouldn't be needed because this is an easy case against the FedEx driver. He was backing up and backed into me, therefore it's his liability.

Big Mac · Dec 3, 2008, 07:56 PM

I got my car inspected today at the body shop suggested by my insurance company. The guy put a tape measure on top of the damaged area and took a number of pictures with a digital camera. Took all of two minutes. I also picked up the photos from my disposable camera.

SSharon · Dec 3, 2008, 08:04 PM

Glad to hear things are going smoothly so far. I hope it stays this way.

Cold Warrior · Dec 3, 2008, 08:07 PM

Make sure you keep copies of not only everything you get from anyone (adjustor, fedex, police, etc.) but what you give to others. You don't want to give them your only copy of something and then they lose it.

Big Mac · Dec 3, 2008, 08:12 PM

Yes, I will try to keep copies of everything.

brassplayersrock² · Dec 3, 2008, 11:09 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Yes, I will keep copies of everything.

Big Mac · Dec 11, 2008, 12:39 AM

Here's an update:

Yesterday I got a call from FedEx's adjuster. I took pains to be as polite as possible, as Rumor suggested. He took a recorded statement, asking me the same types of event questions that my insurance adjuster asked, except less detailed and extensive. He then said that I would get a call from their body shop guy to come and do an inspection like the inspection my insurance adjuster had me get last week. That occurred this morning. Now I'm supposed to get their estimate in the mail within a week. I'm wondering what will happen if they try to low-ball me and at what point my insurance company will have me get estimates, but I guess we'll see what figure they come up with.

ebuddy · Dec 11, 2008, 06:44 AM

I hope the auto-collision mojo is with us Big Mac. I'm sorry to hear this happened to you. It sucks, no doubt about it.

I was driving my wife's minivan eastbound straight through an intersection. (green light, totally legit I swear) Lady in car facing westbound wanting to turn left across the intersection, moves her car into the intersection directly in front of me, I only have time to just slam the brake and... BOOM!! T-boned her. A woman in the car right behind that lady saw the whole thing and waited with cars behind her to give me her contact info as a witness. I was very thankful. Myself and my kids are all fine with the exception of damage to my wife's vehicle. An officer came to the scene. I was not ticketed and as far as I know the other driver was ticketed for failure to yield. This is as clear cut a fault on her part as any you'll ever see.

Her insurer sends me a letter;
We have carefully reviewed the facts surrounding this accident. Our investigation indicates:

70% on our insured vehicle and 30% on your insured for failing to reduce speed to avoid the accident.
After fully evaluating all available information, we have determined that this accident was not caused solely by our insured. As a result, we are prepared to offer you 30% of your damages as settlement. Please contact us by telephone at the number provided below or in writing at the address on our letterhead to confirm your acceptance of this offer. As soon as we receive your confirmation, we will send you the payment. If you have any information related to this claim that you believe might change our position, please contact us.

Of course, their investigation found no such facts as the only witness to the accident claims it was the lady's fault. The police cited her at fault. The insurer is going to try to do anything possible to avoid paying the full damages. I'm having my insurer contact them per some advice from auto_immune from my post just a few days ago.

Big Mac · Dec 11, 2008, 12:07 PM

Sorry to hear about that, ebuddy. You may need to end up suing.

Big Mac · Dec 18, 2008, 02:53 PM

This week's update: I just went to get estimates for the repairs, and the only word that comes to mind is OUCH. I was informed that the damaged panel is just about the most expensive part of my car. Two of the estimates I got were for $5,000 and $4,900! The next one I got from a less fancy body shop was cheaper but not by that much. Now I'm concerned my car may technically be "totaled," in addition to worrying about being low-balled. I called FedEx's carrier and he said that he hasn't finished the investigation yet but should be done by Monday. I told him that I was getting estimates but he said that their guy already did an estimate, to which I responded, "well I'm just getting my own from local body shops." He said he had been in touch with my insurance company, and he confirmed with me that my car was still drivable. One of the body shops said that I should look for comparable private sale listings to show what my car would have been worth before the accident, in case they claim depreciation and/or totaling. We shall see what they come up with.

Big Mac · 04:57 PM

Here's another update: I just got a call from my insurance adjuster telling me that they're investigating the claim because their driver is accusing me of going into an exit only entrance. That is absolutely false!!!! There was only one driveway in that lot, only one way to go in and out, and that's where I entered and exited. There was no other entry or exit!!!! My adjuster told me not to worry about it, but now I'm convinced that this guy is committing fraud in order to evade responsibility, just as he tried to evade responsibility initially. He didn't once raise this accusation at the scene because it is outright false. I'm concerned that the opposing insurance company will claim it was some different lot. Their adjuster did not mention this accusation to me. I am livid once again over this. What can I do to protect myself from this absolute attempt at fraud? Now I'm convinced this is going to end up in small claims court. I just left a message with their adjuster, polite yet emphatic that this was a new fraudulent claim being made by this guy.

I AM SO INCREDIBLY ANGRY RIGHT NOW!

Big Mac · Dec 19, 2008, 02:17 PM

I spoke the other insurance company today. He said he had not listened to my voicemail message from yesterday yet, but he said that he is going to go to the scene over the weekend and as long as his insured isn't telling the truth about there being exit-only markings - again, an outright lie and attempt at defrauding me - then he will pay my claim.

brassplayersrock² · Dec 19, 2008, 02:36 PM

haha, serves the dumbass right. that's what happens when you try to do fraud. *crosses fingers for Big Mac*

Big Mac · Dec 19, 2008, 03:10 PM

Thank you very much for your support, BPR. I'm going to go back to the scene of the collision either today or Sunday with a camcorder and camera for additional evidence. I have to admit I found it hard to believe that he could lie so brazenly about it. It means that I have to prepare in advance my next several defensive moves because now I know I'm dealing with a completely unscrupulous human turd who will resort to fruad to protect his interests.

brassplayersrock² · Dec 19, 2008, 03:14 PM

The sooner the better, ya never know, the delivery guy could pay off someone to change the signs

If you can, use your time/date stamp feature on your camera/camcorder.

side note: as soon as I get to my CA home, I'll be putting a cheapo camera in my car.

Big Mac · 05:12 PM

Originally Posted by brassplayersrock²

The sooner the better, ya never know, the delivery guy could pay off someone to change the signs

If you can, use your time/date stamp feature on your camera/camcorder.

Yeah, someone mentioned that possibility to me, but if that were to happen, the company that relies on the shipments to their warehouse wouldn't be getting them anymore. But I'm thinking along those lines. My also concern is that the adjuster goes or is led to the wrong lot somewhere nearby. The tip about putting the date stamp on is a really good idea, so thank you for that as well.

side note: as soon as I get to my CA home, I'll be putting a cheapo camera in my car.

Yeah, I think it's definitely worth keeping a disposable camera at minimum or even a cheapie digital camera in the car for these situations.

alligator · Dec 19, 2008, 09:00 PM

If things don't work out, you always have small claims court. Just look up the concilliation court in your county and follow the process.

Big Mac · Dec 20, 2008, 07:02 PM

Yup, I'm hoping FedEx's insurer won't scam me, but I'm not taking any chances; I'm preparing for small claims right now.

ebuddy · Dec 20, 2008, 08:41 PM

Victims of insurance bullying unite!!!

I called my insurer regarding my incident. He assured me that my State is very clear on left turns and because of the other factors including my witness and the other driver's citation for failure to yield; this should be fairly cut and dry. Remember, the other's insurer claimed "they are prepared to offer me 70% of my damages because the incident was not the sole fault of their client." My insurer told me that they must've found out I have liability only on that vehicle, they're not worried about arbitration with another insurance company for reimbursement of expenses, so they're trying to sock me with a portion of the damages. My insurer claimed that these cases come through their office quite frequently and when they're this cut and dry, just pay the total in damages. What a bunch of friggin' bullies these wise guys.

My insurer advised I call the other's insurer to formally decline/dispute their offer so I did and I'm waiting to hear back.

King Bob On The Cob · Dec 20, 2008, 10:01 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

This week's update: I just went to get estimates for the repairs, and the only word that comes to mind is OUCH. I was informed that the damaged panel is just about the most expensive part of my car. Two of the estimates I got were for $5,000 and $4,900! The next one I got from a less fancy body shop was cheaper but not by that much. Now I'm concerned my car may technically be "totaled," in addition to worrying about being low-balled. I called FedEx's carrier and he said that he hasn't finished the investigation yet but should be done by Monday. I told him that I was getting estimates but he said that their guy already did an estimate, to which I responded, "well I'm just getting my own from local body shops." He said he had been in touch with my insurance company, and he confirmed with me that my car was still drivable. One of the body shops said that I should look for comparable private sale listings to show what my car would have been worth before the accident, in case they claim depreciation and/or totaling. We shall see what they come up with.

A quarter panel on a modern car will be welded to the body, so even though it costs between $150 to $200 for the metal, It'll cost over a grand for the weld job and replacement, and quite a large sum to get it sanded, coated, paintmatched and glossed.

Big Mac · Dec 24, 2008, 06:02 PM

Just like I thought, it looks like I'm going to have to go the small claims route. I called FedEx and got their agent for service of process information. I'm going to draft my demand letter this weekend. I will not be taken advantage of.

Spheric Harlot · Dec 24, 2008, 06:06 PM

File criminal charges for attempted fraud.

lexapro · Dec 24, 2008, 06:43 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Just like I thought, it looks like I'm going to have to go the small claims route. I called FedEx and got their agent for service of process information. I'm going to draft my demand letter this weekend. I will not be taken advantage of.

I have heard you can sue for the amount of your deductible. Why are you suing FedEx? Are they trying to stiff you?

Big Mac · Dec 25, 2008, 12:57 AM

I am suing for the full value of my car since the damage is in excess of the value, and I am suing for three weeks worth of rental car service. I don't really have a deductible because I don't have "collision" coverage, which means that my insurance company won't pick up any of the tab. I am suing FedEx because it was their employee, working for them, and it was their truck. The driver is the primary defendant, but they're also to be named - that's the advice I got from an attorney friend.

Rumor · Dec 25, 2008, 07:03 AM

Ug, I didn't realize you didn't have Collision coverage, which shoots my suggestion out of the water.

Since I am not an attorney, my legal advice may or may not be sound, but I would suggest naming FedEx and their insurance company as co-defendants. FedEx for the employee, and the insurance company for refusing to pay you in a timely manner. I would also recommend contacting law enforcement, and the Department of Insurance regarding the fraud.

Big Mac · 11:58 AM

Yeah, I'm sorry, I don't know why I didn't mention not having collision coverage earlier. I was going to name the insurer as part of the suit, but my attorney friend said not to do that because I don't have a "direct claim" against the insurer. I'm going to see what additional steps I can take along with the suit. I actually haven't heard from the opposing insurer yet. Thank you all again for the suggestions and support.

Big Mac · Jan 10, 2009, 07:32 PM

Surprise victory! After weeks of waiting and not hearing anything (and pestering my insurer for updates), yesterday I got an offer of settlement from the opposing insurer! It's hundreds lower than what I think the fair value of my car is, let alone the estimates, but I don't think it's worth the time and risk to try to recover the difference through small claims.

ebuddy · Jan 10, 2009, 07:49 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Surprise victory! After weeks of waiting and not hearing anything (and pestering my insurer for updates), yesterday I got an offer of settlement from the opposing insurer! It's hundreds lower than what I think the fair value of my car is, let alone the estimates, but I don't think it's worth the time and risk to try to recover the difference through small claims.

Why would it be risky to recover the difference through small claims court? It seemed to me you had a pretty solid case. I'm faced with a similar situation in which the other insurer offered 70% of the damages and in fact even sent the check. I'm not cashing it. Not that I'm in anything for wins and losses, but what you're citing above is not a "victory" IMO.

In my case, they've found out I have liability-only on my vehicle, they know this won't go into arbitration with another insurer so they're trying to sock it to me. There's absolutely no reason why I should pay even 1% of the damages. I did everything humanly possible to avoid this other driver. The driver was cited by the police for failure to yield, the only documented witness (name and # provided to me immediately following) affirms my statement of the incident.

If you got more than 90% and/or your situation is not as solid as I thought... disregard.

Big Mac · 08:21 PM

I understand your point - my case is solid so why not go for it? - but as far as I can determine right now, it's not really worth the extra time and aggravation for what at most would be $400-$600 more. That kind of money I can make back relatively easily in a few hours with a little extra work. The risk, from my standpoint, is in not having been through the small claims process before (not knowing what to expect can be intimidating) as well as being told that the difficult part of small claims is often in collecting after you prevail. If I went through with a case and the judgment were found mostly against the driver instead of FedEx, I'm sure it would not be easy to collect against him. This is a sure thing, and I'm happy enough with the amount even though it's not the full cost. In contrast, they're forcing your hand, so obviously small claims is the way to go in your situation.

ebuddy · Jan 10, 2009, 08:49 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

it's not really worth the extra time and aggravation for what at most would be $400-$600 more.

This makes sense. I stand to lose more than $900 by accepting their offer. I'll keep you posted on the success or failure of my situation.

brassplayersrock² · Jan 10, 2009, 11:10 PM

congrats big mac

Big Mac · Jan 11, 2009, 12:11 AM

Thank you very much, bpr! And thank you all for your suggestions and encouragement.

goMac · Jan 11, 2009, 03:08 AM

I once was backing out of a spot and a guy sped right around the corner right into the back of my car. He had no damage (and was driving a beater, his bumper was already barely hanging on), but I just ate the $500 to fix my bumper. I didn't want to get insurance involved in case they found against me for "unsafe backing out."

Never again have I parked in those spots. There's a streetcar near here, so I just take that to the store when I need to get groceries. Sometimes cars are more trouble than they're worth...

RobOnTheCape · Jan 11, 2009, 10:01 AM

Had a weird thing happen awhile ago. I was driving down a side street in Philly really into a tune on the radio and as I was going through an intersection someone in a pickup went through a stop sign and I ended up T-boning him. My front end was toast/airbags deployed, while his passenger side was gone and the front axle was broken. I got out asked if he was ok and then asked for papers. He got out and started walking away saying "I was just test driving this. I don't think I'm gonna take it". My insurance company tracked the owner down, who you might guess, didn't have insurance. My insurance covered everything. It's always sunny in Philly.

subego · 01:13 PM

Originally Posted by RobOnTheCape

I got out asked if he was ok...

This is a nitpick, but one should ask if someone is hurt in these situations.

People are generally not okay after a collision, even if uninjured and completely at fault.

In fact, if anything, being at fault tends to make one feel less okay, but even if not at fault one is still usually not okay.

Apropos of nothing, I didn't hit someone, ask if they were okay, and get a "no, I'm not okay, asshole... you just hit my car" in response. What would ever make you think that?

rickey939 · Jan 11, 2009, 02:30 PM

I would switch to UPS Big Mac....

Big Mac · Jan 11, 2009, 02:48 PM

Yup, I have. I pay the extra money when the option is available.