Car accident~> insurance quandry
 

Hey all.
Just got into an accident where I was at fault. Fortunately everyone is OK. The other party only has my name and phone number. It's a company car, so it might get sticky. They've already notified their company insurance people so they're aware of the situation. I do have insurance, but would like to pay out of pocket as it seems that any premium hike will far outweigh the short term loss. The question is, do I have to have my insurance get involved or can I pay out of pocket. If I do, does this go on my record and destroy my future premiums? I don't want to go pay out of pocket only to have my premiums jacked anyway. Ideas?
Thanks all.

If you choose to settle out of pocket, he can withdraw his insurance claim and it shouldn't be an issue. If you were issued a ticket for being at fault, then it's going to go against your insurance anyways.

Bear,
what do you mean by 'issued a ticket'? Insurance term? Or literally got fined by police or something? No police were on site, no report was filed, etc. Short of having my name and phone # they don't have any identifying info on me. Again, this was a company car so they automatically forwarded it to their insurance people. Is the situation retractable once it gets that far?

If I were to pay out of pocket, then I shouldn't be talking through insurance at all ,right? I'd imagine I'd get quotes w/the car owner and keep it on the down low.
Thanks for your quick reply, appreciate it!

By issued a ticket, I meant through police.

If they're in a company car, its quite possible that their company will only deal through insurance. Your best bet at this point is to contact the gentlemen, ask for the claim number that he filed, and then contact his insurance company. They only way your premiums won't go up (barring a REALLY understand insurance company), is to keep your insurance out of it completely.

I'm currently covered by insurance. Would the best bet be to feign that I'm not insured? Or could I be straight with them? Basically, if they know I have insurance, will they make me use it?
THanks- I'm buggin out over this stuff :oogle:

OK, you've got a bunch of bad ideas. Seriously, they're all bad.

I work in insurance, specifically casualty insurance, and auto insurance falls within that definition. I know what I'm talking about.

You can talk to the corporate insurance folks about paying this yourself and see what they say. They're just going to look to fix the car. See what their estimate is. If you think it's fair, then pay it. If you don't, then file the claim with your insurance company.

By the way, you are running a very real risk of having your insurance company deny the claim by not reporting it. There is a clause in your policy (in all policies, actually) that basically prevent this sort of thing, which can lead to fraud pretty easily. And if the other guy was actually injured but didn't realize it (i.e. closed head injury), you could be in some deep shit. From what you described, I doubt that it's much to worry about in this particular case, but that's your worst case scenario - big injury and a denied claim because you were playing games.

And the adjuster for the other guy's company has the right to demand proof that you're insured. And then to use that information to report the claim himself. It's perfectly legal, and potentially the ethical thing for him to do so that it doesn't look like he's taking advantage of you - which he actually could if he's a dirtbag.

Good luck.

I would try to get this taken care of as soon as possible. It will be hard for you to get around having this on your record. Also does your state have laws in place which require you to report accidents? If so you might end up getting a couple tickets from the police if they find out.

in my state any accident with damage over $500 is required to have a police report.

however, I had someone back into me and bust my turn signal...we didn't bother calling police but I got his insurance card...turned out I had $1200.00 in damage !!

well, I swaped out the signal myself ...then the car was stolen :crazy:

good luck with it !

Most insurance companies make it a condition that you tell them about accidents. Even if it doesn't result in a claim they can bump up the premium. If you don't tell them it can invalidate your cover next time. Check the small print.

i was gooing to say a few things that touched along the lines of what jazz said. but he just covered all bases. listen to him.

if i were in your shoes..i'd report it. without doubt. quit fucking around worrying about whether you should or shouldnt.

id want a good night sleep rather than save a few pennies. but thats just me.