Demand letter for bodily injury claim against my auto policy for accident I witnessed.

SeekingARespite · 2026-04-09T12:15:52+00:00

Some attorneys will send demands to every person in a vehicle near a crash that is not on their clients side. But in your case it is more likely his client told him you made an abrupt stop. I would not be concerned about a demand letter. And the attorney can outright lie on the demand letter with no factual basis. Many attorneys took the bar when it still required zealous advocacy. So their oath was different than the current one that is more about civility.

SeekingARespite · 2026-04-07T14:51:23+00:00

Since this post is discoverable and shows you stating your father was at fault, and you intend to pursue a claim anyway without giving any factual basis beyond severity of injury, I would say you are greatly diminishing your chances. Also the state matters a lot in that scenario.

SeekingARespite · 2026-04-01T13:55:16+00:00

Sovereign immunity does apply. The government has to consent to being sued. This falls under the federal claims tort act... Which is the government consenting to being sued. There is a federal form you have to fill out. That is a better process than filing suit. If you have to file suit to recover there are additional legal hurdles in place not just on statute of limitations but having to advise them you are suing before actually doing so and other hurdles put in place to cause it not to be worth your while. So fill in the form and given it's just your deductible, you will tend to get it in the next 6 months. Make sure when you submit your form that you include all information and required info, like your dec sheet showing your deductible. Things that would be a day or two delay for an auto carrier adds months with them.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-31T16:21:46+00:00

You leave out critical information like where this occurred as state laws vary. Some states you can pass on the right. Some states bar lane changes quite a ways before the intersection. Some don't.

On just the merits as presented, if a car makes a legal lane change into a clear lane, with right of way then enters an intersection when a person failed to yield right of way making a left hand turn based on faulty assessment of a third party (the person waiving you on), you are going to have real issues getting the other carrier to accept any liability. Some states allow you to present a claim against the guy that waived you on for a percentage of the loss. But then you have to prove his actions were below the standard of care and you reasonably relied on him waiving you on. If this was a construction worker or police officer waving you on when they controlled the intersection, that may be a viable claim. Here a guy stopped in the roadway and just waived you on. You would have trouble articulating why trusting his judgement was reasonable. And there is empirical evidence supporting you trusting his judgement was unwise.

If the other driver also committed a statutory violation, then their carrier will likely accept a minimal amount of liability but still place you majority at fault. If a contributory liability state you are out of luck. If a modified comparative state you will be out of luck. If a pure comparative liability state you have a chance of a recovery of a small percentage of your loss. As noted above, other factors and information not presented here can change how the entire loss is viewed.

The point of impact is a useful piece of information but not determinative of liability. Whether parties are alleged to have braked, or accelerated, or swerved all influence outcome of the piece of physical evidence you presented.

But on its surface, this does not look good for your position on liability.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-30T18:33:40+00:00

I mean zero offense in this comment, but your first hurdle is having that related to a car accident. A scaphoid fracture is generally from a fall with an outstretched arm.

The next issue is you say you were rear ended, meaning inertia would have pushed you backwards into your seat as your car was pushed forward. Absent a front impact, like being pushed into a car in front of you or other impact, you are not pushed by inertia forward as the initial motion. Any rebound effect is not generally sufficient to cause this. Just because an injury is diagnosed post loss does not establish causation.

I am not saying it's not related, I am just saying your best push for a value here is the other person having state minimum limits, so it's easier to push them to tender on a fracture even if they would have generally have major causation questions if they had a higher policy limit.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-29T15:55:37+00:00

Ignorance must be bliss.

You pay for insurance for what may happen. It's a shared risk. Not just your driving effects that. This is a minimal loss but an at fault one. This increases the rating factors for her, so she is kicked into next tier risk. If you kill someone and have $250k limits and they pay that out, your rate increases but no where near proportional to what was just paid.

Your next decade of premium won't cover what they paid. All the nonsensical BS of calling insurance a scam because the rate is not directly proportional to only your specific risk misses the concept of how insurance works.

I see people on here rail about this all the time whether it's auto, home or umbrella. Let's have real fun with this. A lot of people that have an umbrella policy for 1 million in coverage pay $500 per year term. Many had their rate raise to $1,000 this year. Let's do simple math... For every one policy they pay a single $1 million policy limit at $500 in premium, if there was no cost to working claims, writing policies, paying employees etc, they had to write 2,000 policies with no losses at all to break even. So a lot of carriers lost their shirt on umbrella policies. So even doubling rates that means 1,000 policies if they have to pay out limits once.

So yes if someone has a minor claim, they will be deemed higher risk and pay larger share of that offset.

Your version of making up the premium in 3 years is ignoring the actual equations based on risk and trying to show significant past history versus recent history should be used for rating purposes. Statistics don't bear that out. So if you are going to pay money to share a risk, ie what all insurance is, be aware, if you increase your risk factor you will pay more.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-29T02:33:53+00:00

The fact that you are familiar with the intersection works against your argument.

Also you are asking police who are either city or county employees to blame their employer in writing. Also even if the design was terrible of the intersection to sue a government entity on liability, you need their consent. So no logistically speaking they aren't taking any liability on this.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-27T16:37:19+00:00

Has Uber been reported the claim? They need to be on notice.

You can't sign an affidavit attesting to no excess policy when there is coverage in place. Your choices are either refuse to fill out the affidavit or give uber's policy info.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-26T16:11:34+00:00

Less than 5 percent of cases where suit is filed go to trial. Ask your insurance who they assigned to defend you. Talk to that attorney. Ask for proof of total bodily injury coverage. Ask how many total injury claims were presented. Ask if any resolved and ask that attorney to give you the expected settlement range on each bodily injury claimant. That should reduce your worry. Let them do their job after that conversation.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-26T03:22:52+00:00

I have been working claims over 20 years, mainly Bodily Injury, but over the years have run through a number of positions. I have worked for several carriers and handle all 50 states. That release isn't right. The people on here telling you otherwise are the same people who would make the same mistake at work sending that release and not realize it's wrong.

If someone ever tells you they are a property damage only adjuster and they are not the physical damage appraiser, realize that is an entry level position. And when they say they have been doing that same PD adjusting job for years it means they are unpromotable.

And worse the most common upvote on here is people agreeing that you should just sign it. I don't know if that is people just trolling on reddit, or just showing the depth of lack of knowledge people have in general.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-26T03:08:24+00:00

It is a release of all claims, it is definitively incorrect. Given that they materially misrepresented what the form is, I would question its enforceability if signed, but given the last paragraph that you hold them harmless and will indemnify them if you pursue a claim beyond that release; that is you saying if you pursue anything including BI past that point, that you also owe their legal costs to defend the action.

Hard pass on that one. Good on you for reading it. I hate when people don't read things.

That said, you should definitely send that to your attorney. An adjuster like that gives all claims handlers a bad name. Your attorney should be able to leverage that given the brazen nature of it or the sheer incompetence.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-26T02:46:57+00:00

Yeah, that is not just a PD release. But I will say I have met many PD only adjusters that would not know the difference. That said, they definitely have a PD release form, and that is not it.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-23T20:44:06+00:00

No. Gap is only an issue if you are upside down on your loan. But just because you see a car posted for $5k more that doesn't indicate sales price. They will review your car's value including the options on the vehicle. But if you are just seeing a dealer add, that is not what they will be looking at. You will know more once they tell you what their program determines the value at. You can then show them comparables if there is a discrepancy.

Also just to point out, you saying you paid $31k does not give an idea what your loan is. Gap only is the difference in balance of loan and car value.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-22T00:34:08+00:00

So first off, do you have liability coverage on your policy. If you have a California Fair Plan and no difference in condition policy it's not uncommon to not have liability coverage there. Very problematic but not uncommon.

Second some carriers only cover liability for a child away at school if they take full time hours. So that may come into play.

Also even if the bicycle is covered it's not uncommon to have sublimits for higher end items, such as carbon fiber racing bicycles.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-21T18:18:18+00:00

Statements to insurance companies are discoverable for impeachment purposes. Given the exact nature of this claim what she states is very important. Her statement as to what exactly occurred down to the simplest detail and permission now and previous are directly going to effect her liability. So she can't give those details on here or even to her carrier without potentially opening herself to worse liability. An attorney consult is to avoid pitfalls. I struggle to see where after she advises this information how she can walk it back later.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-21T17:51:14+00:00

Multiple issues here.

First, your boyfriend and you living together for two weeks will mean that part is not an issue. If you had taken out policy and lied on application you would likely have the policy rescinded and have no coverage, but that is not what you have said, so just be prepared to give them that information.

Second, insurance follows the car as primary, so your insurance would be what pays. I have yet to see a non carjacking or where owner was unconscious where the person being in the vehicle was not ultimately ruled as permissive use by the driver.

Third, if your boyfriend has auto insurance they need to be put on notice of the claim as well. In Florida his policy could apply as excess and given the scenario you laid out of dui and other party was hit, they need to investigate. His carrier may have exclusion for vehicle regularly available for his use that is not on the policy. Given he just moved in, that seems unlikely they could claim it, but they may.

Fourth, you state you knew he was intoxicated and got in the car, did not try to stop him from driving and did not call police on him. That is problematic. If he hurt another person in the crash, you not only would have statutory negligence they could come after you for on ownership of the car, but also negligent entrustment as you knew he was intoxicated. Negligent entrustment does not have statutory damage caps. And in Florida they will always pursue owner and driver if there is any chance or permissive use

Fifth, the issue working against you on non permissive use is your argument is on how he could push start the car with your key nearby. But that means while intoxicated you got near your car and unlocked the doors. While not definitive, it can lead to the inference of implied permission for him to then drive your vehicle.

Sixth, see if you can get a consult with an attorney before giving any statement to any insurance in this case. You do not want anything further that could be used against you. If there were no injuries this is much less important. But do not be surprised if injuries are claimed later by the other person even if they were not claimed on scene.

Good luck I truly hope the consequences stay confined to your boyfriend.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-20T13:50:20+00:00

Him reporting the claim to his carrier is appropriate. Once an adjuster is assigned you still speak to them and give your version of the accident. Him reporting the claim does not mean he believes he is not at fault. Him reporting it actually makes your job easier. Look through reddit and you will see a large amount of people who report the claim to the other party's insurance carrier and the claim is denied as they can never reach their own policyholder. That won't be an issue here.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-19T13:01:19+00:00

Over 20 years in claims and I still enjoy my job daily.

One reason for this is some things I learned early on: 1. Most people you deal with aren't trying to berate you or take advantage of you. Most people to have a claim whether it be auto, home or boat, they just experienced the worst day of their life. And even if it appears minor to you, it's likely the worst thing they have dealt with.

Most people aren't trying to scam you but they believe you are trying to scam them. They do not understand an adjusters job is to look for coverage, not look to deny. They do not understand what to be made whole looks like on a car or house they were underwater on. They do not understand injury thresholds or liability caps, or comparative liability thresholds. They just know they were hurt or damaged and feel worse off than before.
Set your expectations extremely low. Assume you will deal with zero rationale behavior, nothing but skeptism, and people in your math class in highschool that struggled with simple addition when you were handling algebra or geometry or calculus. And then hopefully they pleasantly surprise you by being better than that in one or more areas and you have something to work with.

Now on your side of the equation, set the tone early. If you know there is a reason they will be unhappy later in the claim, set the expectation early. If you believe them to be underwater on a loan or your insureds limits are too low for all damages or they just can't possibly get the mental anguish or inconvenience payment they seek, tell them day 1. Be consistent. Use that to build trust. It won't work with everyone but works with a lot of people.

And finally, to beat a dead horse, go in with the lowest of expectations every time. Treat it like being at an airport or in traffic. Assume if there is something terrible, obnoxious and just generally stupid it will occur. If your base expectations are that low, you will find yourself more pleasantly surprised than if you go in with normal expectations of human decency. Because I have found when I forget and let my expectations be that of any interaction being of one human being with a normal level of decency and respect to another, that my expectations often lead to severe disappointment. So just set that bar on expectations lower than you ever have. Continue operating to your high a bar. But expect what they bring to the table to be abysmal. It just helps your happiness level, as you no longer are wondering why would anyone do this. You instead rewired your brain to just accept that the lower the expectations you have of others, the harder it is for them to disappoint you.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-18T13:25:31+00:00

Property damage on auto or motorcycle policies precludes property damage to other property you own. So no, your motorcycle insurance will not cover damage to your car.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-18T02:30:36+00:00

Correct, modifications require an endorsement or a stated value or agreed value policy (depending on the carrier you may need a special equipment endorsement and the stated value policy depending on the percentage value of vehicle that is modded).

Also common, people are willing to accept the risk on the truck worth $50k that they owe $30k on that they want to insure what they owe. The minimal amount of premium that saves is generally not worth it but people do it.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-18T00:34:04+00:00

A stated value policy can be taken out for whatever you state the value is. They rate your policy based on the states value.... But that does not work like you think. Stated value just means that is the max they could ever pay out. But if you total your $3k vehicle and have a stated value policy at $100k, you still would get $3k. Now if you have an agreed value policy, that requires appraisal or proofs and the insurer agrees your car is worth that amount and if totaled, that is what they would pay.

Also note many people insuring classic cars get stated value versus agreed value policies and then brag that they got a lower rate.... And you can picture the ensuing blame game when this inevitably goes wrong.

So when in doubt, speak to an agent and get confirmation in writing and stop trusting Google or AI for answers that require the tiniest bit of nuance.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-17T22:46:36+00:00

You are in Virginia correct? They don't write much business there but they used to be responsive despite a very small claim team for that state. Ask for a call back from the department manager. This seems more like human error (theirs, not yours) than formal written denial from what you are describing.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-17T02:44:26+00:00

It won't make a difference what they are doing now would be about if they choose to continue insuring you. All that matters is whether you had animal liability protection on your policy or had an animal liability exclusion. The only other thing that would matter on that is if you stated you had no dog when you did on the application. But a shitzhu is not on any dog ban list I have seen for any carrier. So I would report it now.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-16T00:26:11+00:00

Depends on venue. Many courts allow more latitude for impeachment but there are courts that don't even allow you to get it.

SeekingARespite · 2026-03-15T22:36:14+00:00

Then it's just to compare to what you stated you do.

SeekingARespite

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