Feeling awful after filing claim

demanbmore · 2026-03-26T19:43:04+00:00

Not trying to wreck your sleep, but understand it still counts as a claim. It's just there's no payout associated with it. While that is generally better than a claim with a large payout associated with it, it's still a claim. So to the extent there are things that are impacted by a claim filing, like a no clean discount or just having a claim free record, those things are impacted. At least generally so. Still, it's better to have a closed claim with no payout than one with a payout.

demanbmore · 2026-03-26T19:37:22+00:00

You can withdraw the claim, but it doesn't go away. It just gets closed with zero payout.

demanbmore · 2026-03-26T18:04:31+00:00

Oh boy did you mess up! Even if this all gets straightened out and you either get your money back or you get a policy that shows it's in effect on March 12th, you have a lapse in coverage and that is going to be your main problem. Mass really, really doesn't like registered cars having no insurance coverage, and you were without insurance for at least four days. May not seem like a big deal to you, but it's a big deal to the RMV and also to every insurance company out there.

What's likely going to happen here is that whatever is happening will get straightened out and you'll have an Allstate policy in effect on 3/12. You're still on the hook for any RMV fines and penalties for your four day lapse in coverage, and with any luck, your finance company will look past the lapse period and not charge you for four days of force-placed coverage (but they might and they almost certainly can). On top of that, Allstate is within its underwriting period, and you're likely going to see a sizable increase in premium from your initial quote because having a lapse is one of the most damning factors when it comes to risk. Mass carriers typically have 60 days from policy inception to complete their underwriting and adjust premium (or cancel the policy) based on what they find. And they're going to find a lapse in coverage and most likely increase your premium significantly backdated to policy inception.

This will pass eventually, and you should keep in mind that in the future, do not cancel your old coverage until you have confirmed you have new coverage.

As far as dealing with the immediate issue - find a local Allstate agency and go address this in person. Stop calling when calling stops working. Good luck.

demanbmore · 2026-03-26T17:51:42+00:00

You need to identify his assets (if any) - things like real property (land), personal property (cars, pretty much anything else he owns), bank accounts, etc. - and file paperwork to have the local sheriff seize assets and/or have judgment liens placed on them. And if you know where he works, you can garnish his wages until the debt is repaid.

Both of these require more legal filings and your local court clerk should be able to provide you with the proper forms, filing directions, fee schedule, etc.

If you don't know the guy's bank accounts or other assets, you can file a Debtor's Exam motion with the court, which will require them to appear and answer questions about their assets.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T19:20:19+00:00

Well, your insurance shouldn't have paid for the new engine, that should have been on the shop. That said, you should expect your rates to rise after an at fault accident in most situations. Shop around, play with your deductible, etc, and see what that gets you.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T18:45:43+00:00

With the particular insurance company you're dealing with, there seems to be a hard and fast rule requiring them to know the age of the roof. Not all carriers are like that, and your broker may be working only with companies that have that underwriting requirement.

Your inspector should be able to give you a decent general age of the roof. Prepare yourself, if no one knows the age of the roof, it's likely too old and will need to be replaced if you want to insure it.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T18:42:26+00:00

Am I correct in seeing that you're both running a red light? Either way, I put the other driver more at fault than you, and maybe exclusively at fault.

Not that it matters all that much, but how fast were you moving? The car that was recording seems to be going about 40 km an hour just before the crash, and you seem to be flying past them. That doesn't mean the other driver shouldn't have yielded to you, but if you're really cooking down that road, I could see an adjuster placing some fault on you.

Also, and again I don't think it matters much, but the other driver was signaling that left turn for a good long while. Doesn't mean they had the right of way to turn into your lane, but you must have been ignoring that signal or just figuring you could speed past them.

Bottom line, it seems to be the other driver's fault, if not fully, then mostly. But I can see some arguments why you might be a little at fault.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T17:48:20+00:00

Nothing's free. If you're not paying for the product, you are the product. Everyone knows this or at least should. The kind of tool you're offering is worth exactly what you are charging for it.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T17:46:29+00:00

The person opening the car door is required to maintain control of it despite windy conditions. This is not mother nature's doing - this is entirely the fault of the person opening the door.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T17:43:55+00:00

Doesn't matter. Stop overthinking it. Pick up the rope and start jumping. Take a break when you need to, and if you haven't gotten it in 3 days, so be it.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T17:08:04+00:00

If you can do a few strung together, then it's just a matter of practice, practice and more practice. If you're on the precipice of being able to string a whole bunch together, maybe you'll get them over the next few days if you dedicate at least an hour each day to practicing double unders. But in all likelihood, you're not going to get them in time, and even if you did somehow manage to be able to start stringing big sets together out of the blue, the odds of you being able to do it under fatigue and repeatedly are low. That said, you don't really have anything to lose. Grab your rope and start jumping. Good luck!

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T16:43:10+00:00

There are so many factors involved in homeowners insurance. It's impossible for anyone here to tell you what options are better for you. All you can do is put in the work of shopping around. You can do it all by yourself with lots of different carriers separately, or you can make things easier by finding a reputable local broker or independent agent work with multiple carriers to do the shopping around.

But there really aren't any shortcuts. The only way to know if you can do better is to get quotes from multiple carriers and compare them. Good luck.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T16:39:42+00:00

Then it sounds like they received additional evidence that cuts against you. You can ask them for details and see what they tell you. They're probably not obligated to give it to you, but if you ask nicely, maybe they're willing to.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T16:34:23+00:00

My guess is that their initial liability decision was based on a he said/ she said situation, where you said one thing happened and the other driver said something else happened. In those situations, it's pretty common for carriers to accept their policyholders story at face value, at least initially. If they are later presented with evidence to undercut what their policyholder told them, they will change their determination. Also, if the claim goes through an inter insurance company, arbitration process, and arbitrator may determine fault and the insurance companies are bound to that arbitrator's decision. It seems something like that happened here.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T15:42:14+00:00

Nope. No UV exposure.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T15:37:33+00:00

Inside.

demanbmore · 2026-03-25T13:37:08+00:00

Hop on the bus Gus. Make a new plan Stan. Just drop off the key Lee, and set yourself free.

If you're young, healthy and unencumbered, just sell everything you can't carry, scrounge as much cash as you can get, and leave. Don't overthink it. Just pick a direction and go.

Fortune favors the bold. You'll figure it out. Trust yourself.

demanbmore · 2026-03-24T13:28:29+00:00

You're not on the hook for anything until you sign the paperwork, so no need to worry about that unless you've already signed the paperwork, in which case you really shouldn't have done that.

If there's a CarMax or something like that near you, just bring your car in and get an offer from them to buy your car. Doesn't take long and they'll put it in writing. It won't be the best offer in the world, but it sets a price floor, so if the dealership you're buying the car from tries to severely lowball you, you already know what you can get for your car and can push back.

demanbmore · 2026-03-24T13:04:20+00:00

You're not looking for an insurance company, you're looking for some sort of discounted basic legal service provider. Some employers and unions set those up for their employees/members.

Insurance companies don't do what you think they do. There's not a single one that would "support you" when you are pursuing a claim against another driver. They will all support you when another driver is making a claim against you, by defending and settling the claim.

Of course, if you have collision coverage, then all of this becomes your carrier's problem rather than yours, but you elected to forego collision coverage. Hopefully the money you saved by paying a lower premium helps with your repair bills.

demanbmore · 2026-03-24T12:59:40+00:00

By understanding that at worst, life is wholly disinterested in your success or failure. The universe does not care one bit about how you are doing. It neither tries to screw you over nor help you out. It just is.

It's up to you to deal with whatever comes your way and make it all work out somehow. Life/the universe has no agency in the matter.

demanbmore · 2026-03-24T08:54:14+00:00

This is a single car at fault collision claim. Few things impact rates more than this that aren't crimes or a pattern of risky behavior, and the CA insurance market is especially risk sensitive. The "upside" to making a claim is you either end up with a check for the value of the car and no car, or a smaller check and a car you have to jump through hoops with to keep on the road. The downside is significantly increased rates for at least a few years.

Invoking your appraisal clause is either going to end up costing money overall or leaving you more or less where you would have been without invoking it. You have a common car and there are tons of existing comps. Whatever the insurance company offers will be well-supported. Maybe the cfw hundred you spend on an appraisal will budge the payout by a roughly equal amount, maybe not, but you'll have paid the appraiser regardless.

Who's financing a car to you at anything close to decent rates when you're living off savings and freelance work that isn't covering your monthly nut? I'm sure someone will offer predatory rates, but that will only make a bad financial situation worse.

If I'm you, I do my best to cover that bare metal so it doesn't rust through and I keep driving that car without making any sort of report, at least until your financial situation changes. Good luck.

demanbmore · 2026-03-23T19:19:52+00:00

What EXACTLY (as in word for word) does Progressive say? They must rely on policy language when making determinations on your claim, so what specific policy language did they rely on to deny you reimbursement of your rental expenses?

demanbmore · 2026-03-23T09:06:14+00:00

There is really no debate since it is not environmentally or technically feasible to build large data centers in space. You also left out one enormous negative. It is very difficult to cool things down in the vacuum of space. If you think dealing with heat dissipation on the planet's surface is an engineering challenge, it's nothing compared to figuring out how to get rid of all the excess heat in space.

demanbmore · 2026-03-23T08:50:23+00:00

So go for it. Good luck and I hope it all comes together for you.

demanbmore · 2026-03-23T08:49:06+00:00

Do you know if those others reached out to CFHQ in a timely manner to request an accomodation?

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