just bought the car and got rear ended..

JARblue

If your insurance charges you a deductible for an accident that is not your fault, you should dump them immediately. I ALWAYS work with my own insurance company because they have MY interests in mind since I am their customer. The other person's insurance won't give two $hits about you or any problems you have.

I have never paid my insurance deductible except for one time. I avoided a collision with a vehicle coming into my lane suddenly, but I wound up running my Sentra up on to a median curb by doing so. The guy drove off, and I even got the phone number of a witness who saw what happened. However, insurance wouldn't make a claim under my uninsured motorist clause even with the witness (so now I know to always let the guy hit me rather than hit something else myself). The accident wound up being over $1500 because I busted the oil pan and the radiator was damaged. I wasn't interested in paying the repair fee, so I claimed it on my insurance and paid my $500 deductible. They did not raise my rates either.

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i like370z

everytime i called that guy insurance they always put me on hold for a long time. i called my insurance(geico) once and they told me i should call the other guy insurance better........ they giving me a headache

JARblue

Wow... if my insurance company gave me that response, I would tell them to go fvck themselves. It's their job to take care of my claim. I should clarify that I am assuming you have full coverage (liability AND collision).

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i like370z

yes i have full coverage but my insurance said since not my fault i should deal with the at fault party insurance better..... because i never been in a car accident before dont know what to do i'm feeling so frustrated.

JARblue

That's just poor service from your insurance company IMO. I guess that's the kind of service to expect from Geico

Well, it looks there is a lot you can learn from this experience. There is definitely some good info in this thread, and you can find out other good info with a simple Google search. Since it's legal in Texas, I use video and audio recording to document the accident as soon as it happens. I hope you get the car taken care of or at least get a few extra bucks for your troubles. Good luck man

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b15

Just wanted to clear some things up...

If you file a claim against your own insurance, you do have to pay your collision deductible (it's in the policy wording). It can be waived up front or refunded on the back end because of the subrogation potential, it's just up to the individual adjuster handling your claim. Also keep in mind when you claim against your own insurance, it shows up in your loss history whether or not your company was able to fully re-coup their losses from the other company. If they don't fully recoup, the difference will show up as a loss paid to you instead of $0. Either way it's still there. This may or may not adversely affect your premium at renewal or if you choose to shop your insurance, again it just depends on the company.

To the OP- sounds like you did work with a shady shop. Any reputable shop would stand behind their work. Sucks, but at the end of the day lawyering up will cost you more than it's worth. You'll have to live with it, or buck up and pay out of pocket to a GOOD job that will properly blend the new paint with the old for a seamless transition. If you've already taken the check from the Company, then you are SOL. Calling the the other person's company will do no good as they'll just tell you to go to the shop for repairs. Rule of thumb, NEVER take the check until the settlement is to your standards. A lot of times by taking the check, you're agreeing to the settlement. There are extenuating circumstances, but for a claim this small, I highly doubt they're going to re-open to give you diminished value.

Lastly, Geico sucks, so it doesn't surprise me they told you to call the other company.

Chuck33079

Insurance agent?

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2011 MB Touring-Sport-6sp-Nav/GTM TT/FI TT TDX/JTran/Kosmic/Eibach/Hotchkis/SPC/CSF/RPS/SoThatsWhereAllMyMoneyWent

b15

I used to be an underwriter.

JARblue

Except in the case of uninsured motorist coverage. There is no other insurance company, so the claim is against your own company. However, the uninsured motorist coverage in my policy does not require me to pay a deductible.

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i like370z

I'm planing to switch to inifiniti auto insurance some guy told me is pretty good and cheaper than geico

Chuck33079

Stop going with what "some guy" tells you. Go online and search for policyholder experiences. 99% of the time, you'll be better off with a company you've actually heard of. Don't make price the only factor in your decision either. If you cheap out, it can (will) bite you in the *** later.

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2011 MB Touring-Sport-6sp-Nav/GTM TT/FI TT TDX/JTran/Kosmic/Eibach/Hotchkis/SPC/CSF/RPS/SoThatsWhereAllMyMoneyWent

Drex

usaa told me that i would have to pay my deductible if i went through them, even if i was not at fault, but i may get reimbursed later if they can get the other insurance co. to pay. so i chose to go through the other insurance co. even so usaa was great and followed up with me and the other company to make sure everything was fixed (i also financed my z through usaa, so might be some motivation on their part to ensure the collateral is good haha).

edit: i see b15 already cleared this up

edit2: usaa ftw

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2011 Nissan 370z | 6MT | Magnetic Black | Sport Package

JARblue

I guess I wasn't aware that there were insurance companies that charge you your deductible even if you're not at fault. However, that is not something that I want in my policy. If it's not my fault, I shouldn't have to pay a dime. In fact, I think policyholders should be entitled to a few extra $$ for the trouble they have to go through to get the car fixed since some jacka$$ hit them. But I'm not greedy and understand that doing that will just raise insurance even more, so I'm not advocating for it or anything.

I have to get a quote from one of my insurance's approved shops (usually a lowball), but like anyone else I can get quotes from other shops. I just have to contest their shop's quote; a couple of quotes that show their shop is low is good enough. I've never bothered to go through the trouble to contest (though I would with the Z), but a family member has and said it was no problem to get them to honor the quote at the shop he wanted to use.

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