Accident - now what?

[Wheetsin 714]

This is the first time we've been in something like this and it feels like we haven't done someting that we need to do. My husband was driving my car today (I worked from home) and went with 2 of his co-workers to get lunch. On the way back they were going about 40 in a 45 zone. They were halfway through a intersection (their green light) when a big huge van pulled out right in front of them, making a left turn. My husband tried to turn left to avoid the hit but there was nothing he could do. The result was a head-on at close to 30 mph.

DH is OK. He has cuts on his head from where the airbags pushed his glasses into his skin. He has a bruise/abrasion on his neck from the seatbelt, and a pretty dark purple bruise on his collarbone, plus scrapes all across his stomach, presumably also from the seatbelt. His arm is burned/blistered from the heat of the airbag deploying. There are also miscellaneous cuts & punctures, probably from the pieces of the console dislodged when the AB deployed. The top of his hand is VERY bruised, so much that his fingers are even discolored, and it's swollen about twice normal size. The underside of his arm has big areas where the friction with the airbag peeled the skin off. Both knees are scraped & bruised. Nothing broken, lucky there, and it def. could have been worse. He refused treatment at the scene because he was so worried about his passengers, esp. the one who couldn't walk, but when I got to the scene & the tow truck took my car away I made DH go to the ER. Misc damage - his glasses are broken from being shoved up into his head, and his cell phone was also broken - something actually penetrated the metal casing on the back and is lodged through the keypad on the other side. I had someone's fragile birthday present in the truck & it's shattered all over, and there's an entire case worth of Protein drinks spilled into my trunk. *sigh*

Of DH's two passengers, one is sore but OK, the other had to go to the hospital from the scene & ended up having torn ligaments in his neck. He was discharged & is back at home.

The guy who turned in front of them had a (likely) broken arm, but was able to walk and got out as soon as it happened to ask DH & the others with him if they were OK.

My car, which we'd just paid off early about 6 months ago is likely totalled. That's per the tow truck driver, anyway, and unofficially from the collision center it was towed to. The front end is completely smashed, and the engine is bulging through the console. The quarter panels are pushed back into the doors. The interior leather is torn from various things puncturing it, the guys' pants making friction tears, etc. The console is of course blown from the airbags... windshied smashed... the entire front end of the car was in a space about a foot deep. The radiator (what was left of it) had penetrated the engine so it was 100% undriveable.

I called the police station to see if I could get a copy of the police report and they said it would take 2+ days. I called back to see if we could find out of a ticket/citation had been issued to the other driver (we're trying to ensure the other driver is officially "at fault", since our insurance co has asked us about 6 times and the best my husband can say is, "unofficially") and they said they couldn't release that info. The policemen on site talked to the other driver, then gave my husband a piece of paper with the police officer's badge info, and some info on the other driver... ins co, name, home number, license #, etc. Then asked DH to write down the same and gave it to the other guy, then they left without another word.

We've talked with our insurance agent, the collision center, and made sure we didn't have to file a separate claim with the DMV. What else should we do? It seems liike we've done everything, but at the same time it feels like we haven't done a thing.

What a day. :angry

[Alexandra 55]

Oh my god, Wheetsin, how awful!! :hug: I'm so sorry!! Thank goodness no one was seriously hurt.

Sounds like you did everything you need to do, except have your hubby take a long hot bath and go to bed early. Poor guy!

[cashley 0]

That sounds like a bad day. I hope everything works out for you and they rule it the other drivers fault. That's crummy when you don't know how it's going to turn out.

I wish you the best of luck! Keep your chin up.

PS. I had a wreck once where I was stopped and a person two behind plowed into me causing a 5 car pile up. I was so scared it was going to be my fault since anytime you hit someone in the backend - I thought was my fault. But it turned out good and the person causing the accident was actually at fault.

[paula 4]

Oh my Goodness... what a lucky man you have - Lucky to be ALIVE! Although the air bags are to prevent a death, they usually hurt worst then pain of the accident alone.

SO so glad everyone was alive. So glad. ((hugs))

[DOC 0]

Oh, I am so sorry! He will be real soar a couple days after the surgery.... Glad for both of you it wasn't any worse!

[EmileeKaye 1]

Wow, that sounds like a very scary experience! I've been in too many accidents....one of them I had an air bag deploy, cutting my face and knocking me out. I'd make sure to take pictures of all the damage you can, cuts, bruises, etc...and hopefully there were some taken at the scene.

Hope your hubby feels better, I'm sure he will be sore for a couple days...

[DevilMayKare 1]

Wheetsin,

What state are you in? Auto insurance lawas vary somewhat between states. I'm an Insurance agent (auto & home) in CA so whatever I say just applies to CA. Generally whoever the policeman put first on the report is considered most at fault. Witnesses can be important, so hopefully there were some. It's after the fact, but it is always a good idea to take pics of the stopped vehicles (cellphones are great for this) while they are still in place at the scene. Clearly the other parties fault if they ran a red light, but sometimes it's tough to prove.

Are you with one of the major companies? Some seem to be better than others as far as assessing fault and fighting for you in court. I'm a Mercury and Progressive agent and have worked for State Farm. I have been in THREE accidents (believe it or not) in the past FOUR months so I have more experience with the Mercury claims process than anyone could ever want to have. I am very happy to say they treated me very well in all instances. Before my rash of accidents my son totalled his car in November and the payout on that was excellent.

If your car is totalled (& it sure sounds like it) your payout is ACV--Actual Cash Value, basically what you could sell the car for. Go to KBB.com, put in your car info and then click on the site that lists cars like that for sale in your area. Your payout should be close to the figures you see there, depending on its condition. If it isn't, fight in--IN WRITING. Some companies will try to low ball you. Honestly, Mercury paid out MORE than I expected on my son's car.

CLaims adjusters are notoriously hard to reach, but in my experience they do call back w/i 24 hours. Do you have rental car coverage? I stress this coverage way more than I used to before I had to drive a rental for 28 days (That would have been over $900!). For most companies in CA your rental coverage stops 5 days from the day you've been offered a total payoff--although you might not get a check for several weeks. Start thinking of what you want to replace your car with now and getting your financing figured out so you won't be in a big rush when it's totalled. Generally it takes 3-7 days for this to be determined.

It's a very emotional experience--especially answering all those questions! (Like if you'd been drinking, were on medication, etc.) Don't take them personally, they're standard. Your husband will still have to make a statement when the other party's adjuster calls. He should expect to feel wary of driving for awhile. Truthfully, I haven't recovered emotionally from my last accident. Once you lose your faith that other cars won't crash into you from nowhere or do stupid things you can't drive defensively enough to avoid it really unnerves you. Everyday I am SO RELIEVED to get home without an accident... but I'm hoping that will pass. I feel for you and your DH.

Any specific questions, feel free to ask me.

[DevilMayKare 1]

I was so scared it was going to be my fault since anytime you hit someone in the backend - I thought was my fault. But it turned out good and the person causing the accident was actually at fault.

They usually ask the very front car how many times they were bumped. Say there are 3 cars in a pile-up. If the first car was bumped twice it means the 2nd car rear-ended them and then was RE. If the first car was it once it means the 2nd car was hit by the 3rd car and hit INTO the first car, indicating the last car and not the middle car was at fault.

Make sense?

[Wheetsin 714]

He called me as soon as it happened and I took off immediately - it was about 20 minutes from home. I forgot to grab the camera (I was SO worried that DH was seriously hurt, and just saying, "I'm OK" to try and keep me from panicking), but I did take some pics of the car, street, injuries, etc. with my cell phone camera when I arrived. I also took more pictures with a good camera when we got home, and plan to go to the collision center tomorrow to take more pics of the car and to get the rest of our personal stuff from it... at the scene we just got the major/important things out, and didn't worry about the little things.

I feel helpless, like I should be doing more. DH is OK but banged up, and not looking forward to the stiffness & muscle pain he's sure to have tomorrow.

I don't see how they could say it wasn't the other guy's fault. You can see where my husband started braking, plus he was going straight & the other guy had the yield on his left turn... plus just from how low my car was hit, you could tell the car was dipped down (brakes applied). But we can't know for sure until we see the report.

[Alexandra 55]

Kare, thank you for taking the time to write all that! We can all benefit from your expertise, I know. Love to hear the insurance agent's perspective!

And you are so right on the emotional repercussions, too. Last fall I was hit by a piece of metal junk that fell off a truck in front of me; my windshield was shattered right in front of my face. I wasn't hurt, but everyone who saw the windshield told me how lucky I was to be alive. For months after that I was very nervous driving past the spot where it happened. Car accidents suck. :confused:

[DevilMayKare 1]

The police report usually just indicates fault. They rarely make a statement of absolute fault. That is the job of your insurance adjuster. Certainly your company will want to do everything they can to support it being the OTHER party's fault. There's just a very big variance on how much they'll fight on this.

Pics at the scene with your cell are perfect. Don't worry about pics of the car afterwards. It's either fixable or not. It almost always costs way more to fix than you think it will. From what you describe it, it sure sounds like a total to me.

A good soak in Epsom salt might help hubby. It's common for neck and back injury to be worse the next day. But, I'm sure you've been told that and given some medical advice.

[DevilMayKare 1]

Last fall I was hit by a piece of metal junk that fell off a truck in front of me; my windshield was shattered right in front of my face. I wasn't hurt, but everyone who saw the windshield told me how lucky I was to be alive. For months after that I was very nervous driving past the spot where it happened. Car accidents suck.

Oh, that is scary. Trucks with stuff falling off are one of my worst nightmares. I have taken PLENTY of claims info on that! Luckily most windshields these days are built for a pretty big falling impact. They shatter, instead of breaking into big sharp pieces.

Thank God you were okay--if unnerved!

[Alexandra 55]

No kidding, Kare. I almost wrote to Honda thanking them for making their windshields so tough! It literally saved my life.

[KSBandster 0]

Wow Wheetsin, that is a pretty scary day.

Thank goodness for seatbelts and airbags, even though he's sore...he's alive. I'm glad to hear he's ok, that had to be terrifying for you AND him.

Good luck with the police report and let us know how it turns out.

[Wheetsin 714]

Hey Kare, thanks for the info. I'll try and hit on all your questions. I appreciate the advice!

What state are you in? Missouri.

Generally whoever the policeman put first on the report is considered most at fault. I wish we could see the report sooner, or that DH was in the right state of mind to ask them about it, but he was still on an adrenaline kick. He didn't really get back down to earth until being discharged from the ER.

Witnesses can be important, so hopefully there were some. It's a busy road and several people saw the accident, but most drove on away. One guy stopped as soon as it happened & was the one who called 911, but he didn't stick around. So for the most part it's DH & his 2 passengers, and this other guy who was making the left turn.

It's after the fact, but it is always a good idea to take pics of the stopped vehicles (cellphones are great for this) while they are still in place at the scene. Clearly the other parties fault if they ran a red light, but sometimes it's tough to prove. The way the lanes are lined up where the accident happened, there's one straight lane in the direction DH was going, but coming from the other way there are three lanes, a left turn, a straight, and a right turn. By the time I got there the other car was being towed and mine had already been moved off the road, but you could tell from where the glass was in the street that the collision happened on the far side of the intersection. Actually, this may help. The green arrow is where DH was trying to go. The yellow arrow is where the other guy was trying to go, and the pink circle is where the actual collision happened. Hopefully it was obvious that DH was virtually through the intersection. Also, the actual collision happened a little outside of DH's lane b/c as he saw the guy wasn't going to stop, he tried to veer to the left to try and miss the oncoming car.

Are you with one of the major companies? We have Shelter.

Go to KBB.com, put in your car info and then click on the site that lists cars like that for sale in your area. Your payout should be close to the figures you see there, depending on its condition. It was a 2003 Volvo S-60 and KBB shows around $13k. Which sucks, b/c it will be hard to replace for that, and we'd paid it off early & owned it free & clear and I'd planned to keep it for as long as it would run (I liked not having a car payment for a change!)

Do you have rental car coverage? I stress this coverage way more than I used to before I had to drive a rental for 28 days Yes, at $30/day with no specified time limit. We shouldn't need it, though - DH and I normally carpool to work (my building is less than a minute off his drive) and back.

Any specific questions, feel free to ask me. (Good news, DH just said the other driver had been issued a ticket for failure to yield -- apparently the guy in DH's car who had the neck injury was in the same room as the driver of the other car at the hospital, and they were talking and the guy mentioned he'd been given a ticket). Anyway, here are my questions. Is our insurance liable, or is the other driver's, for the injuries to DH's passengers? Also, do we have any chance of having "misc possessions" replaced by the other guy's insurance? (He has State Farm). For example, the airbag broke DH's glasses, some impact at some point broke his watch (Tag Heuer ) and a piece of metal from the engine was driven through his cell phone (and barely missed his leg!). Should we go ahead and replace those things, or should we wait for the other guy's insurance to?