A friend wrecked my car and I had no insurance. She had full coverage. Is she responsible to fix it?
Posted on Sep 22, 2009 under Insurance Information |I was out of town and told her she could drive it only if there was an emergency. She drove my car out in the country, to visit an ex boyfriend, got it stock in mud… and wrecked it against a tree. She says she should only pay me what my car was worth; however, it’s going to cost significantly more to fix it than my car was actually worth. She told told me her insurance wouldn’t cover it since I had no insurance. I don’t know what to believe.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
Car insurance is for the car and covers whoever is authorized to drive the car. In you case, I don’t think your friend’s insurance covers your car. Ask an insurance agent or your local insurance administration office to confirm.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
Does her insurance policy have "uninsured motorists" coverage…Check that out… but insurance companies will not pay to repair a car unless you get three estimates and give them to the insurance company and if you threaten to sue… they may pay rather than go thru the cost of the legal proceedures which could be costly and if legal action is taken you can put into the action that if you win… the other party must pay all the legal and court fees also… I recommend you look in the yellow pages to find an attorney that will give you a free consultation… Good Luck… keep the keys to your car in your pocket… don’t you think???
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
When a person has full coverage insurance, it covers whatever car she is driving also. Sounds to me like she does not want to report it to her insurance as it may make her premiums go up. Also, usually when the insurance company reimburses you, if the damages are greater than the actual amount of the car, they will give you that amount rather than pay the amount of the damages.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
No, her insurance only covers her car for accidents etc.. If you have no insurance you are not covered, regardless if she is..sorry..
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
An insurance company will not pay more to fix your car than it is worth. They just TOTAL out the car if the cost of repairs is more than the blue book value of the car.
My advice to you is to visit the link below, find out what your car’s Kelly Blue Book value is based on the information you enter, and print out your findings. Tell your friend how much your car was worth and then ask or demand the money from your friend. If she fails to pay you the fair market value price of your car, then sue her in small claims court.
There isn’t really an easy way to get money from a friend - especially if she doesnt have the money to own her own vehicle. Good luck on this one.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
It’s the same as her driving a rental car, or any other car including a friends (i.e. your) car. Her insurance covers the vehicle she is driving, which means your car. As far as how much you get, it depends on the year make and model of the vehicle and could mean you might only the vehicles blue book value and not what it actually costs to fix the vehicle, which could be significantly less.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
Tell her to read over her policy including the fine print, maybe it might be covered. But more than likely it’s not, but since she is willing to cover the cost of its value…. You should be able to see the sign, it’s time to get rid of the car since it’s gonna cost more to fix it than what it is worth. Get something else
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
If she is willing to pay you what its worth then that is all any insurance company will do anyway. So I would take that along with the lesson learned about loaning your vehicle.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
If the damage is more than the car is worth, then she only would need to give you book value on the car. Good luck with that.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
Her insurance doesn’t cover your car, but I think if you took that girl to court, she’d be paying out of pocket like she needs too. Selfish…bleh bleh keep my mouth shut lol.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
She is responsible for the damages regardless of insurance. If it is not paid to your satisfaction and you two cannot work it out. Take it to Small claims.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
If you had no insurance, you can pursue her directly. Her insurance would only roll on to cover third party claims (injuries and damages she caused to other people) since you had no insurance on the car. She is correct that she only would have to pay you the value of the vehicle, if the cost to repair exceeds the repair value.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:17 am
if she has that insurance that what ever car she drives shes coveres than she should fix it. if she doesent have ins she should fix it anyway and if she dont want to take her to court. but you shouldnt have had left your keys with her in the first place.