At 05:54 PM 10/17/97 -0400, you wrote:
>Ahoy Shipmates,
>
>Poor old Binky got rammed by a big pick up truck. The front fender needs
>replacing, etc.
>
>To cut a long story short, the other driver's insurance company will not
>pick up the full tab because they claim the shop I took it to will charge
>more than the normal hourly rate. (It is a British only shop) I had taken
>it to two other body shops but they declined to work on it ("it's not on
>the computer" and "we don't know what we would be getting into").
>
>Should I quit moaning and pay up ($90) or fight back? The irksome thing is
>that the other driver was 100% at fault.
>
>Regards, Adrian
>
>
>
====REPLY====
You are entitled to have your car fixed to the condition it was in before
their insured hit you, or to be paid the value of your car, whichever is
less. If the insurance adjuster jerks you around, tell him/her that you
will be filing suit against their insured. This will piss off their
insured, and cost them in legal fees. Bitch loudly to the state insurance
commissioner; they usually have an ombudsman line.
Bear in mind that when you're the non-liable party, you're in the driver's
seat. If you have to deal with your own carrier, you will be bound by
whatever nonsense provisions limiting repair costs they've buried in your
policy. But you're not bound by the other driver's contract with his/her
insurer.
Mark Moburg
(Recovering insurance defense lawyer)
MarkMoburg@mindspring.com
Seattle, Washington
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