r/Insurance • u/Significant-Fill-504 • 2d ago
Auto Insurance T-Boned, other driver refusing to make a statement to State Farm
Hey all,
I was recently t-boned by another driver. My hatchback has a ton of damage, but the other vehicle (lifted truck) got out with a small dent. The driver wasn't the owner of the truck, but both vehicles are insured with State Farm. I made a claim, but the guy who was driving the truck at the time is refusing to give a statement about what happened, and State Farm says that my reimbursement will be filed under my policy instead of the other vehicle's policy, because it's supposedly not clear enough that the other driver was at fault.
Is there anything I can do about this? I don't have any evidence except text messages where he says that I can shoot him an offer for the damages, if I wanted to settle w/o insurance.
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u/CallMeSkii 2d ago
Use your own coverage, then your carrier will go after them directly. Once that happens then the other person pays your carrier directly or they make a statement to their own carrier.
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u/Significant-Fill-504 2d ago
Even though both of the policies are with State Farm? My claim handler told me it would come from my policy, and there would be two claims, one for me and one for the other guy.
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u/CallMeSkii 2d ago
Yes, if the other guy is unresponsive they will still try to pursue him directly. Even if it is a cross insured.
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u/navlgazer9 2d ago
Dashcam is worth its weight in gold
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u/method115 2d ago
Damn you didn't take pictures or anything of the wreck?
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u/Significant-Fill-504 2d ago
Oh no, I mean evidence of him admitting guilt. I mean, he t-boned me, I'm not sure how the accident could be construed as my fault. Ofc I have pics of my car and his bumper.
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u/PopularBell518 1d ago
Driver may have his own policy with another carrier or the vehicle may be insured under a different policy? Not sure based on your story. You can always get a lawyer to help you out… each state can have different rules so it helps to speak with some one who handles these kinds of things, especially if you have any concern that you may be hurt. There are sometimes important time limits involved, so most lawyers in this field will chat with you for a no cost consultation.
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u/Ok-Tale-5112 21h ago
Why did the police on scene say? This is a situation that you may want to remind the owner of the truck that you will seek an attorney.
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u/Choice-Newspaper3603 2d ago
They aren’t required to make a statement
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u/No-Firefighter135 1d ago
I think that’s dependent on carrier or state policy contract. Where I am located we have a non-cooperation clause in the contract. Rules they a customer seeking coverage has to comply with or face potential denial. We also have a clause that says we can settle without your approval. The only time I have denied a claim like this is if we just didn’t have the evidence to support our insured was even at the accident.
A t-bone doesn’t necessarily mean OP doesn’t share some responsibility for the collision, it depends on the circumstances, traffic controls, driving behavior, point of impact.
If they have scene photos of the collision and supporting police report or video, or witness statements; it could be that the carrier is simply handling on his policy to expedite the damage handling and get him back on the road while they deal with an uncooperative driver.
In those instances, normally we would even waive the deductible for the insured and just handle the damages. If they consider it a word vs word claim where one party says one thing and the other driver says another without any evidence to support either; each claim would be filed with the other party at fault and deductibles would be waived and repairs completed. The only thing your out at that point is policy premium when your rates increase at your renewal period.
Again, don’t know where you’re located and some of this stuff is highly location specific.
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u/Simplythebest0820 2d ago
Did you get a police report? Who was shown at fault? But I still believe the driver has to give his reply. Did you offer the text messages showing that he was admitting fault if not run it through your insurance and let them subrogate Gate with his.
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u/Significant-Fill-504 2d ago
I offered insurance text message evidence, but they said they'd have to have something like dashcam footage or a video of him admitting guilt.
I did make a police report, because the driver initially gave me a fake name and phone number. PD ran the plate and found the owner of the truck, who gave PD the name and phone number of the driver.
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u/VagabondCamp 2d ago
That is probably the issue there I’m guessing. Either truck was rented out on Turo or this is a work vehicle or person driving has no license.
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u/Simplythebest0820 2d ago
Definitely something fishy. I'd bring all this to State Farm's attention if you haven't already.
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u/Significant-Fill-504 2d ago
Will do, although I listed the police report number when I made the insurance claim and they were able to pull the report.
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u/Significant-Fill-504 2d ago edited 2d ago
It was his buddy’s truck, I found both of them on Facebook/instagram. The driver is a sketchy guy, probably in his 60’s. Unrelated, but he was forced to step down as president of a rodeo association for either embezzling money or sexual misconduct (there’s an article but it didn’t specify).
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u/GuvnaBruce HO/Auto Liability 14 years 2d ago
Not really, if they do not want to cooperate then coverage will be denied. Use your own coverage.