Just a rant - uninsured motorist and why people suck

[paulswagelock]

So I was sitting at a train crossing, 3 or 4 minutes go by. I am in park, foot on the brake so my lights are lit, broad daylight. Reading something on my phone to pass time as it would be another 5 minutes or so. POW - truck jumps forward a foot.

Gather my senses and realize there is a car under the rear of my truck. Mind you, there is 1600’ of straight level road behind me. In a bit of a daze, I get out and the car backs out from under my truck. Kid gets out, 20 ish. Polite and apologizes and says “sorry man, brakes are bad in my car.”. Car is truly a $50 car.

I make sure he and passenger are ok, verify I kinda feel ok, and start asking for license, registration and insurance. “Hmmm, not sure I have any of that with me” is said. So I dial 911 and ask for an officer in case he can’t identify himself. While waiting, he finally finds his wallet and produces a valid drivers license. Can’t produce registration, but gets me a screen shot from The General insurance. Ask if it is current and he states “I don’t know, might be”.

I call the police and they state there is nothing else they can do because they can’t check real time if insurance is current, so I waive them off. We all leave the scene. My truck is new and expensive, and likely has $7000 or more damage. Is driveable, but the tailgate doesn’t work, the exhaust needed tied up, the hitch is damaged and a stabilizer link is bent. Bumper is mutilated as is the left lower bed from the bumper crushing into it.

Contact My insurance as it is unlikely he has valid insurance and they can chase down the verification from The General. Go through the likely scenario assuming he is uninsured. I will be out of pocket about $800-1000 between deductible, rental prorate, etc. I need to drive a mangled truck until it is all sorted out. I will likely suffer a $1700-2500 diminished value for my truck now having a wreck show up when I try to sell or trade that I have no path to recover. So, I am out $2000-3500. The kid who chooses to drive with no insurance, not out a cent. Police said it is unlikely they will chase him down if uninsured as it is low on their priorities. He will literally have zero financial consequence from the event.

People suck, rant over.

 

[highslice]

So I was sitting at a train crossing, 3 or 4 minutes go by. I am in park, foot on the brake so my lights are lit, broad daylight. Reading something on my phone to pass time as it would be another 5 minutes or so. POW - truck jumps forward a foot.

Gather my senses and realize there is a car under the rear of my truck. Mind you, there is 1600’ of straight level road behind me. In a bit of a daze, I get out and the car backs out from under my truck. Kid gets out, 20 ish. Polite and apologizes and says “sorry man, brakes are bad in my car.”. Car is truly a $50 car.

I make sure he and passenger are ok, verify I kinda feel ok, and start asking for license, registration and insurance. “Hmmm, not sure I have any of that with me” is said. So I dial 911 and ask for an officer in case he can’t identify himself. While waiting, he finally finds his wallet and produces a valid drivers license. Can’t produce registration, but gets me a screen shot from The General insurance. Ask if it is current and he states “I don’t know, might be”.

I call the police and they state there is nothing else they can do because they can’t check real time if insurance is current, so I waive them off. We all leave the scene. My truck is new and expensive, and likely has $7000 or more damage. Is driveable, but the tailgate doesn’t work, the exhaust needed tied up, the hitch is damaged and a stabilizer link is bent. Bumper is mutilated as is the left lower bed from the bumper crushing into it.

Contact My insurance as it is unlikely he has valid insurance and they can chase down the verification from The General. Go through the likely scenario assuming he is uninsured. I will be out of pocket about $800-1000 between deductible, rental prorate, etc. I need to drive a mangled truck until it is all sorted out. I will likely suffer a $1700-2500 diminished value for my truck now having a wreck show up when I try to sell or trade that I have no path to recover. So, I am out $2000-3500. The kid who chooses to drive with no insurance, not out a cent. Police said it is unlikely they will chase him down if uninsured as it is low on their priorities. He will literally have zero financial consequence from the event.

People suck, rant over.

Something like this happened to my son. Sitting at a light and wham, gets hit from behind and pushed into the car in front of him. The driver that caused it all took off. Fortunately, my son and the other guy got the plate # and called 911. The dispatcher radioed out a BOLO and he was caught withing 5 minutes. The cops gave my son the driver's insurance info and it was....The General. They refused to pay because the driver (illegal immigrant) was driving his boss' car and didn't have a license. My insurance paid and we subrogated our rights. They said there was very little chance of collecting. Said The General is insurance in name only and they NEVER pay out on claims. YMMV. At the end of the day it was a huge PITA, but we were only out $300.

 

[Pirate Lady]

I learned this from my wife's wreck last July. You ALWAYS call 911, people injured, Require Officer assistance and EMS. Even if not hurt, act like it. anybody questions it, tell them you being cautious. Then cops are required to fill out reports, get witnesses, Check credentials of others involved. So now we going thru litigations, the btch ran red light has appeared in court, found guilty. We are recovering all costs, and will win upcoming lawsuit because we have official cop documentation of the wreck. Court lawsuit coming this summer. Attorney says we looking at $30K in pain and suffering, after his cut.
And before anyone says Oh you are one of them. You have 2 choices, get screwed or make the bastards pay. Your choice.

 

[OllieC]

So I was sitting at a train crossing, 3 or 4 minutes go by. I am in park, foot on the brake so my lights are lit, broad daylight. Reading something on my phone to pass time as it would be another 5 minutes or so. POW - truck jumps forward a foot.

Gather my senses and realize there is a car under the rear of my truck. Mind you, there is 1600’ of straight level road behind me. In a bit of a daze, I get out and the car backs out from under my truck. Kid gets out, 20 ish. Polite and apologizes and says “sorry man, brakes are bad in my car.”. Car is truly a $50 car.

I make sure he and passenger are ok, verify I kinda feel ok, and start asking for license, registration and insurance. “Hmmm, not sure I have any of that with me” is said. So I dial 911 and ask for an officer in case he can’t identify himself. While waiting, he finally finds his wallet and produces a valid drivers license. Can’t produce registration, but gets me a screen shot from The General insurance. Ask if it is current and he states “I don’t know, might be”.

I call the police and they state there is nothing else they can do because they can’t check real time if insurance is current, so I waive them off. We all leave the scene. My truck is new and expensive, and likely has $7000 or more damage. Is driveable, but the tailgate doesn’t work, the exhaust needed tied up, the hitch is damaged and a stabilizer link is bent. Bumper is mutilated as is the left lower bed from the bumper crushing into it.

Contact My insurance as it is unlikely he has valid insurance and they can chase down the verification from The General. Go through the likely scenario assuming he is uninsured. I will be out of pocket about $800-1000 between deductible, rental prorate, etc. I need to drive a mangled truck until it is all sorted out. I will likely suffer a $1700-2500 diminished value for my truck now having a wreck show up when I try to sell or trade that I have no path to recover. So, I am out $2000-3500. The kid who chooses to drive with no insurance, not out a cent. Police said it is unlikely they will chase him down if uninsured as it is low on their priorities. He will literally have zero financial consequence from the event.

People suck, rant over.

That sux! Not sure what else to say. We're all seeing more and more of this type of situation. 3 out of the 4 of us at our company has had a similar car incidents happen over the years. One lady had a bottle of liquor, open, when she smacked into my coworkers new vehicle, in a parking lot. Cops didn't show up, and she left - but this was in Minneapolis, and I think there's a total of 5 officers now.

Hopefully your truck will be mended as good as it was when purchased.

 

[highslice]

That sux! Not sure what else to say. We're all seeing more and more of this type of situation. 3 out of the 4 of us at our company has had a similar car incidents happen over the years. One lady had a bottle of liquor, open, when she smacked into my coworkers new vehicle, in a parking lot. Cops didn't show up, and she left - but this was in Minneapolis, and I think there's a total of 5 officers now.

Hopefully your truck will be mended as good as it was when purchased.

I think the Minneapolis cops have been reduced to cleaning up after murders. The trained counselors handle the real criminals.

 

[330DA]

Take the kid to small claims court. I saw a case one time where the plaintiff actually added diminished value of his damaged car to the body shop charges. He won the diminished value added on.

 

[Golfman25]

Not sure why you didn't have the cops come, fill out a report, and probably give the kid a ticket for no insurance, let alone hitting you. At least he has to go to court for a day. Plus, at least around my parts you need to fill out a police report if damage is over a certain amount.

 

[OllieC]

Not sure why you didn't have the cops come, fill out a report, and probably give the kid a ticket for no insurance, let alone hitting you. At least he has to go to court for a day. Plus, at least around my parts you need to fill out a police report if damage is over a certain amount.

As he mentioned, depending on the accident and where it’s located, they may not show up. The lady that smacked into my buddies new car didn’t even have a license - or produce one. Of course she was being belligerent. IIRC , they asked if anyone was injured and if the car was blocking traffic. That was it……

 

[Golfman25]

As he mentioned, depending on the accident and where it’s located, they may not show up. The lady that smacked into my buddies new car didn’t even have a license - or produce one. Of course she was being belligerent. IIRC , they asked if anyone was injured and if the car was blocking traffic. That was it……

Where you driving that they wouldn’t show up? It’s about all they have to do in my town.

 

[Gofirstclass]

Here's a tip from my LEO days.../.

If you are involved in a serious accident where someone dies or is taken to a hospital in very serious condition, insist on being given a breathalyzer test. Do this even if you are stone sober.

The reason for this is that when this goes to court (it will, trust me) the question of your sobriety will come up.

If you have taken a BA test you can prove your sobriety at the time of the accident.

 

[Blueone]

So I was sitting at a train crossing, 3 or 4 minutes go by. I am in park, foot on the brake so my lights are lit, broad daylight. Reading something on my phone to pass time as it would be another 5 minutes or so. POW - truck jumps forward a foot.

Gather my senses and realize there is a car under the rear of my truck. Mind you, there is 1600’ of straight level road behind me. In a bit of a daze, I get out and the car backs out from under my truck. Kid gets out, 20 ish. Polite and apologizes and says “sorry man, brakes are bad in my car.”. Car is truly a $50 car.

I make sure he and passenger are ok, verify I kinda feel ok, and start asking for license, registration and insurance. “Hmmm, not sure I have any of that with me” is said. So I dial 911 and ask for an officer in case he can’t identify himself. While waiting, he finally finds his wallet and produces a valid drivers license. Can’t produce registration, but gets me a screen shot from The General insurance. Ask if it is current and he states “I don’t know, might be”.

I call the police and they state there is nothing else they can do because they can’t check real time if insurance is current, so I waive them off. We all leave the scene. My truck is new and expensive, and likely has $7000 or more damage. Is driveable, but the tailgate doesn’t work, the exhaust needed tied up, the hitch is damaged and a stabilizer link is bent. Bumper is mutilated as is the left lower bed from the bumper crushing into it.

Contact My insurance as it is unlikely he has valid insurance and they can chase down the verification from The General. Go through the likely scenario assuming he is uninsured. I will be out of pocket about $800-1000 between deductible, rental prorate, etc. I need to drive a mangled truck until it is all sorted out. I will likely suffer a $1700-2500 diminished value for my truck now having a wreck show up when I try to sell or trade that I have no path to recover. So, I am out $2000-3500. The kid who chooses to drive with no insurance, not out a cent. Police said it is unlikely they will chase him down if uninsured as it is low on their priorities. He will literally have zero financial consequence from the event.

People suck, rant over.

And not a single pic… I’m done reading all these word posts without pics

 

[paulswagelock]

And not a single pic… I’m done reading all these word posts without pics

A crushed in bumper and undercarriage isn’t much of a picture to post. $7000 damage on a new truck isn’t much of a picture.

 

[OllieC]

Where you driving that they wouldn’t show up? It’s about all they have to do in my town.

It was in a “meh” area at the time. 2020’ish after Covid and George Floyd. He wanted to stop at a crappy convenience store for something. IIRC the police told him to take down her information. Best we got was a license plate. Who knows if her info was real. His insurance ended up taking care of it. Car was drivable and was cosmetic - I was more pissed for him.

 

[Yendor]

And before anyone says Oh you are one of them. You have 2 choices, get screwed or make the bastards pay. Your choice.

THIS ^^^
I am not one to try and create Liability for somebody else, BUT . . .
I am a also of the opinion that if a man minding his own business gets victimized, it's time to get out the BIG screws!

 

[paulswagelock]

Take the kid to small claims court. I saw a case one time where the plaintiff actually added diminished value of his damaged car to the body shop charges. He won the diminished value added on.

If I thought there was any chance of collecting anything I would. As it stands, I would invest some more money and time pursuing it, would easily win an award, but I bet he has no means to pay. So in the end, I am just out even more.

 

[BillK2632]

I've been hit twice by uninsured motorist. Both cases I just had to suck it up and go through my own insurance. Police did nothing that I could see. One had no license, no registration, no insurance and no speak english. He got a ticket, but I am sure he didn't pay it and just kept drive the old uninsured unlicensed beater car. I tried to push it with the officer, even called her about it a couple of times. She finally told me to just drop it - I told her if that had been me I probably would have been arrested (english speaking tax paying property owning US Citizen) -- she did not disagree.

 

[Stee6043]

And before anyone says Oh you are one of them. You have 2 choices, get screwed or make the bastards pay. Your choice.

I guess we all value our personal time differently. If nobody is injured, it's a not-at-fault accident that won't reflect badly on my insurance claim history. How much time am I willing to invest in hopes of getting my $250 deductible back? Not much....

 

[Escapade]

There was a day where my parents said, I could not get a car unless I could afford the insurance. Auto Insurance In Wisconsin is only required if your a law abiding citizen. Same with a drivers license. We are starting to see our XKZLODR aliens in local court. Man do they get nailed. $ 60.00 for not having insurance or a drivers license. Then they really squeeze them and say they have six months to pay. That comes to 0.33 cents a day. Now who is the smarter? I'm considering trading up to a Rusty ram truck with a snow plow.

 

[paulswagelock]

I guess we all value our personal time differently. If nobody is injured, it's a not-at-fault accident that won't reflect badly on my insurance claim history. How much time am I willing to invest in hopes of getting my $250 deductible back? Not much....

I hear you. But this will be $2500 out of pocket between deductibles, rentals, diminished value of my truck. I have no recourse at all.

I called the police and asked what could be done, he was driving illegally. They said since there was no one injured, cars were drivable, there is absolutely nothing they will do about it. The system is broke when the law abiding person is out thousands but the law breaking person has zero consequences.

 

[Golfman25]

I hear you. But this will be $2500 out of pocket between deductibles, rentals, diminished value of my truck. I have no recourse at all.

I called the police and asked what could be done, he was driving illegally. They said since there was no one injured, cars were drivable, there is absolutely nothing they will do about it. The system is broke when the law abiding person is out thousands but the law breaking person has zero consequences.

While I hear you, that's not 100% true. You can sue him in small claims. Whether it's worth your time is another question.