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Anyone know the ins and outs of car insurance claims?

Horseplay

Horseplay

I Don't Care. Do you?
Donator
My son got rear-ended and knocked into the car in front of him. He had just come to an abrupt stop due to some traffic issue further up the road which had caused traffic to "lock 'em up". Both he and the car in front of him were stopped when the vehicle behind my son rammed him at speed.

Does my son have liability for the damage to the car into which his was forced? The cop on scene ticketed the driver of the car behind my son and said he was responsible for the damages to all the vehicles. True?

I do not need my insurance finding out about this if it can be avoided. Last thing I need is something else on their radar concerning my teenage driver.
 
In my experience, the car that hit your son should be responsible.

I have seen cases where that person fought to say the car in front of your son would not have been damaged if your son had left adequate room.....hard to win unless there are odd circumstances.

I find it hard to see how you can keep him out of an insurance claim. The other company may have to report it to your company also.
 
How many impacts did the driver of the car in front of your son feel?

If he felt one, your son is in the clear. That confirms your son was hit from behind and pushed forward into the car ahead of him. If the driver of the car in front of your son said he felt two impacts from the rear, then your son hit him first, and the second impact occurred when the car behind your son pushed him back into the car.
 
Thanks Pete.

I just called the driver of the vehicle my son struck and gave her the claim number I initiated with the ticketed drivers insurance company. She confirmed my son's explanation of the accident and verified they had both stopped before that third car hit him. I wanted to get ahead of this and make sure she too went to the other guys insurance company first. If all witnesses and involved drivers have the same story (which so far is the case) I am hoping for the best.
 
"DEL65" said:
How many impacts did the driver of the car in front of your son feel?

If he felt one, your son is in the clear. That confirms your son was hit from behind and pushed forward into the car ahead of him. If the driver of the car in front of your son said he felt two impacts from the rear, then your son hit him first, and the second impact occurred when the car behind your son pushed him back into the car.
Click to expand...
She very clearly stated that she saw my son stop and then get hit into her.
 
This happened to a co-worker a few years back, he was the last car in a back-up from a wreck ahead, car rammed him from behind him and drove him into the car in front, the guy behind got a ticket for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, co-worker got a ticket for following too close, he argued he was far enough back before he was driven into the guy in front, cop told him evidently he wasn't or they would not have hit---I do not know how the insurance companies handled it---I would have been furious with that ticket! The cop told him he was responsible for maintaining adequate distance to avoid a rear end collision--guess he should have stopped a quarter mile behind!
 
While fresh on his mind I'd get him to write up the events in great detail and file it (pictures are great). Times, location, vehicles, "exactly" what was said and who said it, weather conditions, conditions of the vehicles like if the tires were inflated, canaged areas, airbag deployment, any skid marks, property damage other than the vehicles and anything that he can think of no matter how little important it may seem. You don't want to be 6 months down the road and have something come up. Don't depend on the officers report to contain all the info. Have him date and sign it.
 
Brings back an odd memory. Many years ago my ex-wife was #2 in a 6 car pile up along 17 in the Santa Cruz mountains. The car in front of her stopped; she stopped; car # 3 hit her pushing her into car #1; car #4 hit #3 that pushed #3 into our car; #5 did the same and #6 did the same. I went for the insurance from #3 and they admitted liability and paid to have our car fixed. A year later a process server comes to the door with a summons and civil complaint filed on behalf of the driver of #3 against drivers 2 through 6. Apparently, driver #3 hired an attorney who couldn't read, let alone think. I called him up and asked him to read the accident report to confirm that his client hit MY car which was stopped at the point of impact. I suggested he dismiss the complaint and he balked. I suggested that if continues to be unreasonable, I will pursue him for frivolous litigation. I tendered the complaint to my then insurance carrier and they sent their hired guns out to dispose of the suit. Apparently the insurance defense attorney hired by my carrier had previous experience with th attorney for driver #3 and did not have a flattering opinion of his abilities.
 
Based on what you posted, it sounds like the laws in your state regarding this type of accident are the same as here in SC. With that said, the type of accident you described is commonly referred to here as a "domino" or "chain reaction" type of accident. As such the driver which created the initial collision event is responsible. In other words Tail End Charlie is at fault and responsible for all damages.

If your son had hit the car in front of him and THEN gotten rear ended, it would actually be two separate accidents. Your son being at fault in the first and victim in the second (just handled one EXACTLY like that this past week!). There would be two separate reports and two different case numbers assigned.

Hope that helps.
 
I was hit by a car that was rear ended behind me in Illinois. The driver of the car that failed to stop was ticketed and her insurance paid to fix all the cars involved.
 
Many years ago, my girlfriend at the time was rear ended, which pushed her into the car in front of her. She was given a ticket for hitting that car.
 
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