My poor baby, someone rear ended me, anyone know what to expect in cost and time?

[Frank99]

My son got rear ended and his car (my old one) totaled. My insurance company (AAA) handled it all-within a week we had a check for an amount greater than the car was worth IMHO, and they dealt with the other driver’s insurance.
I had a not at fault accident in my 3 (first one in 30 years), and they were just as pleasant to work with. The other driver had a fly-by-night insurance company which would have been a nightmare to work with.
My insurance company would not pursue a diminished value claim, however. I needed to do that on my own.
Your insurance company has an incentive to keep you happy; the other drivers insurance doesn’t.

 

[zecar]

Saying that, for me, I wouldnt want to deal with all the back and forth that dealing with "the other insurance" would likely entail,

For reasons forgotten I didn't carry a rental car add-on to my insurance. What I learned when I was hit by a car running a stop sign is that the willingness to pay for rental varies widely by insurer. I was hit by a Farmers insured driver. They paid for my rental without hassle. But my agent said that other firms won't pay until you bring a lot of pressure against the at fault driver.

One thing to remember is that the tort belongs to the at-fault driver, not his insurance company. You are not obligated to accept limitations in reimbursements because of the insurance he holds.

While on this topic I will add that you are financially crazy if you own a Tesla and don't max out your liability coverage. Max liability protection with large deductables are how smart affluent people do insurance.

 

[Phlier]

All of these stories about insurance companies raising rates, etc etc have made me realize how lucky I am to have USAA insurance. I’ve been with them for 38 years now, on home, auto, and umbrella policies.

I‘m sure they aren’t perfect, but they have always treated my Father, Uncle, Brother, myself and Sister very well over the years. None of us have a single complaint.

If you aren’t happy with your current insurance, and you are eligible for coverage with them, you should at least look into it.

And even if you don’t qualify with them, shop around for a better company if you’re not happy. It’s a highly competitive business... no reason to stick with a company you aren‘t happy with.

No, I’m not a USAA rep or employee, just a very happy customer.

 

[cpostier]

I have taken all your suggenstions, thank you very much! I was able to talk to my own insurance and get the car in the shop, looks like it will prob take a month in there, depending on whether tesla is shipping out parts right now, hopefully everything is in stock. I'll post estimates as well, my car only has 9000 miles and this thing will never be the same I know so thanks for telling about discussing diminished value after its all said and done.. What an effing hassle it is to be hit! LOL, never been in an accident before, and I drive A LOT! I'm damn near 40yrs old so I appreciate everyones help here

 

[cpostier]

Texas plates means there's a 90% chance he was hit by a pickup truck. Probably had loops on the bumper for hooking up heavy duty tough guy stuff, but probably never does any more work with that truck than driving to the mall.

Absolutely right, those tow hooks just went RIGHT through the rear bumper aluminium bar.

 

[FlyF4]

He hit me

but that doesn't mean you have to deal with his company. File with your company to go after them,

 

[Silicon Desert]

I had an actual Liberty Mutual agent tell me that when I had my neighbor’s trampoline crash on my Model S during a windy day. Under his advice, to avoid the risk of having my premiums increase come renewal, we dealt directly with my neighbor’s home owners insurance.

hmmmm, makes no sense that your insurance would increase because of a neighbor's problem. Your agent should go after them to remedy the problem. I had a similar issue with a neighbor's tree falling on my property and damaging problems. My agent handled it with them. Didn't increase my insurance.

 

[STLUCIE]

Be sure to note whether any unibody panels (such as the rear body panel) are replaced. If so, you've got a structurally-repaired car that will lose almost half of it's pre-accident value. If not, the diminished value won't be more than 10%-15% of the FMV.

 

[DaveG_NJ]

All of these stories about insurance companies raising rates, etc etc have made me realize how lucky I am to have USAA insurance.

Same here. My wife and I are both Navy retired and have had USAA all our adult lives (at least the last 40). Top notch. Never had a complaint and we had four teenage drivers, 2 cars totaled and they never raised rates. Never had to deal with another driver's insurance company. USAA takes care of their customers.

 

[dmurphy]

My point was that insurance companies base their rates on your "personality profile" which doesn't just include things like citations, neighborhood and gender, but also how much loyalty they expect from you and how much hassle you create for them. If you call to ask about a rental car your value score will decrease in their algorithm because you become a burden while your loyalty score will increase because they did you a favor "for free" so the algorithm will automatically crank up that "frog boiling" heat to milk as much money from you as possible before you jump out.

I realize I’m a little late to this thread, but that’s a load of bunk.

Case in point: had a deer try to mate with our vehicle; was a $21,000 repair plus $1500 in rental fees, another G note in towing, etc. (needed 4 separate tows - long story!) Since there is no other party or property, it’s a comprehensive claim which State Farm had to pay all on their own. No other party to subrogate.

My premium at next renewal went DOWN by $100. Even though I was a PITA customer who needed to be towed 4 times, had several rental approvals, two sets of estimates, two supplementals and a 4 month ordeal.