Car Damages Caused By An Uninsured Motorist

[frydaze]

I had an uninsured motorist back into my car the other night and caused damages of about $900. Happened in Iowa.

What recourse does someone have when hit by someone with no insurance? To this point I am assuming very little or nothing? The police office I called to the scene didn't even charge him with being uninsured-- which I thought in Iowa was against the law?

Appreciate any suggestions.

 

[Thunderlips71]

Hire a hit man and get that selfish piece of sh#t off the streets. Those people are scum.

 

[dgordo]

Bang his wife and then steal the money from her.

 

[lucas80]

Eat the money unless you are a masochist for frustration and wasting your own time.
Edit: I'm shocked a cop actually showed up for something that didn't involve an injury, wasn't impeding traffic, perhaps on private property, and was under $1000.

 

[MWardT]

Small claims and then execute on the judgment. Good luck.

 

[runkpanole]

Slash his tires, then complain to the police officer’s supervisor for him not citing him.

 

[TJ8869]

Look, I already told you, my friend Jimmy can fix it for $400 and make it look good as new. You didn’t need to involve the police.

 

[Randy Marsh]

File a claim with your insurance. You likely have no deductible for uninsured motorist coverage.

 

[gohawks50]

Sounds like a case for The Peoples Court!

 

[joelbc1]

Sounds like a case for The Peoples Court!

If you catch a break, you make get a member of the Federalist Society as your judge.....imagine, a future SC Justice or at minimum, a future US Federal Court justice "practicing" law, deciding your case!

 

[onlyTheObvious]

Small claims and then execute on the judgment. Good luck.

The judge might make them you butler.

 

[Bank of Hawk]

File a claim with your insurance. You likely have no deductible for uninsured motorist coverage.

Uninsured motorist coverage applies only to bodily injuries, in Iowa.

You could file a claim on your own insurance but it would be subject to your collision deductible and those can cause your rates to go up.

Small claims is the best solution if you want that other part to be held responsible.

Personally, I would repair my car and get on with it. Chalk it up to bad luck.

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[onlyTheObvious]

Small claims court? If they don’t have insurance there is a good chance they don’t have money.

wasting money for a judgement you will never collect on would be my luck.

 

[seminole97]

I had an uninsured motorist back into my car the other night and caused damages of about $900. Happened in Iowa.

What recourse does someone have when hit by someone with no insurance? To this point I am assuming very little or nothing? The police office I called to the scene didn't even charge him with being uninsured-- which I thought in Iowa was against the law?

Appreciate any suggestions.

 

[Legend12]

Uninsured motorist coverage applies only to bodily injuries.

Incorrect.

 

[Bank of Hawk]

Incorrect.

Pretty much all of this is direct or indirectly related to medical issues resulting from a crash: uninsured motorist coverage:

Medical bills., Lost wages if you can’t work because of the car accident. Pain and suffering compensation. Funeral expenses. In some states, car damage (not Iowa). EDIT: You may be referring to UMPD and UMBI … OP said he was in Iowa and UMPD is not available for purchase in Iowa.

It would not apply in this situation, as the OP said he was in Iowa. I know you are like a traveling insurance person, so feel free to nitpick and split hairs like you do, haha.

 

[TJ8869]

Pretty much all of this is direct or indirectly related to medical issues resulting from a crash: uninsured motorist coverage:

Medical bills., Lost wages if you can’t work because of the car accident. Pain and suffering compensation. Funeral expenses. In some states, car damage (not Iowa).

It would not apply in this situation. I know you are like a traveling insurance person, so feel free to nitpick and split hairs like you do, haha.

UMBI covers bodily injury caused by an uninsured motorist. UMPD covers property damage caused by an uninsured motorist.

If OP has UMPD then he is covered in this situation.

 

[Bank of Hawk]

UMBI covers bodily injury caused by an uninsured motorist. UMPD covers property damage caused by an uninsured motorist.

If OP has UMPD then he is covered in this situation.

I assumed the OP has Iowa car insurance. Because Iowa drivers do not even have the option to purchase UMPD coverage. It is available in some states of course.

Best link I could find:

Uninsured Motorist Coverage - Absolute Insurance Agency

Why do I need Uninsured Motorist coverage on my auto insurane? Why am I paying for the other person? This question, or a variation of this question, is something that we hear frequently from our insureds. Do I need uninsured motorist coverage? Why am I paying for the other person?

www.insaia.com

Uninsured Motorist Coverage: This coverage may cover damage costs if you are involved in a covered accident with a driver who does not have insurance, or from a hit-and-run driver.

Sometimes, Uninsured Motorist coverage is separated into two different coverages:
Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD) may cover damage to your property, including the damage done to your car that you are legally entitled to recover. (This is a coverage that is not available in Iowa, but is available in some of the other states that we work in. This is an optional coverage for liability only vehicles.)

Uninsured motorist bodily injury (UMBI) will pay for injury-related medical expenses to you or anyone in your vehicle.

 

[TJ8869]

I assumed the OP has Iowa car insurance. Because Iowa drivers do not even have the option to purchase UMPD coverage. It is available in some states of course.

Best link I could find:

Uninsured Motorist Coverage - Absolute Insurance Agency

Why do I need Uninsured Motorist coverage on my auto insurane? Why am I paying for the other person? This question, or a variation of this question, is something that we hear frequently from our insureds. Do I need uninsured motorist coverage? Why am I paying for the other person?

www.insaia.com

Uninsured Motorist Coverage: This coverage may cover damage costs if you are involved in a covered accident with a driver who does not have insurance, or from a hit-and-run driver.

Sometimes, Uninsured Motorist coverage is separated into two different coverages:
Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD) may cover damage to your property, including the damage done to your car that you are legally entitled to recover. (This is a coverage that is not available in Iowa, but is available in some of the other states that we work in. This is an optional coverage for liability only vehicles.)

Uninsured motorist bodily injury (UMBI) will pay for injury-related medical expenses to you or anyone in your vehicle.

I stand corrected. I thought UMPD was available in Iowa.

It looks like Frydaze has himself a new butler.

 

[EasyHawk]

We had this happen a few years ago. Our son was home visiting and parked his car on the street. Sunday morning we heard a horrific crash, almost like an explosion. I went outside as did neighbors, and his car was pushed clear in front of the driveway and the back end/trunk was folded up. A woman in a beater van was parked right behind it. I went up to the van and the woman said, "I'm sorry, I was on my stupid cell phone." I asked if she was hurt and she said yes, I need an ambulance. So I called the police and requested an ambulance. The officer got there and the lady told him the same thing, "I was on my stupid cell phone." She then said to me, "I'm going to have to make payments to you, I can't pay much now, I don't have a job" and the officer asked her why she was talking to me as she has no insurance, so it has nothing to do with her, it would be between my insurance company and her. He also told me he was sure the car was totaled (and it was). The ambulance got there and she refused to go. Said she was driving herself to the ER (her van was unbelievably still driveable). They called me later and told me what they charged her with, reckless driving and no insurance and I think something else. They said they knew she was speeding but there were no skid marks or anything as she was going full speed when she hit the car. I marked that I did want restitution but I believe I got a single check for $1 and some odd cents. it was a bad situation, the car was the best used car I have ever purchased, plus then having to go out and quickly find a new car.

 

[onlyTheObvious]

If you win in small claims court it’s up to you to track down where they work and contact sherif to garnish wages.

good luck sucking money out of an unemployed loser. Let insurance handle it and get on with life. Some piece of shit hit my daughter’s car in a parking lot, left a note about being willing to pay. Once he got the estimate he thought we were overcharging and refused. Some Iowa courts online surfing and found out he had a history of bouncing checks, divorce, OWI, and his employer was owned by an attorney that had is law license suspended for a while. At that point I said life I too short to deal with pieces of shit.

 

[IsaacHarrison]

Happened to us here in PHX. Sitting at a stop light for about 10 seconds and a guy rear ends us. We all pull off and he doesnt speak any English and is visiting from across the border. Police would take about 3 hours and it was 110 degrees. Wasnt major damage. We took a pic of his Mexican ID card and a pic of the plate of the vehicle. Was $1100 to fix our bumper. We paid $500. The insurance tried to get our money and theirs but were unsuccessful. In this case there was literally nothing we could do. But it makes you think, what if this guy did major damage or gave us life threatening injuries. He could just go back across the border and have no repercussions.

 

[EagleHawk]

$900? Slap some duct tape on it and call it good. Unless you are super vain about how your car looks, $900 isn't even worth the trip to the repair shop to get an estimate.

 

[TJ8869]

The police office I called to the scene didn't even charge him with being uninsured-- which I thought in Iowa was against the law?

This is the part that drives me absolutely insane. I’ve been driving for roughly 38 years and I’ve carried liability insurance on every vehicle I’ve ever owned every single day since I started driving.

I’ve been hit by uninsured drivers roughly 5 times in incidents that were entirely their fault. Fortunately my insurance always covered the damage, but it shouldn’t have to. There’s no accountability. To my knowledge none of those drivers were ever fined for driving without insurance.

Every year when I renew my license plates I have to sign a piece of paper verifying that I
have insurance, but I don’t have to provide any proof that I do. I don’t have to show them an insurance card or anything, just sign the paper. Anyone can just sign a piece of paper that doesn’t mean anything.

And to make matters even worse, Ohio apparently has/had a policy where they mail letters to randomly selected vehicle owners, requiring documentation that the vehicle is insured. If you don’t respond within three weeks they suspend your license.

The main problem with that policy is that the envelope looks more or less like every other piece of junk mail that I get on a daily basis. When I received one a few years ago, I just happened to read it, but I could just as easily have thrown it unread into the trash along with all my other junk mail and then had my license suspended.

Instead of turning responsible, law-abiding citizens into criminals simply because they didn’t notice a piece of mail they weren’t even expecting, Ohio should start requiring every vehicle owner to show a valid insurance card every time they renew their license plates.

 

[Fijimn]

This is the part that drives me absolutely insane. I’ve been driving for roughly 38 years and I’ve carried liability insurance on every vehicle I’ve ever owned every single day since I started driving.

I’ve been hit by uninsured drivers roughly 5 times in incidents that were entirely their fault. Fortunately my insurance always covered the damage, but it shouldn’t have to. There’s no accountability. To my knowledge none of those drivers were ever fined for driving without insurance.

Every year when I renew my license plates I have to sign a piece of paper verifying that I
have insurance, but I don’t have to provide any proof that I do. I don’t have to show them an insurance card or anything, just sign the paper. Anyone can just sign a piece of paper that doesn’t mean anything.

And to make matters even worse, Ohio apparently has/had a policy where they mail letters to randomly selected vehicle owners, requiring documentation that the vehicle is insured. If you don’t respond within three weeks they suspend your license.

The main problem with that policy is that the envelope looks more or less like every other piece of junk mail that I get on a daily basis. When I received one a few years ago, I just happened to read it, but I could just as easily have thrown it unread into the trash along with all my other junk mail and then had my license suspended.

Instead of turning responsible, law-abiding citizens into criminals simply because they didn’t notice a piece of mail they weren’t even expecting, Ohio should start requiring every vehicle owner to show a valid insurance card every time they renew their license plates.

You don’t have to show proof of insurance when you get your car inspected?

 

[Carolina Hawk]

I just looked out of curiosity and we pay about 150 a year for uninsured/underinsured for 2 vehicles which covers us for property damage and bodily injury.

 

[TJ8869]

You don’t have to show proof of insurance when you get your car inspected?

Vehicle inspections are no longer required where I live. There might still be some counties in Ohio that require them, but most counties eliminated them about 15 years ago.

And even before then I don’t recall having to show proof of insurance. IIRC I just showed them my vehicle registration and they checked my exhaust emissions, then I gave them $20 and went on my way.

 

[Carolina Hawk]

You don’t have to show proof of insurance when you get your car inspected?

In Texas you do. But of course those rules are only for people who are actually following the rules/laws. Thats why we have to pay uninsured morotist insurance.

 

[On Iowa]

You don’t have to show proof of insurance when you get your car inspected?

What is this inspection thing you talk about? We ain't got no inspections...

 

[EasyHawk]

You don’t have to show proof of insurance when you get your car inspected?

No inspections required in Iowa. I have some friends in Nebraska where inspections are required, but they say it is known that you simply slip the guy doing the inspection some cash and they approve everything.

 

[JupiterHawk]

Wouldn't you be better off if it was a hit-and-run?

 

[Bank of Hawk]

I just looked out of curiosity and we pay about 150 a year for uninsured/underinsured for 2 vehicles which covers us for property damage and bodily injury.

That seems high but Iowa has some of the lowest rates in the country and also doesn’t have the PD portion of the uninsured / underinsured coverage.

Back to the UMBI (and underinsured) portion: since things like pain and suffering, lost wages, etc are included… someone may have insurance but low limits and if a person suffers a permanent injury… damages could be 6 or 7 figures. So when the other guys limits run out, you have a safety net for the worst case scenario. Most lawyers dig deep into the uninsured underinsured coverage in those situations.