Hey guys

I was sitting at a red light and an old lady in a corolla slammed into the rear of my car. Damage doesn't look too bad from the outside, but she went underneath my car and hit the rear wheel well. Now the car makes a loud knocking sound when I'm moving from a stop in 1st gear, especially if I hit he gas hard in 1st gear. Also, the car makes a very loud sound when going over potholes and bad roads. All this was never there before, I'm positive. I took it to Marcos Auto Body and they quoted me $1600 for new, OEM parts and this was without repairing the spare wheel well. The adjuster quoted me $1300 including 8 hrs labor to fix the spare wheel well, and also this quote was for a used rear bumper. The body shop I took it to said that they can try to get a new bumper, but no guarantees. Also, I had an M3 rear bumper on my 325i, but the body shop manager said that it would be hard to get an m3 replacement.

I need some help.

The insurance company already cut me a check for the rental (7 days at $30 per day) and $1300 for damages. Here are my questions and hopefully you guys can help me:

1. How do I make sure that the insurance company pays for a m3 rear bumper because that is the part that is ON the car, i'm not trying to uprade or anything

2. If the repair shop tears apart the car and finds more damage, how do I go about getting the insurance to cover the extra damage previously uknown. They have already issued a check and the check says "non-negotiable"

3. What if the repairs take longer than 7 days and I need more money to cover my rental?

4. If the weird suspension sounds still happen even after everything is fixed, what are my options on getting it fixed without having to pay anything out of my pocket?

I really wish I contacted a lawyer the day after my accident because I had a sore, stiff neck and headaches for an entire week and I really feel like I'm getting screwed by the other side's insurance (Farmer's). I only have liability so my insurance company (AAA) won't help. Any advice is appreciated.

1. How do I make sure that the insurance company pays for a m3 rear bumper because that is the part that is ON the car, i'm not trying to uprade or anything
The simple fact is that is how the car was. The fact of the matter is the insurance company of the party at fault must pay for whatever replacement parts are needed to bring it back to the condition it was in before the accdient, be it aftermarket replacements or not.
2. If the repair shop tears apart the car and finds more damage, how do I go about getting the insurance to cover the extra damage previously uknown. They have already issued a check and the check says "non-negotiable"
I hope nothing has been signed yet. Before cashing the check, call them and tell them you want to be sure any additional work that may be required will be covered. Do not agree to anything before you know you are going to be taken care of.
3. What if the repairs take longer than 7 days and I need more money to cover my rental?
Again, be sure they understand that they must pay for any additional down time. When one of my vehicles was totalled the insurance company was more than willing to give me what I wanted due to loss of use.
4. If the weird suspension sounds still happen even after everything is fixed, what are my options on getting it fixed without having to pay anything out of my pocket?
Same as above, have the body shop help deal with insurance.
I really wish I contacted a lawyer the day after my accident because I had a sore, stiff neck and headaches for an entire week and I really feel like I'm getting screwed by the other side's insurance (Farmer's). I only have liability so my insurance company (AAA) won't help. Any advice is appreciated.
Bring up your concernes before agreeing to anything. Tell them you want to see a doctor. Do not let yourself get screwed. Beleive it or not, the insurance company does not want you to be pissed off because they do not have much ground when their party if at fault. I was able to get $2700 for a $1500 car and 7 days of loss of use along with a check within 4 days. Took a bit of calling and adjusting prices but needless to say, I was happy with the end result.

First thing you need to do is RELAX.

If the other party already accepted liability and the adjuster cut you a check accordingly, they have already placed the responsibility of fixing your car into their hands.

If any other money is going to be needed from the lady's insurance company, it will be supplemented by the insurance company, and the bodyshop will do all the paperwork without you even having to worry about it.

Last time I had my car in for repairs I had to get two supplements, and possibly even a 3rd coming up here soon. It's not a big deal

Also, they HAVE to give you your car back in equal or better condition than it was in before. If you had an m3 bumper on there, expect to have an m3 bumper on there. If I were you I would take several pics.

Lastly, do NOT call a lawyer and have your lawyer talk to them. As soon as you do this, it changes everything. For one, you will no longer legally be allowed to talk to the insurance company without legal counsel present. That alone is reason enough not to do it. Cutting off negotiation privilages makes everything a PITA, and you are going to have to pay a lawyer to sort everything out, and you may not be fully compensated in the end.

If you are not injured permanently, and didn't have any medical bills, just let it go.

First thing you need to do is RELAX.

If the other party already accepted liability and the adjuster cut you a check accordingly, they have already placed the responsibility of fixing your car into their hands.

If any other money is going to be needed from the lady's insurance company, it will be supplemented by the insurance company, and the bodyshop will do all the paperwork without you even having to worry about it.

Last time I had my car in for repairs I had to get two supplements, and possibly even a 3rd coming up here soon. It's not a big deal

Also, they HAVE to give you your car back in equal or better condition than it was in before. If you had an m3 bumper on there, expect to have an m3 bumper on there. If I were you I would take several pics.

Lastly, do NOT call a lawyer and have your lawyer talk to them. As soon as you do this, it changes everything. For one, you will no longer legally be allowed to talk to the insurance company without legal counsel present. That alone is reason enough not to do it. Cutting off negotiation privilages makes everything a PITA, and you are going to have to pay a lawyer to sort everything out, and you may not be fully compensated in the end.

If you are not injured permanently, and didn't have any medical bills, just let it go.
WRONG. If you feel even the SLIGHTEST soreness, CONTACT A LAWYER! This just happened to me on Halloween and NUMEROUS of my friends and family members. They all say the same thing. If you don't feel ANY pain, then don't bother with a lawyer.

The lawyer will only pay you if you win. And since the other party already accepted liability, you have nothing to lose. Only everything to gain. Have the lawyer do everything. They typically get 1/3 of the settlement, you get 1/3 and the chiropractor gets 1/3. I've been told that most people get treatment for about 3 months and roughly $3k ON TOP of the repairs for the car and the rental.

I'm still undergoing chiro visits. I felt pain in my neck immediately after and it persisted for about 4-5 days without any decrease in pain. That's when I spoke to the shop and they called a lawyer for me.

As for the rental, make sure they give you as much as you can get. I ended up with about $120/day. But they cut it in half for some discount so it's about $60/day (i.e., the cars that normally cost $120/day only cost $60/day for me). I got a Kia Amanti at first (when my rate was about $35/day) then I "upgraded" to a Volvo S40 (which I honestly think is a MAJOR downgrade from the Kia).

The shop estimated the damages to be about $2200 or so and it wasn't that bad. I opted to not have my trunklid repaired and painted (you can't even tell there's damage) and had them get me a VIS CF trunklid instead. :D

As for finding more damage, MAKE SURE your shop covers everything. Once the cut is check, I heard, that's it. You only get one chance, I believe.

If the repairs take longer than 7 days, the rental car company will just bill the insurance company. Mine was also supposed to take 7 days. Took close to THREE weeks!

What is the other party's insurance company? That matters.

Good luck!

As for finding more damage, MAKE SURE your shop covers everything. Once the cut is check, I heard, that's it. You only get one chance, I believe.
This is incorrect, insurance company supplements are common practice because there is no way to tell what the exact damages are going to be before doing the work. I have had this done for me a couple times, and the bodyshop takes care of it for you.

WRONG. If you feel even the SLIGHTEST soreness, CONTACT A LAWYER!
I suggested not getting a lawyer becasue it seems as if this persons pain has already gone away, and if he were to try to make a claim based off of pain he didn't say anything about before, it would be a fishy lawsuit. This has happened to a friend of mine, he ran into someone in a parking lot and the person he hit tried to sue him for "injuries" almost a month after the accident occured, and the lawsuit got shot down in a heartbeat due to there not being any evidence, and the person lost all credibility with the accident becasue they were obviously trying to scam my friend. So if this guy is no longer feeling any pain, I would avoid even saying anything about it, or it may come off the wrong way.

Also, I wasn't kidding on things getting much more complicated than they need to be by having a lawyer (well, if no injuries are involved). If he's fine, then big deal. The person who started this thread needs to specify whether or not he is still feeling any type of pain, because if he isn't feeling anything, and has not gone to a doctor while he was feeling pain, then there is no reason to contact a lawyer as long as they give him a rental car and pay for his repairs.

People coming out on top (as in profit) of accidents they are not at fault for makes it crappy for everybody who has to pay insurance rates. How would you feel if your insunce company had to pay out twice as much as they should have to someone YOU hit? Your premium hike might piss you off. Everyone else has to pay for this too.

However, your situation is different. If you are STILL going to a chiro that makes a big difference. You obviously have a more problematic injury as a result of the accident, and hopefully the pain will go away for you...

Oh, and I was just involved in an accident, and just with my own negotiating I was not permanently (financially) affected in any way. Only real thing lost was a trip to the driving range (I was hit on the way), but I got over that real quick.

They let me drive a Pontiac Grand Prix which was a total POS but it got me to and from where I was going. My car isn't fixed 100% yet, but I will be taking it back into the shop to have some lines straighted up. This will get done without any issues.

I'm not even going to ask the bodyshop to give me a rental car because, frankly, I don't need it. I got one initially cause my car was going to be away for 2 weeks (ended up being 3...) and didn't feel the need to put that many miles down on a car borrowed from family.

There is a point to this rambling: I just think that if everyone does there bit to cut down on costs in every aspect of an insurance claim, that maybe someday we could all see some lower rates for ourselves.

I suggested not getting a lawyer becasue it seems as if this persons pain has already gone away, and if he were to try to make a claim based off of pain he didn't say anything about before, it would be a fishy lawsuit. This has happened to a friend of mine, he ran into someone in a parking lot and the person he hit tried to sue him for "injuries" almost a month after the accident occured, and the lawsuit got shot down in a heartbeat due to there not being any evidence, and the person lost all credibility with the accident becasue they were obviously trying to scam my friend. So if this guy is no longer feeling any pain, I would avoid even saying anything about it, or it may come off the wrong way.

Also, I wasn't kidding on things getting much more complicated than they need to be by having a lawyer (well, if no injuries are involved). If he's fine, then big deal. The person who started this thread needs to specify whether or not he is still feeling any type of pain, because if he isn't feeling anything, and has not gone to a doctor while he was feeling pain, then there is no reason to contact a lawyer as long as they give him a rental car and pay for his repairs.

People coming out on top (as in profit) of accidents they are not at fault for makes it crappy for everybody who has to pay insurance rates. How would you feel if your insunce company had to pay out twice as much as they should have to someone YOU hit? Your premium hike might piss you off. Everyone else has to pay for this too.

However, your situation is different. If you are STILL going to a chiro that makes a big difference. You obviously have a more problematic injury as a result of the accident, and hopefully the pain will go away for you...
Of course. I totally agree. UNLESS you feel pain, don't get a lawyer. It's too much of a headache.

BUT if you feel the slightest pain, get one. The same reason applies when you have a minor accident. It MAY look minor but when you actually take the pieces apart, you may discover more damage underneath. My damage looked MINIMAL. I even thought it'd be something like $500-1000. Turns out it was over $2200! Go figure.

This is what happened to me with my neck. After about a week, it was hardly noticeable. But the chiropractor took an x-ray and noticed that there was some internal tissue damage (even though I didn't feel anything). I figured I'd be on treatment for a WEEK at MOST. They told me 3 times A WEEK for THREE MONTHS. AT LEAST. Wow.

And the more I go, the more settlement I get at the end. So yes, if you felt even the slightest pain, I suggest you get a lawyer. The worse case scenario. You lose nothing. Most lawyers don't get paid until you do. You have nothing to lose.

Yea, we were mostly talking about two different things.

I know what it's like to have to go to the chiro 3 times a week. Pinched nerves for me. I don't remember which vertebrae, but it is mid lower back. Not a result of a car accident though, this is a lifetime injury. Someone would be really screwed if they did this to me, lol.

Yea, we were mostly talking about two different things.

I know what it's like to have to go to the chiro 3 times a week. Pinched nerves for me. I don't remember which vertebrae, but it is mid lower back. Not a result of a car accident though, this is a lifetime injury. Someone would be really screwed if they did this to me, lol.

Wow okay thanks for all the help guys. Problem is, the accident happened 12/04 and here we are, 20 days later. My neck pain has gone away thankfully, I really meant to go to the ER to have them take a look but it happened RIGHT at finals time. Now that it's gone, I don't want any more added stress of figuring out medical damages.

I did contact a lawyer initially (on my coworkers recommendation) who pretty much said "if you arent going to the doctors office a lot, i can't win lots of money so its not really worth my time." I figured the neck pain would go away, which it did thank goodness, and so that was that. I did mention neck pain in my initial report to the insurance company, but at this time I do not feel like I need to persue it. I'm young and my body will heal, which it has.

The check has already been cut, but I would like to actually sell the car. Is there a way for me to have another check made out for the damages done mechanically to my car? At this time I just want to go with a japanese car, I'm done messing around with old german engineering. However, I was hoping to be compensated for the mechanical damage, WITHOUT having to take my car in to get it fixed. As it stands, I hold the check for repairs that need to be done to the body only. Will they cut me another check if I take it into a bmw shop and have them diagnose the problem (ie clunking in the rear)?

Basically at this time I just want to get as much money as possible for all the damages, and then sell the car as is and buy a japanese car.

Wow, yeah, that's a long time. I'd still consider going to see a chiro for an initial visit. My accident happened on Halloween and I didn't contact a lawyer until almost a week. My neck pain SEEMS to be gone too but the chiro thinks otherwise. :dunno

Wow, yeah, that's a long time. I'd still consider going to see a chiro for an initial visit. My accident happened on Halloween and I didn't contact a lawyer until almost a week. My neck pain SEEMS to be gone too but the chiro thinks otherwise. :dunno
Yea I would also recomend going to see a chiro just for an initial checkup of the injured area. They will basically take xrays and see if you need any types of treatment done to it. Even if the pain is gone, you could still have something there that isnt right.

However, if it was just muscles going crazy at the time, and they just needed time to heal, then you should be fine.

If you have health insurance, just pay the deductable to see a chiro. If it turns into many more visits in the future, then you should start thinking about having the insurance company cover your medical expenses. If you only have to go once to make sure everything is OK, then just take the cost of the chiro visit yourself if you have health insurance. If you do not have health insurance, well, then I have no advice for you.

Good luck

Yea I would also recomend going to see a chiro just for an initial checkup of the injured area. They will basically take xrays and see if you need any types of treatment done to it. Even if the pain is gone, you could still have something there that isnt right.

However, if it was just muscles going crazy at the time, and they just needed time to heal, then you should be fine.

If you have health insurance, just pay the deductable to see a chiro. If it turns into many more visits in the future, then you should start thinking about having the insurance company cover your medical expenses. If you only have to go once to make sure everything is OK, then just take the cost of the chiro visit yourself if you have health insurance. If you do not have health insurance, well, then I have no advice for you.

Good luck
I asked my chiro what it would cost out of pocket and he said $45/visit. That's not much if you ask me. :dunno

Curtis, does have a point, you need to contact a lawyer and have them work out the detail (if you in pain). But others have brought up good points regarding damage to your car.

Here's the fact in California. We have a NO-Fault system, where YOUR insurance take care of YOU. So, depending your insurance (or which company), they WILL NOT cover your M3 bumper unless you have that written in your policy. They will only cover OEM parts made for that car. Now, that doesn't bar you from making deals with the repair shop to get an M3 bumper and them billing the insurance company for a 325 bumper.

Of course, what I tell you is illegal and could land you in jail/fine for sometime :).

I believe its too late for you regarding any recourse, since you accept the check. Let me ask you this, did the insurance adjuster tape record your transaction with them? Did they have you sign ANYTHING? If you answer to both question, then you're done. Even if you don't cash the check, by allowing them tape record you and you signing a document (that say you wouldn't sue them for any future injuries or pain and suffering), means you accept their term of agreement.

Good luck with everything and hope you work out the difference with them

Sorry bout the accident man. Just make sure their insurance pays for all the repairs, and rental. As for the pain, if you aren't experiencing any, no need to sue.

Friend of mine was in a motorcycle accident, other drivers fault, they skid into his lane, and hit him head on. He had some pretty bad injuries. Permanent back injuries, knee injuries, had to have surgery on his back. And all he got was like $7k, to top it all off, he is a martial arts instructor, wasnt able to work for like 8months. And even still he doesn't have the same agility as before.

Id say he got screwed.

I asked my chiro what it would cost out of pocket and he said $45/visit. That's not much if you ask me. :dunno
Considering your own health is involved, it's not that big a deal, you're right.

Sorry bout the accident man. Just make sure their insurance pays for all the repairs, and rental. As for the pain, if you aren't experiencing any, no need to sue.

Friend of mine was in a motorcycle accident, other drivers fault, they skid into his lane, and hit him head on. He had some pretty bad injuries. Permanent back injuries, knee injuries, had to have surgery on his back. And all he got was like $7k, to top it all off, he is a martial arts instructor, wasnt able to work for like 8months. And even still he doesn't have the same agility as before.

Id say he got screwed.
Yea he did. One of my friends got into a motorcycle accident and got near 500k after receiving some permanent leg injuries.

Yea he did. One of my friends got into a motorcycle accident and got near 500k after receiving some permanent leg injuries.
:eek2

I just went through this whole situation, almost exactly, for the last seven months. Good luck to you, becuase it was one of the biggest headaches ever. Of course, Farmers insurance shouldn't be as bad, because they are a pretty reputable company. I had to deal with an AVIS rental car that hit me, and they're self insured (which basically means they have no insurance). This means they will try to shortchange you at every corner. I had a BMW body shop appraise the repairs at $3200, so AVIS sent their adjuster out, and he appraised it at $1400. Guess what, got a check in the mail a week later for $1400. Just enough for a really crappy bodyshop to make the repairs.
Whatever you do though, don't cash the check. Just hold on to it, or give it to the bodyshop to hold. Cashing the check is what the insurance company wants you to do, cause if you do, then you're screwed, thats all you get. Tell them about the mechanical damage, they will do a supplelmental damage inquiry and get you another check. Mine had two supplemental damage follow-ups. The bodyshop ended up getting the insurance company to pay about $2800, a price both parties could agree on to make the neccessary repairs. Just talk with your contact at the bodyshop, they can have all the supplemental checks sent to them, and they'll take care of it. You shouldn't have to deal with anything except your rental car. Which sux ballz too, I got a freakin Chevy Cavalier. CA state law says they're supposed to provide you with a car comperable to yours, but there are all kinds of ways for insurance companies to bypass this law. They actually only gave me enough money for a Dodge Neon (uggh), but I just bit the bullet and paid $5 bucks more a day for the Cavalier.
Like I said, good luck once again. The for-profit insurance system in this country is corrupted, and until it is fixed somehow, everyone will get screwed. Except the insurance companies of course. :)

Dude, that sucks. I still think they should have given you $3200. I mean, aren't you allowed to take it to a shop of YOUR choice?

And what's up with that Dodge Neon? Uh, that sucks. Big time. They gave me a Volvo S40 (about $60/day). They actually upgraded from $35/day.

Damn Alvin, that sucks. Maybe now's a good time to sell me back that black front bumper? ;)

I just went through this whole situation, almost exactly, for the last seven months. Good luck to you, becuase it was one of the biggest headaches ever. Of course, Farmers insurance shouldn't be as bad, because they are a pretty reputable company. I had to deal with an AVIS rental car that hit me, and they're self insured (which basically means they have no insurance). This means they will try to shortchange you at every corner. I had a BMW body shop appraise the repairs at $3200, so AVIS sent their adjuster out, and he appraised it at $1400. Guess what, got a check in the mail a week later for $1400. Just enough for a really crappy bodyshop to make the repairs.
Whatever you do though, don't cash the check. Just hold on to it, or give it to the bodyshop to hold. Cashing the check is what the insurance company wants you to do, cause if you do, then you're screwed, thats all you get. Tell them about the mechanical damage, they will do a supplelmental damage inquiry and get you another check. Mine had two supplemental damage follow-ups. The bodyshop ended up getting the insurance company to pay about $2800, a price both parties could agree on to make the neccessary repairs. Just talk with your contact at the bodyshop, they can have all the supplemental checks sent to them, and they'll take care of it. You shouldn't have to deal with anything except your rental car. Which sux ballz too, I got a freakin Chevy Cavalier. CA state law says they're supposed to provide you with a car comperable to yours, but there are all kinds of ways for insurance companies to bypass this law. They actually only gave me enough money for a Dodge Neon (uggh), but I just bit the bullet and paid $5 bucks more a day for the Cavalier.
Like I said, good luck once again. The for-profit insurance system in this country is corrupted, and until it is fixed somehow, everyone will get screwed. Except the insurance companies of course. :)

Here a question for you, did you have insurance? The reasons, I asked is that why deal with AVIS car rental (that's the car that hit you right?)? Your insurance should have taken care of everything for you. Neon or Cavalier, I see no difference in paying an extra $5 bucks for :D, they both crappy cars.

Unless you have no insurance, then you would have to deal with AVIS and they will try to string you along as much as possible and hope that you quite.

Here a question for you, did you have insurance? The reasons, I asked is that why deal with AVIS car rental (that's the car that hit you right?)? Your insurance should have taken care of everything for you. Neon or Cavalier, I see no difference in paying an extra $5 bucks for :D, they both crappy cars.

Unless you have no insurance, then you would have to deal with AVIS and they will try to string you along as much as possible and hope that you quite.

Yes, I had insurance, but it was complicated at the time. I just bought the car, only had it for one week, and it wasn't registered in my name. It was insured under my name, but not registered. I wasn't sure what this mattered, if at all, but I didn't want to involve the prior owner if I could avoid it. Also, I didn't want my insurance company to know either. Even though it wasn't my fault, accidents do negatively affect how an insurance company rates you, regardless of fault. This is why when you register for insurance they ask about all your accidents in the last few years, regardless of who's fault it was, and how much was paid out. The simple fact is, I've had 6 hit and runs in the last 3 years. Even though none of them were my fault, I am more of a "liability" than someone who has no accidents at all. This is why my monthly premiums are much higher than normal even though I have no accidents at my fault. It's a crap system, but unfortunately thats the way it is. Looking back at it now though, after all the trouble I went through, If involving my insurance company would have made things easier, I would have, even if it meant my premiums would go up a few dollars a month.
Secondly, yes the Neon and Cavalier are both crap cars, but trust me, the Neon is much worse. It probably would have broken down on the way out of the lot.

Dude, that sucks. I still think they should have given you $3200. I mean, aren't you allowed to take it to a shop of YOUR choice?

And what's up with that Dodge Neon? Uh, that sucks. Big time. They gave me a Volvo S40 (about $60/day). They actually upgraded from $35/day.

Yeah, you can take it to a shop of YOUR choice, but once again this is a rule that can be easily bended. I was more than welcome to take it to the BMW dealership to get it fixed, but it didn't mean the insurance company was obligated to pay the rates they were asking. You can take it to the most expensive place ever to get it fixed, but they'll go out, do their own appraisal, and meet you in the middle somewhere.

Hopefully you said you neck hurts.

Hopefully you said you neck hurts.

Damn... Good Call. Well, it's been a year almost. Plus, that might have been questionable since It was in the parking lot, and I wasn't in the car. I don't know, that fact might throw up a Red Flag with the insurance company. :stickoutt