Got rear ended today.

[pac1085]

I was stopped at a light and this girl came up behind me and hit me (I saw her in the rear view before she did, she wasn't looking at the road - was looking down at something) and then I hit the car in front of me.

She admitted fault (obviously, since she rear ended me when I was stopped at a light)

I've never had to deal with insurance claims before, so I'm not sure what to expect. How does it work? The adjuster looks at the car and determines what? If its totalled or not? If they say its not totalled (no way mine is, its not that bad) do they send it to a body shop and get an estimate? If they do, do they pay whatever it takes to get the car fixed or do they give you less?

I did do some research on my own and it's going to be about $1600 in parts for front & rear bumper and bumper shocks. After that it will need paint and labor obviously.

I'm clueless, still waiting for call back from my insurance company.

 

[jagec]

You will take it to a shop to get an estimate, which they will pay for. They will look at the estimate and decide if they agree, which they probably will. Then they will cut you a check for the amount (parts AND labor...you should not have to pay anything out of pocket), after which you will buy a new bumper on ebay, install it yourself, and pocket the change.

 

[d33pt]

in some states you're still at fault for hitting the guy in front of you. just letting you know, so you won't get any surprises. it sucks.

 

[Safeway]

Damn, rear ends suck. Good luck with insurance.

 

[MDE]

Originally posted by: d33pt
in some states you're still at fault for hitting the guy in front of you. just letting you know, so you won't get any surprises. it sucks.

The person that started the chain reaction is ultimately responsible and will probably end up paying for everything in the end.

 

[simondedalus]

Originally posted by: pac1085
I was stopped at a light and this girl came up behind me and hit me (I saw her in the rear view before she did, she wasn't looking at the road - was looking down at something) and then I hit the car in front of me.

She admitted fault (obviously, since she rear ended me when I was stopped at a light)

I've never had to deal with insurance claims before, so I'm not sure what to expect. How does it work? The adjuster looks at the car and determines what? If its totalled or not? If they say its not totalled (no way mine is, its not that bad) do they send it to a body shop and get an estimate? If they do, do they pay whatever it takes to get the car fixed or do they give you less?

I did do some research on my own and it's going to be about $1600 in parts for front & rear bumper and bumper shocks. After that it will need paint and labor obviously.

I'm clueless, still waiting for call back from my insurance company.

be bold to ask a insurance claim .....they will not give you it easily....

 

[DivideBYZero]

Originally posted by: simondedalus

Originally posted by: pac1085
I was stopped at a light and this girl came up behind me and hit me (I saw her in the rear view before she did, she wasn't looking at the road - was looking down at something) and then I hit the car in front of me.

She admitted fault (obviously, since she rear ended me when I was stopped at a light)

I've never had to deal with insurance claims before, so I'm not sure what to expect. How does it work? The adjuster looks at the car and determines what? If its totalled or not? If they say its not totalled (no way mine is, its not that bad) do they send it to a body shop and get an estimate? If they do, do they pay whatever it takes to get the car fixed or do they give you less?

I did do some research on my own and it's going to be about $1600 in parts for front & rear bumper and bumper shocks. After that it will need paint and labor obviously.

I'm clueless, still waiting for call back from my insurance company.

be bold to ask a insurance claim .....they will not give you it easily....

What are you talking about?

 

[GoatMonkey]

I've had a similar situation. The person who hit me had to pay their deductible and their insurance company covered the repairs on both cars, and paid for a rental in the same class as my car (very loosely, a Pontiac Grand Am rental to replace a broken 93 Probe GT). I ended up paying a little out of my pocket for the rental because the insurance didn't cover something, I don't remember what, this was about 8 or 9 years ago. I probably could have gotten the money for it from the insurance company, but I decided it wasn't worth my time.

 

[ayabe]

I don't know what it is but I've been hit 3 times stopped at a redlight in the past 6 years. No, this wasn't me slamming on the brakes, I was stopped for more than 30 seconds each time, last adventure was by a cop when my car was 2 weeks old.

My condolences to the OP, hope everything works out for you.