OP here. The other driver finally called the insurance and they accepted liability. I am scheduled to get estimate this upcoming week with my dealer and they have arranged for car rental as well. I am in Virginia BTW.

Thank you everyone for your replies. Like I said I’ve never been in this situation and didn’t think to call 911 because it wasn’t an emergency. Lesson learned - always call police. I had gotten conflicting advice regarding who to contact first. I did first contact my insurance to let them know. I was then told by someone to not call them and just go straight to the other guy’s insurance. When I told my insurance rep about this she said I could and should and If they don’t accept claim to call them back and they can reopen claim. I thought that by going through my insurance they would front the costs of repair, charge me deductible, and then go after the guy. If they didn’t recoup costs then I wouldn’t get deductible back and it would be a ding on my record.

This is very state and insurance company specific.

If you call your insurance company you pay your deductible. Always better to go after the other person’s insurance first. Also totally reasonable to call for an update. I hadn’t heard back for weeks and finally called to find out what was going on. Guy had given a false statement easily discredited by looking at photos, but the real issue was he was driving for Uber so they didn’t cover him, Uber’s insurance did. But no one ever called to tell me anything so if I hadn’t called I wouldn’t have known.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP I’m so confused. You just contact YOUR OWN insurance company. They handle everything to do with the other guy.

OP I also want to say if someone from an accident texted me, I wouldn’t respond either. You don’t want to be in touch with each other at all. You just call your own insurance company and let them handle it.

Yes it's kind of similar to selling/buying a house. When you have an agent, you don't contact the seller "oh hey girl, we were wondering if you were gonna leave the bar stools" - you let the professionals sort it all out.

Anonymous wrote:I was at a red light when a car ran into me. This was the first time I’d ever been in a car accident in my 20+ driving. He was very cooperative, apologized, gave me his insurance, ID, and phone number. I called his insurance to file a claim and it’s been several days. I called to check on status and they told me they are unable to reach the other driver for a statement. I did send him a text letting him know that the insurance company is trying to reach him to please give them a call so we can get this all sorted. He didn’t respond. What happens if he never responds and they deny my claim? Does he just not get in trouble for hitting my car? I regret not calling the police at the moment thinking it wasn’t necessary because no one was hurt.

Call your own insurance if you haven't already.

Anonymous wrote:Slightly different scenario but along with this being an insurance company to insurance company discussion, you don’t need to worry much about a he said she said scenario. I had an accident where the other driver claimed I was at fault and the insurance company could tell by the damage that her story didn’t add up.

That is if your insurance company is competent. USAA is not.

Just a tip. When involved in an accident where the other driver is at fault, you should NOT reach out to their insurance company directly. You should always go through your insurance company. The other driver's insurance company's primary goal is to minimize the amount that they pay. They are working for themselves and their client and will do whatever to avoid paying as much money as possible to you. Your insurance company works for you and themselves and so they will try to make the other company pay as much as possible to avoid payments for you or your insurance company.

Always remember who the insurance company works to determine whether you trust them to do what's best for you.

Slightly different scenario but along with this being an insurance company to insurance company discussion, you don’t need to worry much about a he said she said scenario. I had an accident where the other driver claimed I was at fault and the insurance company could tell by the damage that her story didn’t add up.

OP, what state are you in? If you are in VA, you might be SOL, because they have "no fault", so it is your word against their word. If they other driver denies their liability, you might be on the hook for your deductible. Hopefully you have collision coverage, because in VA, you can opt out and pay a pittance to not have insurance, which is also ridiculous.

Sorry this happened, because I know first hand it is SO much money, work and time out of your pocket, that was through no fault of your own, and it absolutely sucks. Something needs to change, because bad drivers just keep driving.

Anonymous wrote:OP I’m so confused. You just contact YOUR OWN insurance company. They handle everything to do with the other guy.

OP I also want to say if someone from an accident texted me, I wouldn’t respond either. You don’t want to be in touch with each other at all. You just call your own insurance company and let them handle it.

OP I’m so confused. You just contact YOUR OWN insurance company. They handle everything to do with the other guy.

Anonymous wrote:You don't contact the other drivers insurance, your insurance company does that! Contact them and it will get wrapped up in no time

+1. The insurance companies have to handle it. And no, they aren't going to deny your claim because they can't reach their policyholder. The other driver doesn't get off scott free because he/she ghosts their insurance company.

You don't contact the other drivers insurance, your insurance company does that! Contact them and it will get wrapped up in no time

Did you take photos? Of his car and yours? Of the intersection? I don’t move my car until I’ve taken many photos of the scene. Call your insurance company and file a claim. They’ll go after his insurance company. Next time, call the police.

I was at a red light when a car ran into me. This was the first time I’d ever been in a car accident in my 20+ driving. He was very cooperative, apologized, gave me his insurance, ID, and phone number. I called his insurance to file a claim and it’s been several days. I called to check on status and they told me they are unable to reach the other driver for a statement. I did send him a text letting him know that the insurance company is trying to reach him to please give them a call so we can get this all sorted. He didn’t respond. What happens if he never responds and they deny my claim? Does he just not get in trouble for hitting my car? I regret not calling the police at the moment thinking it wasn’t necessary because no one was hurt.