Minor Car Accident In Parking Lot

[LEXIRX330]

Whoa, sounds like she is getting her car painted. lucky her, sucky for you, so sorry for your bad luck. I am awaiting the shoe to hit the fan after I co signed for my daughters loan, and she just totaled somebody else's Mustang convertible. Just found the other person has acquired an lawyer. Oh boy..... My name is on her registration along with daughter, but the car is insured under her name only, but, and boy I must say but, We found out that she had minimum property damage to the tune of $5k, not enough to cover the mustang, I dont know if I am in trouble or not being the co signer and my name on her cars registration because of the co sign. Man I hate accidents, and definetly dont like my daughters driving. Second car wrecked in two 1/2 years. Children, what we do for them and suffer the consequences. I checked my property on my insurance and it was only 25k, not good for a total loss on somebody else's Mercedes or Lexus or Mustang with all the bells and whistles. Called insurance and increased it for only $7.00 per year to $50k. Man you have to read those policies carefully. I always thought property was like if you hit a light poll or fence or something. No it is the value of the other drivers car. Collision only covers your car. Very enlightening for a guy who has been driving for 30 plus years and did not know that till daughters accident. Does anybody think they will go after me because my name is on the registration of daughters car, but not the insurance? Sorry about jumping into this thread, but seems appropriate.

Sorry to say this but...if they have a lawyer...YES!

Just a suggestion you may want to call your insurance company back and increase your property damage limits to 100k. That is what I suggest to most people...

[RX in NC]

Tom,

I don't know about California law, but here in North Carolina there's no way that an accident victim could come after ME due to an accident that my adult daughter caused. I checked into this before I agreed to co-sign her loan on her Grand Cherokee a few years ago so she could get a much sweeter deal. As long as she carries her own car insurance policy without my name anywhere on it, she's completely on her own for any accidents even though her vehicle loan was based primarily on my credit rating, not hers.

Check with the California attorney general's office to get the specifics in your case.

The good news for me is that my daughter paid off her loan in full a couple of months ago and now has her title in hand (showing just her name, not mine). I'm not sure if I'll ever co-sign another loan for her again - there were two or three months during the loan timeframe when she called me to ask if I would lend her part or all of the money to make her car payment for that month. That's irresponsible and lousy money management in my book for any employed grown adult, including my daughter. But even as I was telling her that, I caved in and loaned her the money each time she asked. She did pay me back within two weeks each time, so I'll at least give her credit for that. But even at 31 she still has a lot of growing up to do and I've told her that her chances of getting me to co-sign another loan for her are remote. Sometimes you just gotta toss 'em into the ocean and make 'em learn to fight off the sharks all by themselves....

Good luck with your situation. Keep us posted on what you learn. As long as she's a rational, functioning adult and your name does not appear on her insurance policy, I think you'll be protected....

[lenore]

Tom,

I don't know about California law, but here in North Carolina there's no way that an accident victim could come after ME due to an accident that my adult daughter caused. I checked into this before I agreed to co-sign her loan on her Grand Cherokee a few years ago so she could get a much sweeter deal. As long as she carries her own car insurance policy without my name anywhere on it, she's completely on her own for any accidents even though her vehicle loan was based primarily on my credit rating, not hers.

Check with the California attorney general's office to get the specifics in your case.

The good news for me is that my daughter paid off her loan in full a couple of months ago and now has her title in hand (showing just her name, not mine). I'm not sure if I'll ever co-sign another loan for her again - there were two or three months during the loan timeframe when she called me to ask if I would lend her part or all of the money to make her car payment for that month. That's irresponsible and lousy money management in my book for any employed grown adult, including my daughter. But even as I was telling her that, I caved in and loaned her the money each time she asked. She did pay me back within two weeks each time, so I'll at least give her credit for that. But even at 31 she still has a lot of growing up to do and I've told her that her chances of getting me to co-sign another loan for her are remote. Sometimes you just gotta toss 'em into the ocean and make 'em learn to fight off the sharks all by themselves....

Good luck with your situation. Keep us posted on what you learn. As long as she's a rational, functioning adult and your name does not appear on her insurance policy, I think you'll be protected....

Thanks I appreciate your feedback, I hope here in the left coast of California the same is true. Tom

[LEXIRX330]

Tom,

I don't know about California law, but here in North Carolina there's no way that an accident victim could come after ME due to an accident that my adult daughter caused. I checked into this before I agreed to co-sign her loan on her Grand Cherokee a few years ago so she could get a much sweeter deal. As long as she carries her own car insurance policy without my name anywhere on it, she's completely on her own for any accidents even though her vehicle loan was based primarily on my credit rating, not hers.

Check with the California attorney general's office to get the specifics in your case.

The good news for me is that my daughter paid off her loan in full a couple of months ago and now has her title in hand (showing just her name, not mine). I'm not sure if I'll ever co-sign another loan for her again - there were two or three months during the loan timeframe when she called me to ask if I would lend her part or all of the money to make her car payment for that month. That's irresponsible and lousy money management in my book for any employed grown adult, including my daughter. But even as I was telling her that, I caved in and loaned her the money each time she asked. She did pay me back within two weeks each time, so I'll at least give her credit for that. But even at 31 she still has a lot of growing up to do and I've told her that her chances of getting me to co-sign another loan for her are remote. Sometimes you just gotta toss 'em into the ocean and make 'em learn to fight off the sharks all by themselves....

Good luck with your situation. Keep us posted on what you learn. As long as she's a rational, functioning adult and your name does not appear on her insurance policy, I think you'll be protected....

Having your name on a loan and the car being registered in both names is 2 different things...true things differ state to state but...if you are a co owner of a car...that is different than just having your name on the finance papers as a co signer. If your name is not on the title or registration then you should be OK...but otherwise with the limits that she was carring I would be worried.

I would call an attorney and find out for sure if you could be held liable for any thing if I were you...

Best of luck to you and happy holidays!

RX-

Just wondering how his name not being on her insurance makes any differance at all? Insurance follows the car not the driver...and it is his car too!

[SW03ES]

LexKid-

Call your insurance company. Let them worry about it.

[2007GS450H]

WTF $3200.00

[SW03ES]

You never know what else was damaged, radiator mounts, hinges, who knows. His insurance company will make sure they're not taken for a ride. If he keeps trying to put the insurance company out of the loop and the other party knows this, he has no negotiating position. He'll have to cave at the $3200 or just let them call their insurance company.

As a matter of fact, thats the thing to do. Tell them that you want to see the estimate and that you want to have one done at your shop too, to ensure that everything is legit (thats a reasonable request). If they call their insurance, their insurance will call yours. No harm no foul to you, and it gives you another opportunity to weigh your options. $3200 sounds like a lot to me.

[LexKid630]

Thanks guys. Good news :)

I have decided to go through the insurance. My insurance co. is now going contact this woman's insurance co. Out of my hands! :)

When it came time to talk about my own car, they told me they would have someone from their co. come to my house to look at it. So i made an apt for them to go look at it the day after christmas.

Then i was thinking about what my body shop guys were talking about. I took a ride down to them today and asked their advice. They told me it would be better if the guy from my insurance co looked at my car at their bodyshop. This way, they can say, "oh well umm.....this got pushed in and this needs to be replaced so we need $1500 from you...." Instead of what they would come up with at my house, which would probably be very low; probably not even enough to replace the bumper since it's only cracked in one area... Possibly not even more than the deductable!

Out of this $1500, some would actually go to the car to replace & repaint the bumper, $500 would take care of my deductable, and the remaining would go in my body shop's pockets. Therefore i'm only paying the $250 a year for 3 years w.o a deductable. Does this make sense to anyone?

So basically.....out of this whole thing, i'm only paying $250 a year for 3 years? But if i ever get into another accident, these rates might go even higher though...

any thoughts?

[LEXIRX330]

I have decided to go through the insurance. My insurance co. is now going contact this woman's insurance co. Out of my hands! :)

That is what they are there for...

Then i was thinking about what my body shop guys were talking about. I took a ride down to them today and asked their advice. They told me it would be better if the guy from my insurance co looked at my car at their bodyshop. This way, they can say, "oh well umm.....this got pushed in and this needs to be replaced so we need $1500 from you...." Instead of what they would come up with at my house, which would probably be very low; probably not even enough to replace the bumper since it's only cracked in one area... Possibly not even more than the deductable!

Out of this $1500, some would actually go to the car to replace & repaint the bumper, $500 would take care of my deductable, and the remaining would go in my body shop's pockets. Therefore i'm only paying the $250 a year for 3 years w.o a deductable. Does this make sense to anyone?

So basically.....out of this whole thing, i'm only paying $250 a year for 3 years? But if i ever get into another accident, these rates might go even higher though...

any thoughts?

THIS is called insurance fraud! This is what many body shops do and it drives everyone's rates up. Do you think that since they are just bumping the estimate up only $500 dollars for you they might not bump it up another $500 for themselves...this is why most insurance companies will low ball their estimates so that the shop will have to prove in time/materials...justify the extra expense...

Then the insured you...gets upset with your insurance company because they are dragging their feet to pay...the extra cost. And many times will deny the shop the extra expense...

This is a huge problem for many insurance companies and it sounds fine when you think well what is $500 dollars to an insurance company? Better them pay it then me...well we will all pay it in the long run...

;) ;) ;)

[blake918]

Tonight she had her husband call me with the estimate

$3200

i guess i'm going w. the insurance?

It seems like your insurance co would total the Caravan. The book value for a late '90's Caravan isn't much more than $3200 without any damage...less than $4k for a '99 in good condition according to kbb.com...

A friend of mine backed in to my LS a couple years ago, and it was really easy to get fixed with State Farm. The body shop that I wanted to fix my car was on their list of approved body shops, so it was a smooth transaction as far as the insurance was concerned (I didn't have to go get any estimates or any of that.). I would love to know if State Farm paid the $1,800 bill that the shop submitted. On the invoice they listed $800 for the grey trim that goes at the bottom of the door. :o

[LexKid630]

Her car is actually a 2000??? It looked much older to me.

I left the car with my body shop. The guy from my insurance co is gonna look at it either tomorrow or friday. They said they'd have my car fixed by early next week :)

Thanks Guys!