Wrecked my truck, aaaaaarrrrrrgh!

This is B.S.!!!!!!!!!! I can tell you that I would recover 100% of my losses if I could prove or the police cite him for drinking. Whether it was partially my fault or not, somewhere along the line of that clown driving that vehicle made a bad decision. First bad decision was getting behind the wheel while tipping it back.....Idiot!!!

Originally Posted by spindoc

I went under his a little because it was standing on it's nose. I slid for ever on the damp road. New tires and full of gas. figures!~

That sucks even worse.

Originally Posted by spindoc

That makes sense. But wouldn't that be on the back of my insurance company? I ask because I don't fully understand the scope of why I need to spend more money out of my pocket to fight this one when it's he said (sober) vs. he said (drunk) and how in the world is this gonna get ironed out whether I take the initiative or if the Ins. Co. does it in my stead and for their benefit, considering it's coming out of their pocket initially (followed by mine in increased premiums later I'm sure)

I would still ask a lawyer. What was the value of your truck at the time of the accident?

Originally Posted by spindoc

I got one drink out of the large diet coke, the rest is on the dash. Another rearend chaffer.

Well...that stuff's just bad for your teeth anyway

Originally Posted by mexitucky

I would still ask a lawyer. What was the value of your truck at the time of the accident?

Paid off = priceless.

Originally Posted by mexitucky

I would still ask a lawyer. What was the value of your truck at the time of the accident?

According to the chick from my ins co. it was 16-20K depending on how another department valued it.

Originally Posted by Colonels_Wear_Blue

Well...that stuff's just bad for your teeth anyway

Obviously!

Originally Posted by spindoc

According to the chick from my ins co. it was 16-20K depending on how another department valued it.

What does the police report say? The insurance companies could hammer it out, but I would be prepared in case that guy decides to claim you.

Originally Posted by mexitucky

What does the police report say? The insurance companies could hammer it out, but I would be prepared in case that guy decides to claim you.

The police report would only list the severity of the damage, not the value. The insurance company determines the value of the vehicle.

spindoc, it may be a good idea to do some independent research & gather information regarding your vehicle's value. Kelley Blue Book & Edmunds are two well-respected sites for gauging the value of vehicles. If you do your own research prior to speaking with the insurance adjuster, you'll have some ammo for a rebuttal if they throw a lowball estimate your way...

Originally Posted by ColonelCrazy

The police report would only list the severity of the damage, not the value. The insurance company determines the value of the vehicle.
spindoc, it may be a good idea to do some independent research & gather information regarding your vehicle's value. Kelley Blue Book & Edmunds are two well-respected sites for gauging the value of vehicles. If you do your own research prior to speaking with the insurance adjuster, you'll have some ammo for a rebuttal if they throw a lowball estimate your way...

I should have been more specific. What did the report say regarding the accident and what the officer reported.

I hate I missed all this!

As far as who is at fault for damages and subrogation, WV falls under this:50 percent bar rule, meaning a damaged party cannot recover if he is 50 percent or more at fault, but if he is 49 percent or less at fault, he can recover, although his recovery is reduced by his degree of fault.

I've worked on both sides of this including 5 1/2 years of estimating and making liability decisions. Feel free to PM me with any specific questions you might have. I will say this. If your insurance company is worth it's salt, they'll place him at fault or mostly at fault if he is DUI. Regardless if Cootie Brown's insurance company denies liability or not. Your Ins. Co can file what is called arbitration. What happens then is a board of independent insurance adjusters review both companies files and make the decision on which company pays what.

Don't be discouraged about the rear ending. On more than one occasion I've seen arb boards rule in favor of the rear vehicle.

Was he turning right or left into a driveway? Did you get any pics of the vehicles in relation to the driveway in question to support your theory that he missed his turn?

Also, the "I went inside and drank" while sounds like a good defense, can be proved wrong. In an actual case I was involved in, drunk driver went in a house and came back out 30 mins later. They stated they had not drank while in the house at the time of the arrest. Once at trial, the defense attorney stated they did drink in the house but were scaredto admit to it at the time of arrest. Well....there's some professor who's an expert on alcohol absorption at UK who can debunk that defense. So in short, that can be proved either way.

Hope I helped some! PM me with any questions you might have.

Originally Posted by mexitucky

What does the police report say? The insurance companies could hammer it out, but I would be prepared in case that guy decides to claim you.

Report won't be ready for 3 days.

Originally Posted by 00Rocket28

I hate I missed all this!

As far as who is at fault for damages and subrogation, WV falls under this:50 percent bar rule, meaning a damaged party cannot recover if he is 50 percent or more at fault, but if he is 49 percent or less at fault, he can recover, although his recovery is reduced by his degree of fault.

I've worked on both sides of this including 5 1/2 years of estimating and making liability decisions. Feel free to PM me with any specific questions you might have. I will say this. If your insurance company is worth it's salt, they'll place him at fault or mostly at fault if he is DUI. Regardless if Cootie Brown's insurance company denies liability or not. Your Ins. Co can file what is called arbitration. What happens then is a board of independent insurance adjusters review both companies files and make the decision on which company pays what.

Don't be discouraged about the rear ending. On more than one occasion I've seen arb boards rule in favor of the rear vehicle.

Was he turning right or left into a driveway? Did you get any pics of the vehicles in relation to the driveway in question to support your theory that he missed his turn?

Also, the "I went inside and drank" while sounds like a good defense, can be proved wrong. In an actual case I was involved in, drunk driver went in a house and came back out 30 mins later. They stated they had not drank while in the house at the time of the arrest. Once at trial, the defense attorney stated they did drink in the house but were scaredto admit to it at the time of arrest. Well....there's some professor who's an expert on alcohol absorption at UK who can debunk that defense. So in short, that can be proved either way.

Hope I helped some! PM me with any questions you might have.

He was past the driveway totally. You can see(in the cockeyed pic of my truck) that the front of my truck is at the upper limit of her driveway that was narrow to begin with. His vehicle is approximately 3 feet from where I hit him and you can see easily that he is nowhere near the driveway.

Oh well, I think I've been put off to say the least. I left, and I now realize that was a mistake. I left a message with the officer, he called me back just a bit ago. I asked him if the other driver was issued a citation. He said he was not. I was polite in asking and he said that after I left, he spoke with the other driver, and he didn't seem to be unable to pass the field sobriety test. I asked him if he passed the test, he told me that he didn't feel the need to administer it to him because he didn't appear to meet the "state requirements of impairment". That's not the same story he told me while I was there. The dude not only stank of alcohol, he basically couldn't hold his head up and steady while waiting for the officer to finish with his stuff in the cruiser. The lady across the street came to my office today to tell me that they didn't do anything to the man but move his car into the driveway and he went in the house. I have no idea, but since I was out of there and no longer clogging up the scene and the dude was basically at his destination, it's my feeling that the cop wanted to go the route of least trouble and that was tell the guy to get in the house and sober up, and I'm certain his girlfriend assured the officer he'd stay put. So, now, it's he said/he said. Stupid on my part to think that the right thing would be done. And YES, I'm certain that the dude was over the limit. No, I don't have a blood sample, but I know what it looks like, acts like, smells like enough to know he wasn't fit to drive. Total crap if you ask me.

Sucks, doc. Sounds like you got screwed on this one. Hopefully it will turn out alright in the end.

The other question to ask would be "will the report reflect alcohol involvement on the part of the other party?" If the answer to that question is no hire your attorney and make it painful for the cop in question and look for any possible motive why the other party would get a sweetheart deal.

I would go and file a former complaint on the officer for starters!

Originally Posted by theguru

The other question to ask would be "will the report reflect alcohol involvement on the part of the other party?" If the answer to that question is no hire your attorney and make it painful for the cop in question and look for any possible motive why the other party would get a sweetheart deal.

Originally Posted by 00Rocket28

I would go and file a former complaint on the officer for starters!

Those recommendations would probably be the next step, but my question is what does this actually achieve? I'm not sure it actually does anything for spindoc except waste more time and cause more stress...

Originally Posted by 00Rocket28

I would go and file a former complaint on the officer for starters!

I hear they love it when you do that.

I wonder how much benefit it will be if I start complaining? It's still the officer's report, which is finished from what he said last night. And I just wonder if it will be worth it to even travel that path. He wasn't cited, I don't know what the report says, but I imagine I'll be 100% at fault in this one if there was no sobriety issues for him. Officer said they checked all the lights and they all worked. I'm telling you though that none were on. No blinker, no brake, no back up lamp. And that will ultimately be my word vs. his.