If a commercial flatbed truck sideswiped the passenger side of my truck, will they pay for the damage on my truck?
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If a commercial flatbed truck sideswiped the passenger side of my truck, will they pay for the damage on my truck?
The driver of the commercial truck inch his way into may lane to make a left lane without looking on his side of the mirror that I was moving onward towards the intersection about to make a left turn. Luckily, I was moving slow enough to prevent major damage. He scraped the passenger front end of my truck and busted the head light. The end of the door was slightly snagged and the side panel of the truck was pressed against the hood. I stopped in the middle of the intersection when he sideswiped my truck. No bodily injury, I was traumatized that when the police came they have to drive my vehicle off to the side road. The following day I took the truck for an estimate to repair the damage, it came down to $3,9700 and change. My truck only covers liability. When I called his insurance carrier, to report the accident, they gave me a report and told me to wait for a call from the claim adjuster. What does this mean?
Asked on September 25, 2017 under Accident Law, California
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Since the truck was at fault in the accident, the insurance carrier for the registered owner should pay for the property damage (cost of repairs) to your truck. The claims adjuster will probably take your recorded statement as to what occurred in the accident. This is standard operating procedure.
If the at-fault party's insurance carrier does not pay for the property damage to your truck, your recourse is to sue the registered owner and driver for negligence. You would file one lawsuit naming both the registered owner and driver as defendants.
You can file your lawsuit in small claims court. Upon prevailing in the case, you can also recover court costs such as the court filing fee and process server fee in addition to compensation for the property damage (cost of repairs) to your truck.
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