If my daughter was in an accident and found 15% at fault but I disagree, what are my next steps?
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If my daughter was in an accident and found 15% at fault but I disagree, what are my next steps?
My daughter was waiting for a green arrow at a busy intersection at approximately 11:45 pm. She was in the left turning lane. This intersection has 2 oncoming turning lanes and three other lanes through the intersection. After the light cycled through she made her left turn and was hit in the intersection. The other driver was cited for running the red light. The insurance company is agreeing to pay us 85% of everything, but how is it that we are 15% responsible when she had control of the intersection? The insurance is basing their finding on the photos of each car and how the impact was.
Asked on March 21, 2012 under Accident Law, Arizona
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If you disagree and feel that the insurer is not living up to its obligations to pay, as per its policy, for your loss--i.e. that they should not be debiting or deducting 15%--and cannot work it out with the insurer, you could sue them for the additional money. It is doubtful that this is economically worthwhile, however, unless your daughter is driving a $50k+ car; the reason is, not only do you almost certainly need an attorney, but you would also need some expert testimony (e.g. from an accident reconstruction specialist) to to show that the accidenty was not 15% your daughter's fault (remember: the insurer will almost certainly have its own experts). Unless it is a very expensive car or the amount of money in dispute is otherwise significant, it's difficult to imagine that the amount you could recover would offset the cost of attorney and/or expert.
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