What are the requirements for an insurance company providing a rental car?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What are the requirements for an insurance company providing a rental car?
If a person rear ends you and admits fault in a
police report , but their insurance company
says they can’t provide a rental until they get
ahold of their client, who won’t answer the
phone, so they can admit fault but they say in
two weeks if they still don’t answer they will
provide me with my rental. Why can’t they do it
now without their client answering if they can
do it in two weeks without their client
answering.
Asked on January 18, 2017 under Accident Law, Alabama
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Because the other driver's insurer has no duty to obligation to you--they are not *your* insurer--and are not required to provide you a rental. IF they believe that their driver was clearly at fault, so that if you sued their driver, he would likely lose and they'd have to pay for him, they may very well offer a settlement, which may (at their option or choice) include a rental car, in order to resolve the case on a cost-effective basis, without having the cost of litigation. But they don't have to do that; it is voluntary on their part. They could decide not to do it until they have the chance to discuss the matter with their insured and see what he has to say to them; and even after that, they may choose to not offer you anything. The only way to make sure you get something is to sue the other (at fault) driver and win, by proving in court (e.g. with your testimony; with the testimony of the officer who took the report [whom you can subpoena if necesssary] and any other witnesses; with the police report; etc.) that the other driver was at fault in hitting your car. If you can do that, you can get a judgment requiring him to pay your "damages," or provable costs and losses, like the cost to repair your car, the cost of a rental car while your car is in the shop, etc., which judgment should then be paid by the other driver and/or his insurer. But only a court judgment in your favor compels payment.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.