REVENGED

I am going to change the name of this blog to Pearls Of Wit With A Side Of Boring Insurance Information Interspersed At Random.

So, here's the latest update and it's a hefty one. I know you've all been on the edge of your seat today waiting to hear:

My insurance agent (a.k.a. Sam [a.k. on this blog a. No Show]) decided to get the claim process rolling because at this point, we're all tired of waiting on the other driver to surface. So he put me on the phone with the claims division to file the paperwork, and then about 30 minutes later, Ann*, the insurance adjuster assigned to my case, called me. She and I talked for about an hour. She had to record a statement from me over the phone, and then we talked a lot off the record. I am glad she has been assigned to my case. I could tell just from one phone call that she's a feisty one. She did some kind of special database search of recent insurance claims from all insurance companies and didn't see anything filed on this accident yet. Ann called that the first red flag. The other red flag is that I haven't been contacted by the other driver's insurance company yet. Mine and Ann's optimistic thinking is that maybe the other driver, whom I'd like to call Tonya*, was waiting to be contacted by my insurance company before she filed her claim. But then you have to remember that Tonya hasn't returned at least five phone calls now from three different people this week trying to get her insurance information.

So screw Optimism, and allow me know introduce you to my new friend Reality.

We're all assuming at this point Tonya is uninsured. If she's not, then she's on vacation or something, which I find hard to believe because she's got a new car to buy. Regardless, Ann called her today and told me she would continue to call her every day for ten days which I think is funny. Ann is also sending a certified letter to Tonya today, giving her 10 days to respond with her insurance information. Ann called it a "Cam" letter. I call it a "Bitch You Better Not Make This Any Harder Than It Needs To Be" letter. If ten days go by without a peep from Tonya, she is declared uninsured.

Now, either way this plays out, my butt is covered. Turns out, I have amazing insurance coverage. If Tonya comes out of the woodwork and proves she is insured, her company covers my deductible and the repairs and all. If we are Tonyaless after ten days, my insurance company reimburses me for the deductible and then goes after Tonya, not just for the deductible but for every penny they have to pay – rental car, towing costs, cost of my car since it's probably totaled, etc.

While I'm kind of joking about it, I really hope Tonya is insured. I feel sorry for her if she's not, because her money problems will only get worse from here on out if that's the case. And I sure don't want to deal with an angry Tonya. What if she went and got an accident report like me? Then she has my address! What if she tries to kill me? Her address is saved in Google searches on my work computer if I turn up missing, FYI. And the accident report with her "real" name and address is in a red folder on my desk with WRECK INFO written on it.

But other than that little blip on my radar, I feel really good either way. The wreck itself won't cost me much -- a new car, on the other hand, certainly will. But everyone with my insurance company is being really helpful. I am going to get my a rental car tomorrow and my car is being towed today to the preferred repair service to begin the damage assessment. And while I was typing all of this, Anne was probably calling Tonya again.

Additionally, after all of this went down, the officer that reported the accident finally returned my messages. He remembers going through Tonya's glove compartment to find her registration, and also remembers finding some proof of insurance, but didn't copy it down. Which brings me back to what I shared with you yesterday.

So there you go. My advice if you have a wreck -- call me first and not your insurance.

*Ann is not her real name. But it is MUCH, much easier to pronounce.
*Tonya is not her real name, either. But it could be.