Originally posted by travlin'easy:
Bottom line--the van is totaled, the equipment survived, with minimal damage, his car looked like it went through a shredder, I obviously didn't make it to the job, and the a**hole had the guts to say "Man, I don't know what happened!"
Fortunately, no other vehicles were involved, and a witness who was a couple hundred yards behind stopped and gave the state police a statement that clearly portrayed who was at fault.
The worst part about the deal wasn't loosing the music job and dissapointing 150 people at a spring dance. The worst part is that because my van is a 1989 the guy who hit me insurance company will only pay book value for the van, which is probably about $2,000. This, despite the fact the van was in excellent condition until some indiot on his cell phone slammed into it. Now I'll have to replace the van, which will cost me a bundle. Damned I hate full moons!
Gary, sorry to read about what happened, but glad that bodily injury wasn't part of it! (Do make sure of that; sometimes in the aftermath of trauma, you can be unaware for a while of certain kinds of injury. If you are injured, I'd suggest seeing a lawyer at this point and ignoring the rest of my comments; and no, I'm not a member of the legal profession.)
Be certain to get a copy of the police report and verify that it acurately reflects what you and the witness reported.
As to compensation for your losses, don't be too quick to accept the insurance company's offer. They have an obligation for you to be "made whole"; that phrase is very important. It means that the insurance company has to, within reason, restore things to what they were before the accident.
If you can document the exceptional condition of your van, it will help in negotiating with the insurers. Pictures, maintenance records, testimonials from others (service people, etc.) all help. Was the van outfitted (modified) in any way for your needs? If so, document that. Anything that will show your van was not a typical 1989 vehicle will help your position.
You also should ask for compensation for the lost gig, and any damage to your equipment. That's part of making you whole.
You may have to "hang tough"; insurers rarely like to part with cash, especially initially.
Here are a couple of Websites that may help with some insight. Use Google for others.
http://info.insure.com/auto/collision/totalling.html http://www.pritzkerlaw.com/fair-car-value/ Again, I'm not a lawyer, etc., so please take what I've said with that in mind. Best of luck in resolving the situation.
--Barry
[This message has been edited by quietDIN (edited 04-13-2006).]
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