Car Insurance Claims Horror Story...

Car Insurance Nightmare...
ALL Things Car Insurance


The nightmare of contributory negligence... Is this the way YOUR state does things?

We had a young lady insured in our agency. She was driving to work one day, waiting to make a left-hand turn, with her turn-signals on, etc... As approaching traffic cleared, she began her turn... just as the bonehead behind her was passing on her left! Grinding Collision...!

Obviously, it was the passing driver's fault, and we had her file a claim against that driver. That is when we found out the other driver was uninsured. No problem, we thought. The other driver was speeding, driving without a license, driving without insurance, passing at an intersection... Clearly at fault... This is exactly why we carry "Uninsured Motorist" coverage... to pay for our damages and injuries if we are struck by an at-fault uninsured driver.

So she filed a claim under her own policy's UM coverage. Simple solution... The company denied the claim! The reason? CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE. This legal doctrine says that if you are found to have contributed to the loss to any degree, you cannot collect from the other party!!! How did she contribute? They said she should have checked her rear-view mirror to see if a speeding, unlicensed, illegally passing bonehead was there before she started her turn..!!! Unbelievable...

What is YOUR most outrageous claim story...?