Have I jeopardized my claim with my insurance by accepting car damages from the at fault driver?
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Have I jeopardized my claim with my insurance by accepting car damages from the at fault driver?
I was hit by an uninsured motorist. I sued him in small claims court for the car damage and got money. But the medical and bodily injury portion is being settled with my insurance company. I was told to settle the car with him.
Asked on November 9, 2011 under Accident Law, Wisconsin
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
You did NOT jeopardize your claim. The property damage claim is separate from the personal injury claim. You could have filed the property damage claim with your insurance company as an uninsured motorist claim, but since you successfully sued the uninsured motorist and received compensation, that is fine.
When you complete your medical treatment and are released by the doctor or are declared by the doctor to be permanent and stationary which means no further improvement is anticipated, obtain your medical bills, medical reports and documentation of any wage loss. Your personal injury claim will consist of the medical bills, medical reports and wage loss documentation. File your personal injury claim with your insurance company since you apparently have uninsured motorist coverage. Compensation for the medical bills is straight reimbursement. Compensation for wage loss is straight reimbursement. The medical reports will document the nature and extent of your injury and will be used to determine the amount of compensation you receive for pain and suffering. Compensation for pain and suffering is an amount in addition to the medical bills. If you are dissatisfied with settlement offers from the insurance company, reject the settlement offers and file a lawsuit for negligence against the at-fault driver. If the case is settled with the insurance company, NO lawsuit is filed. If the case is NOT settled with the insurance company, you will need to file your lawsuit prior to the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations or you will lose your rights forever in the matter.
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