Update on the car – Part 2

I have decided to write a letter to the parents, using my legal knowledge of course, and inform them that they have a choice. Either pay the deductible, or I’ll let the insurance company subrogate the claim. This would result in action, I’m sure. I will make sure to explain that the insurance company will go after the full amount plus any court costs associated with it. In the long run, I think that I will end up letting the insurance company handle it, but for now it will buy me some time to have money for the deductible.

Update on the car

I have decided to write the parents a letter. My phone calls have gone unanswered, and the one person I made contact with just didn’t seem to want to let the mother know. Of course I will send the letter Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested. I will file it with all my estimates, police reports, and photos.  Hopefully I will get a response.

Initial contact made….

I had my first contact with the grand parent of one of the boys involved in the fight last week tonight. I explained to her what happened, and told her that I have two estimates for the repairs. Both are over the $500 deductible I have for my insurance. I explained that I wanted to find a reputable repair shop that would do the repairs for less than $500, and I wanted to be fair to the boys. I think that she is going to explain the situation to the boy and his mother, and things will be ok. I told her that I didn’t want to ask for anything other than my out of pocket expense. I guess we will see what happens.

I left a message for the younger boy’s guardian. I’ll wait for the call.

Unexpected expenses at the worst possible time

Thursday morning on my way to work, the strangest thing happened. No, it wasn’t an automobile accident, but I did think of running them over. There was a fight between two summer school kids in the middle of the street, stopping traffic, ending up on the hood of my car. The two kids made a dent in the hood of my car to the tune of $875. I contacted the school and know who the boys are, and who their parents are. One of the boys has stated to the Police Officer stationed at the school that he has a job and will pay for his half. I have to contact both parents on Monday after I get another estimate for the damage.

This brings me to the point of the title. Last month, I had trouble making the rent. (With the new job, this should be alleviated.) I depleted my emergency fund so that I could keep my landlord happy. (As a side note, the check hasn’t been cashed yet.) Anyways, now this is where the unexpected expense happens. I have to have the car fixed, so I’m going to pay my $500 deductible and get that from the boys. I don’t know how well this is going to go over with the parents. I know that the parents do know about the incident, but I want to be fair. If I can get an estimate for under $500, I won’t go through my insurance. (I’ve already checked with my insurance agent, it won’t raise my rates but it would count as an incident.)

Best case scenario is, the damage can be repaired for under $500, and the boys will just pay it. I’m hoping for this option, and I’ll definitely keep you posted.