How to Fight Car Insurance Subrogation
- 1). Contact your insurance company. If you have been contacted by an insurance company to say that you are being sued for the medical or automobile expenses incurred by the other party, call your insurance company as soon as possible. If you do in fact have insurance, the other party should seek reimbursement from your insurance company first. However, even if you are responsible for a fraction of the costs (because your insurance company does not pay all the claim), your insurance company can fight the other party in court to reduce the amount of the claim against you.
- 2). Research your state rules. Different states handle subrogation claims differently depending on whether or not the state is considered a "no-fault" state. "No-fault" refers to the fact that even if you are not the party at fault in the car accident, your insurance carrier is still obligated to pay your medical expenses. If you live in a "no-fault state", the innocent party's ability to recover damages from you are limited. This is different from "at-fault" policies, in which the party at fault must pay all of the damages to both person and automobile.
- 3). Pay only for your portion of expenses. Not only might your insurance company be responsible for part of the claim being brought against you, but another party might also be liable. If you are not the sole party at fault, you should not be held exclusively responsible for the damages caused. If you are determined to be only 50 percent at fault, you should only be held financially responsible for 50 percent of the damages.
- 4). Negotiate a settlement. The insurance company who is asking you to pay the bill for damages is accustomed to negotiating settlements for payment. If you do not have insurance, speak to the representative assigned to your case and try to negotiate a settlement. You may be able to agree to an amount which is acceptable to both you and the other party.
To negotiate a settlement, perform a liability analysis to determine factors like who had the right-of-way, what condition the involved cars were in before the accident, what the weather conditions were at the time of the accident, and whether there were any bystanders or uninvolved drivers. Write a report explaining your findings and the reasons behind them, and use it to start the negotiations. Do not agree to an amount more than you feel is fair. - 5). If you cannot negotiate an agreeable settlement, find an attorney to represent you. You can find lawyers who specialize in car insurance cases by visiting Lawyers.com or Findlaw.com.
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