accident with rental truck
I was driving a rental truck and hit a vehicle in the rental lot. I did minimal damage to the vehicles involved. I was informed that the coverage I purchased at the time I signed the rental agreement would take care of the matter. 8 months later I received a letter that reads: ”We [the insurance company of the owner of the car I hit] have received a claim for the loss [from the insurer of the rental vehicle]. If you carried auto insurance at the time of the accident, your insurance would be Primary and will handle this for you. Please fill in the…information…[including] Insurance Company….” Is the owner’s insurance company just trying to satisfy the owner, by seeking a greater amount through my insurance company than the estimate acceptable to the rental firm’s insurer? My deductible is $1,000, slightly more than the amount of the damage, so I’m concerned that I’ll have to pay. Thanks for any comments.
Re: accident with rental truck
No. The insurance for the truck that you were driving was secondary to any other coverage that may be available. You may have purchased insurance through the rental agreement but somewhere in the fine print, there is a clause that states that the insurance available is “secondary” to any other insurance that may be in effect at the time of the accident. Read your policy(you were at fault) and read the rental policy. Read it carefully, all the answers, and your arguments for them, are in the interpretation of the policy.
Timothy Hess
T. Hess & Associates, LLC
1370 Ontario Street, Suite 1520
Cleveland, OH 44113