Parts from off a semi truck damaged my car ended up totaling my car. Why wont they compensate

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Parts from off a semi truck damaged my car ended up totaling my car. Why wont they compensate

Driveshaft from a semi fell off on
parkway and the damage done to my
car ended up totaling out my car.
Why is their insurance not wanting
to compensate. I was the second car
behind the truck and the car in
front of me were about to dodge the
debris. The trucking company said
since there was a car in front of
me they’re not liable. And their
insurance wont do anything…..i
cant miss work i will lose my
job…i was just wantinv to see
about them paying for a rentAL but
i dont know what i should do

Asked on March 23, 2018 under Accident Law, Kentucky

Answers:

S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 6 years ago | Contributor

The trucking company is liable for the damage to your vehicle. Since your claim was denied, your recourse is to sue the trucking company and its driver for negligence. Your damages (monetary compensation you are seeking in your lawsuit) would be the value of your vehicle.
You should also file a bad faith claim against the trucking company's insurance carrier because the reason for denial of your claim is absurd.
Prior to filing a bad faith claim, contact your state's insurance commissioner to see if that office can assist you in challenging the denial of your claim.

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 6 years ago | Contributor

Their insurer is THEIR insurer: not yours. Their insurer has no obligation to compensate you *unless* you sue their insured (e.g. the owner and/or driver of the truck), prove the insured was "at fault" and so responsible for the accident, and get a judgment (court order for them to pay) in your favor; then the insurer would (within the terms and limits of the policy) pay you on behalf their insured. Sometimes, the insurer chooses to voluntarily offer you money without you suing; that is generally when they believe that you are likely to sue and likely to win, so they may as well pay now and save the cost of a lawsuit. But if they feel that there is some weakness in your case (e.g. a lack of evidence of fault) or that you will not sue, they can choose to not offer you money.
Your option is to sue: you would sue the truck's owner (and also the driver, if not the same person). You would sue based on negligence, or unreasonable carelessness. You would have to prove they did something wrong to win: for example, that they knew the driveshaft was damaged but despite knowing of that, failed to fix so, and so carelessly increased the likelihood of an accident. But if they did nothing wrong--the driveshaft came loose without any prior warning or without the driver doing something stupid (like driving over road debris) that knocked it off, they would *not* be liable and would not have to pay you. They would only have to pay if you can show they were at fault.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

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