Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Not My Best Day
11:03 PM | 
Posted by
Stevie |
I was so looking forward to posting my Best of 2009 trip story like the rest of you today, but the universe sent me a lovely surprise in the form of a horrible car accident involving myself and 3 other drivers.
I don't have a car and normally take the bus to work, but this morning I had some paperwork to fill out at our other offices which are not easy to get to by bus, so I borrowed The Scientist's car, which he happily lets me do when I need to. It started out as a good day, the first really cold, crisp day we've had this season. The sun was shining, the mountains were in full view, I was not in my regular routine which was kind of nice.
On my way back to my regular office, I was on one freeway about to merge onto another freeway when I noticed traffic slowing quite a bit. I slowed down, the guy behind me slowed down, but I could see in my rear view mirror that the third guy was most definitely NOT slowing down. So I swerved onto the very wide shoulder. At that point I think I closed my eyes because I knew shit was about to hit the fan. And boy did it ever. He hit me from behind, spinning me into an almost full 180 and I hit the guardrail head on (I was pretty much stopped at that point, though, so there's not much damage to the front end). The back and side windows were totally blown out and glass was everywhere.
The response time to the accident couldn't have been quicker. The (totally cute) firefighters showed up and checked us all out then the highway patrol came and took our information and stories. Thankfully NO ONE was injured! I'm a little stiff and bumped my head slightly, but other than that I'm just a bit shaken up.
The man who caused the accident was arrested at the scene for driving on a suspended license. Thankfully he was driving someone else's car, which was insured.
So now The Scientist and I are carless. I mastered the metro system back in my teenage years and have no problem riding the bus, and The Scientist works less than a mile away from home, and several of his co-workers are either in our complex or within a couple blocks, so that's no problem. We also live within walking distance of 3 grocery stores, Target, Petsmart and several other conveniences. We are VERY lucky for that!
Do any of you have experience with this sort of thing? Can you offer any advice? And what about you smart law school/lawyer cookies out there? Any legal advice?
I don't have a car and normally take the bus to work, but this morning I had some paperwork to fill out at our other offices which are not easy to get to by bus, so I borrowed The Scientist's car, which he happily lets me do when I need to. It started out as a good day, the first really cold, crisp day we've had this season. The sun was shining, the mountains were in full view, I was not in my regular routine which was kind of nice.
On my way back to my regular office, I was on one freeway about to merge onto another freeway when I noticed traffic slowing quite a bit. I slowed down, the guy behind me slowed down, but I could see in my rear view mirror that the third guy was most definitely NOT slowing down. So I swerved onto the very wide shoulder. At that point I think I closed my eyes because I knew shit was about to hit the fan. And boy did it ever. He hit me from behind, spinning me into an almost full 180 and I hit the guardrail head on (I was pretty much stopped at that point, though, so there's not much damage to the front end). The back and side windows were totally blown out and glass was everywhere.
The response time to the accident couldn't have been quicker. The (totally cute) firefighters showed up and checked us all out then the highway patrol came and took our information and stories. Thankfully NO ONE was injured! I'm a little stiff and bumped my head slightly, but other than that I'm just a bit shaken up.
The man who caused the accident was arrested at the scene for driving on a suspended license. Thankfully he was driving someone else's car, which was insured.
So now The Scientist and I are carless. I mastered the metro system back in my teenage years and have no problem riding the bus, and The Scientist works less than a mile away from home, and several of his co-workers are either in our complex or within a couple blocks, so that's no problem. We also live within walking distance of 3 grocery stores, Target, Petsmart and several other conveniences. We are VERY lucky for that!
Do any of you have experience with this sort of thing? Can you offer any advice? And what about you smart law school/lawyer cookies out there? Any legal advice?
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10 comments:
Oh my gosh I'm so glad you're okay!!! I hope you're taking it easy!
How much work does the car have to get done to it? Hopefully you two aren't car-less for too long!
Oh wow!! I'm so glad you're ok!! You're really lucky to live in a city with a functioning city transit system - I'd be completely screwed if that happened to me here.
OMG so scary! I'm glad everyone is OK. Do you not get a rental car while your car is being fixed? I thought that was standard insurance coverage. When we were in an accident a couple months ago we got set up with a rental car the same day.
Yikes, so glad you're doing ok! Just remember sometimes it takes a few days for you to get sore, I had that happen with the seat belt across my chest.
As for advice, if the car was insured rental car coverage is usually standard practice & if you get the information of the company it shouldn't be a problem. Make sure you call YOUR insurance company also and get an estimate. It doesn't matter where the other person wants you to take it. Worst case your insurance should cover the rental until things get situated.
Good luck.
Thanks, everyone! We're working through all the insurance garbage, claims have been filed, etc. We'll bet able to get a rental car, which will help. I'm sure the car will be totalled, the whole back end is crunched in, and the hood is crunched a little bit from hitting the guard rail and all kinds of fluids were leaking out.
We have a friend who has been in a couple accidents and has recommended we get in touch with her personal injury attorney. The guy who caused the accident was driving a vehicle that was not his and had a suspended license, so this accident should never have happened.
I'm heading to the doctor today because I am REALLY sore, have some bruising on my chest from the seatbelt and bumped my head slightly and it's really tender. I haven't experienced any concussion symptoms and the paramedic checked me out yesterday, but I want to get a thorough look-over by a doc.
Thanks for your thoughts :-)
I am so glad you are okay! I was run over (literally! crossing the street!) by a drunk driver. My advice? Definitely have a lawyer take a look at ANYTHING that comes your way from an insurance company. The insurance folks are EVIL.
Ugh, I'm sorry. Those are never fun days - always awful. Chin up!!!!
http://candyflosspersie.blogspot.com/
Sorry for your mishap earlier this week. I'm glad you weren't hurt. I used to work in the insurance industry for State Farm. My best advice is twofold
First, if you are feeling the slightest hint of pain, go see your doctor. Document your injuries and any charges related to such. It's a lot easier to decide not to pursue medical payments later than it is to get checked out later and try to link it to the accident. (Note: Only do this if you are in pain. If not, ignore.)
Second, work through your own insurance company on this accident. It may entail paying your deductible, but you should recoup that once your insurance company is paid by the offender's insurance company. Long story short on why? If anything goes wrong, your insurance company has a TEAM of attorneys ready to battle court. That's why you pay premiums. Make use of it.
Good luck.
No advice here...just wanted to say I'm so glad you're okay! Car accidents are so scary. Heck, DRIVING is scary most of the time.
I was going to offer my two cents (that's the phrase you guys use right?) but I think you won't get any better than SoMi's Nilsa's offering to be honest. Hope you feel better soon!
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