A motorist rear ended the car in front of her really hard on a busy street in stop-n-go traffic while I was behind her. I almost managed to stop in time and barely touched her car. But she claimed to my insurance company that I rear ended her and pushed her into the car in front. But tere is absolutely no damage to the front of my car while the front of her car has severe damage and no rear damage. Surprisingly my insurance company chose to believe her story over mine saying in a written response that "what the other driver said did not support your version of the accident". My insurance company doggedly refuses to even inspect my car saying "short of tearing down my vehicle, there would be no way to detect hidden damage". In short, due to their unwillingness to properly investigate the claim/laziness/lack of due diligence, they paid out about 18,000$ in damages. As a result, my insurance premiums have gone up significantly. And I cannot switch insurance companies as this accident is now on my record. It appears that I have no choice but to sue in small claims. The question is
1. How do I sue an insurance company ? Do I send the small claims case notice to my insurance claims adjuster(s) or is there a special department where I should send it ?
2. I want the insurance company to "do a proper investigation" so that my name is cleared. So what should be the wording of my claim when I file the case ?
I took pictures of the accident scene and I am confident that someone with common sense will see my side of the story. But to bolster my claim, do I need a "report" from someone who reviews the damage to all the cars and states that I could not be responsible for the accident ? Who provides these "reports" , how much do they cost and can I recover the costs from the insurance company ?
Any help appreciated
Thanks
1. How do I sue an insurance company ? Do I send the small claims case notice to my insurance claims adjuster(s) or is there a special department where I should send it ?
2. I want the insurance company to "do a proper investigation" so that my name is cleared. So what should be the wording of my claim when I file the case ?
I took pictures of the accident scene and I am confident that someone with common sense will see my side of the story. But to bolster my claim, do I need a "report" from someone who reviews the damage to all the cars and states that I could not be responsible for the accident ? Who provides these "reports" , how much do they cost and can I recover the costs from the insurance company ?
Any help appreciated
Thanks