Judgement made on car accident and I reside out of the country

[tximines]

I was involved in a small fender bender at a green light in which the person stopped right after accelerating. I was cited for following to closely, my insurance company paid for his bumper which nothing was wrong with in the first place. A month following the accident I accepted a job out of the country. Some months after I was informed by my father the insurance company notified him that I was being sued for 7k for soft tissue damage and they were going to represent me and take care of it. A few months after that my father recieved noticed the insurance company was dropping me because my license had been suspended. So, this month my father notifies me that judgement has been made on the case and I have been ordered to pay 19k plus court fees.

Was I served?
What options do I have?

 

[Michael Wechsler]

I was involved in a small fender bender at a green light in which the person stopped right after accelerating. I was cited for following to closely, my insurance company paid for his bumper which nothing was wrong with in the first place. A month following the accident I accepted a job out of the country. Some months after I was informed by my father the insurance company notified him that I was being sued for 7k for soft tissue damage and they were going to represent me and take care of it. A few months after that my father recieved noticed the insurance company was dropping me because my license had been suspended. So, this month my father notifies me that judgement has been made on the case and I have been ordered to pay 19k plus court fees.

Sorry - what a mess.

(1) You need to find out what happened. If the insurance company represented you then you shouldn't be paying. Call them.

(2) Obtain a copy of the court file - was this awarded on a judgment? A settlement?

But more importantly... why was your license suspended? Was it suspended at the time of the accident? Afterwards? Why?

 

[mightymoose]

I would bet that the license was suspended for failure to report the accident to the state motor vehicle office.

Here in CA there is a law that requires any accident with damage over $700 (which is just about any accident) to be reported to the DMV with proof of insurance. Failure to make this report will ultimately result in a suspended license.

Also, if the citation for following too closely wasn't paid then that could also have caused the suspension.

The time to address this with insurance was long ago when your father was telling you about it. Trying to correct it so long after the fact is far more difficult.

I suspect you had a default judgment entered against you. If that turns out to be the case then you may have some options.