Not Assured

There’s something inherently wrong with the insurance system. Perhaps we’ve been screwed. It certainly feels that way. But from what I’ve been told and researched, we’ve been treated “fairly” and have no recourse.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m unspeakably grateful neither my husband nor kids were injured when an elderly lady, for some still unclear reason, backed into our parked van at (as it replays in my mind) 50 miles an hour, and sent it flying (in the words of 3-year-old Isaac, who was half-strapped into his car seat). It could have been much worse. If Isaac and his twin brother, Ethan, weren’t strapped in and if their father hadn’t stuck his head out to see what the strange noise was just seconds before impact, I could have lost my whole family.

However, our dealings with a certain major insurance company have left me feeling far from compensated. At first I was grateful for the help and the reassurance just from knowing she was insured and there was no possible way this could be construed as our fault. I was also grateful that, assuming the lady lost her fight to blame her car, our rental would be fully covered for as long as, I believed, we needed it.

Then, liability was finally established and the collision center could take a look at the van. It didn’t take them long to total it. A couple days later I hadn’t heard from the insurance company and called the total loss department myself. They still didn’t have all the information, including pictures, but almost fought to make sure I didn’t hang up without getting a figure. Whatever, I thought. The lady calculated, seemed friendly, and we got a figure I wasn’t happy about but couldn’t argue with. Then, I was informed, as the settlement was in place, we had 3 days to get out of our rental. The apparent belief was that it would be simple to replace the same vehicle for the money they offered. Clearly, these people never go car shopping themselves. Or understand the headache and hassle involved.

I talked to an attorney but they refused to take the case with no injury involved, and said probably no one else would either as the chances of recovering much more would be slim. As I said, I’m grateful for that lack of injury, but the mental trauma and time and stress should be worth something. I am at a loss to understand how any insurance company can sell themselves as your “good neighbor” or that you are “in good hands” when they leave someone such as myself traumatized, exhausted, on the verge of illness, with young kids needing attention and work that can’t get done (and not to mention being pregnant). Isn’t that cold and stingy, to say the least?

Am I being greedy and unreasonable?