MadCow wrote: ↑I've been an insurance claim adjuster for the past 8 years, so I can guide you through this and give you options.
I'm assuming this is your bicycle, since this is the cycling thread (confused when you mentioned mechanic, since I attribute that to a motorcycle or car).
You have a couple options, and how you go about it will depend on the insurance companies involved.
**FIRST AND FOREMOST: Get that cop to file a Police Report and provide you with the report number. This is absolutely required to help your situation.
1. Call the driver's insurance yourself and request to speak to the claims department. Provide the driver's policy number and the date of the accident. They may ask you to verify the driver's vehicle. Hopefully, the driver started a claim (if there was damage to his car that he wanted fixed). If he did, and a claim is set up, you would then provide the police report information and the information regarding the damage to your bike. The adjuster will want to see documentation to show cost of repair, and may ask for 2 or more quotes from separate shops, depending on the cost of the damage. If there is no claim set up on the policy, the adjuster will take down the information from you (vehicle involved, time of day, location of accident, your personal information, weather, and your statement of what happened). The adjuster would then contact the driver to verify the information. **THIS IS WHERE THE POLICE REPORT WILL HELP YOU TREMENDOUSLY.
2. Call your own home insurance/renters insurance. Provide them with the information of the incident and the damage to your bike. If your bike is an expensive one, hopefully you have insured it on a schedule (where the bike is described and valued accordingly). If you didn't schedule your bike on your insurance, there will most likely be limits on how much will be covered. This amount will depend on what policy you have. What will happen next is that your insurance may help you with whatever damage is done to your bike (less your deductible), and then they will subrogate from the driver's automobile insurance company for the amount of the claim. After they recover the money from the driver's insurance, you would then be reimbursed your deductible.
3. File a small claims court action against the driver AND his insurance company. This way, you will force their hand and they will have to respond within the guidelines. The downside to this is that you will have to pay for the costs to file the action, and to serve the claim against the driver and the insurance company (Maybe $200 to $300). There are guides online about how to do this. This is your last resort, and you have up to 2 years from the date of the accident to go this route if the other routes are unsuccessful.
Good luck, and I hope you are okay from the incident. If you start to feel any pain, contact your automobile insurance regarding your bodily injury. They will most likely not help with your claim for your bike damage, though.
Wow thanks for the awesome reply. You really clarified the questions I had unanswered even after talking to my home insurer. I have begun to pursue options 1 and 2 already. I really feel bad for the driver of the van, he was really apologetic and I understand it was unintentional. For him to be charged with careless driving, get 6 demerit points, and then suffer further insurance complications seems disproportionate to the accident. He did say he would take responsibility for the accident, and as far as I know he has not reneged on that.
Id prefer to pursue option 1 if the drivers insurer doesnt hassle me and agrees to pay for the repairs/replacement of the damaged parts. I know he has already started a claim and I am totally comfortable with getting a couple of quotes. Its not a super expensive bike but I think most lay people falsely presume that bikes are just a few hundred bucks. The driver said he would tell his insurer that he is taking responsibility for it, so hopefully for him, I will not need to file a police report. That said, I would not be surprised if his insurer does try to dispute it, then I will have no choice. Option 2 seems just fine as well, I am just concerned that my insurance rate could go up with filing a claim, even if I am shown not to be at fault. When I called my home insurance, it seems they were a bit confused about deductibles and rate increases since the most common thing with bikes is they are stolen and they have no one to subrogate. I think with option 2 I am more likely to get the full value for my bike parts but I suspect I will also have no choice but to file a police report since the process between 2 insurers will be more adversarial.
Anyways. Thanks so much again. Will update the crowd when I learn what happens.