Dear fellow SOLer's,
Wish I could keep y'all updated on the situation sooner but gosh
I am getting behind with classes/work/other obligations due to this
mess. Anyway quite a few things have happened...
To remind you where I left off last... I got a couple of estimates, and
subsequently contacted my insurance company and filed a DMV report. I
must say that I found Denise's warnings (whom I applaud for speaking her
mind when literally everyone else has urged me to report the accident) very
interesting, but ultimately I decided that I should report because (1)
the offender made it loud and clear that I would have to sue if the
damage was >$500; (2) if it comes down to a lawsuit, I would have no
credibility whatsoever if I didn't promptly file a DMV and insurance
report; (3) I think the woman would be less tempted to weasel an insurance
company than myself; (4) she's an incompetent and reckless driver
who doesn't belong on the road until she changes her driving habits, (5)
if she filed an accident report (I'm doubtful but it's possible) I would
*really* be screwed if I didn't; and (6) it's the law in CA to file a
report when the damage is >$500 (and remember, one of my estimates was 4
times that amount), and if the DMV found out that I didn't file
a report, I could lose MY license.
Regarding the hypothetical scenario that she could file a report saying
that I backed into her: there's (surprisingly) no place on the DMV report
that asks for such info; like Denise said the DMV couldn't care less.
And the police couldn't care less either, as no one was hurt. However,
insurance companies do care a lot about who's at fault, and she (I highly
suspect but could be wrong) does not have insurance. On the other hand, I
promptly reported that I was rear-ended to my insurance company, along with
other details, and my insurance company tape-recorded my statements; this
should be looked upon favorably in the courts.
Now onto the events of yesterday and today: well guess what, for some
reason the "lady" leaves a message on Tuesday cancelling our meeting for
Wednesday morning. No other weekday is good too, and nights are no good
even though she lives within walking distance from me. Golly I was SO
surprised (not!). Gee I wonder what she's trying to do. Anyway I give
her a call back and tell her to give me a call anytime to arrange another
time, as the weekend is no good. As I wait for her to call back (not!) I
formulate The Next Plan (are we on Plan 4 now? 5?)
My roommate and I discuss the possibilities. Actually, since I filed a
DMV and insurance report, there was no reason to meet her except for one
thing: I was hoping that at the meeting, in which I would bring a friend
along, the lady would casually try to justify why she rear-ended me. You
see, I then would have a witness who could testify that she admitted
rear-ending me (to rebuff any fraudulent claim that I backed into her).
Okay, I am really paranoid.
Well anyway scrap that plan, this woman is not going to call back. And
I'm not going to wait 4 more days just to talk with her; I have
been a wreck for days and I want to see some action.
So The Next Plan: I'd give a call to my insurance agent Wednesday
morning to give the woman a call (on Monday I requested that my agent not
contact her until after the lady and I met on Wednesday, but that's not
going to happen now.) My insurance agent would ask her for her insurance
info along with her version of the accident, and hopefully the woman
would be so caught by surprised she wouldn't be able to contrive up
anything but the truth.
It turns out that today (Wednesday) my insurance agent was able to get
ahold of the woman at work and talk with her. I know this because the lady
gave me a call immediately afterwards, although I'm still waiting to hear
from my insurance agent. (It's remarkable that the lady "didn't have a
chance" to return my call for 18 hours until my insurance agent called
her... then she had lots of time!). She was remarkably composed and
articulate when she left a message on my answering machine. She ended her
message by saying that she would consider it "antagonistic" if I called her
at work... but I suppose that's reasonable.
Not that I would call her... heck I hope I this lady cooperates with my
insurance agent and I never have to see/hear her again. An appraiser
from the insurance company comes tomorrow to look at Goldie, and I'm
keeping my fingers crossed that his estimate is generous enough for a
high-quality repair...
-Felix
P.S. Some parts came from Moss today, although they mixed up half of my
order with someone elses. But I was most impressed with Moss's reponse
when I notified them of the error... they told me to keep the wrong parts
and they would ship me the ommitted parts right away. No hassle at all to
me... great company! (Now if only they could locate/sell more OEM chrome
parts... the Taiwanese chrome taillight bezel they sent is laughable,
which even Chris at Moss readily admitted. Anyone with a good original for
sale?)
__________________________________________________________________
__ Felix Wong Palo Alto, California
| \_O (415)497-5434 [home], (415)725-4640 [work]
( )/ LL http://www-leland.stanford.edu/~felixksw/
( ) '69 MGB, '92 C'dale R500 (stiff, light, and FAST)
Fw = mg "Safety fast!"
|