First Accident - Not At Fault - How Does this Go?

[kmids]

So another driver crashed into me 6/10/16 in California and made me hit the car in front of me. I went to urgent care. The other person's insurance is Allstate and they covered my co-payments, meds, loss of hours at work, and did so for my spouse as well. They paid the auto shop directly, the auto shop missed a few things after they got my car back so I returned it and they gave me my car back but they're waiting on a few parts to fix my seat that moves. That's all great except for the following:

- They asked me to for the last 5 of my social because otherwise they wouldn't be able to issue a check to me for the reimbursements and medical stuff.
- I was waiting on my car to be completed before I gave anyone anything and they're still waiting on the parts so I never signed.
- I then realized that if I sell my car like I planned to next year I'll get way less because the car was in an accident so I asked them about Diminished Value and they said the'd have to refer me to someone else.
- 2 days later there was a check in the mail for my reimbursements, I thought they needed the last 5 of my social?


So my questions are

- How can I get them to pay for the diminished value of my car?
- Should I cash the check they sent me?

Thank you!!

 

[djs]

You can cash the check, not a problem. Doesn't mean anything except they paid up to date.

How significant was the accident? In CA, paying diminished value claims is tough, the goal is to fix the car, but if the car is significantly damaged, you can try to file a claim. Significantly damaged is more then panel work, think frame damage, airbag deployment, suspension damage type of thing.

Getting a social makes doing the paperwork easy. Not getting it from you usually means they get it elsewhere. The fact they only asked for the last part of the social means they already had what they needed and just needed to confirm it. Don't worry, insurance companies actually treat this with the utmost respect and care, but, it helps prevent significant fraud in insurance claims. You'd be surprised how many claims a few people try to file.

Dan