Legal Question in Insurance Law in Washington

Re: Car accident liability

I understand the desire to avoid an increase in your daughter's insurance premiums, but it might be your only practical avenue of recovery. More to the point, since the driver hit another car, I presume there is damage to THAT car as well, and perhaps a whiplash or other injury to the occupants of that other car. In that case, you'll probably need to report THAT to your daughter's auto insurer anyway.

Is it possible that the driver who borrowed the car HAS insurance of her own? She might, even if she owns no car of her own. Perhaps she DID have a car and the insurance is still active. Also, she could be named as an insured on someone ELSE'S policy -- perhaps a spouse or a parent -- in which case that coverage would ordinarily pay for damages incurred as a result of her negligence when she drives any other car, if it's with the permission of the owner.

It makes the most sense, from what basic facts I see in your email at least, to let the insurer pay for it. You may have to report it to them anyway. THEN, your daughter can make a claim against the driver who borrowed her car for any deductible to pay for her property damage, and perhaps for the increase in your daughter's insurance premiums, IF there is one. There may not be.

Note that if your daughter fails to report this accident to her insurer, and then later the other driver makes a claim for personal injury or the damage to his or her car, the insurer may then be entitled to DENY COVERAGE altogther, because she will have failed to timely report the accident to them. By failing to report it, the insurer can argue that their rights to investigate and defend the claim were compromised by the delay. So, in other words, why take a chance?

Regards,

Sam