California: At Fault’s Insurance Refusing To Pay For My Rental

[vincefield]

My parked car was hit ~3 weeks ago, driver’s side mirror is gone so it’s not legal nor safe to drive. I have a long work commute. So I rented a car before they’d even approved the claim, I drive a Mercedes sedan so got a luxury sedan at Enterprise, as I thought California CACI 3903M states I’m entitled to.

Two weeks later the drivers insurance finally approved the claim, they’ve approved the repairs but complicating matters is that the body shop I wanna use can’t start repairs for another four weeks from now.

The adjuster assigned to the case finally called me back after 2.5 weeks from accident and said they will not reimburse my rental or cover one because of the time it’s gonna take to get repairs. She will not tell me what the total limits on the driver’s policy are in terms of cash they’ll cover. The repair estimate is $7,000 and some change, but that could go up once they take the bumper off.

So am I in the right here to demand they pay for my rental until my car is fixed? Should I escalate to a supervisor and then tell them I’m going to file a complaint with the state insurance board, and sue their insured motorist for the cost of the rental in small claims court? (I have already shelled out more than $1000 on the rental car, and am worried about spending thousands more without any guarantee of getting it back.)

Thank you for reading!

 

[thewordiswisdom]

@vincefield They may have the state minimum or just higher than that for property damage coverage. If that's the case, there's not enough $ in the policy to pay for your damage and your rental. You would have been better off filing a claim under your policy and using your own rental coverage.

 

[vitagenlab]

@thewordiswisdom With these delays OP would also exhaust 30 days of rental coverage well before repairs are even underway. As an adjuster the delays in repairs in some regions is absolutely killing us.

All in with a 7K repair OP might actually have lower out of pockets going this route and getting reimbursed up to the at fault drivers policy limits. Would certainly behoove OP to switch to a cheaper rental though.

Edit: didn’t know CA had 5K PD that’s wild they’re generally extra in a lot of stuff I’m really surprised lol.
OP - did the other carrier mention any concerns in the estimate itself saying they can’t even cover the repairs?

 

[thewordiswisdom]

@vitagenlab They will and insurance is not responsible for those types of delays. Yes, insurance doesn't pay for expensive rentals. They pay for a vehicle that gets you from A to B while your car is being repaired and they also get discounts a consumer doesn't have access to, so they won't like paying higher rates than normal.

 

[vitagenlab]

@thewordiswisdom Yeah from what I’ve seen our rates with enterprise are about 50% lower than what a person would get just renting a car off the street there.

I don’t have experience with CA claims at all but I’ve seen mentioned in this sub both that they owe you an apples to apples rental and also not, just something the same general size - not sure which is accurate.

 

[nilsa]

@vitagenlab CA is 5k and FL is 10k. Guess how many of my claims have limits issues in those 2 states?

Oh and PA too with 5k.

 

[vitagenlab]

@nilsa I’m in New York - we’re at 10K so excess is a frequent issue.

 

[asotoskori]

@vincefield California's state minimum is $5000. if they have 5K or even 10K, then they're absolutely not going to pay you for any rental until they have all the final bills since they already know repairs are at least 7000.

I believe California does state that you have a right to a similar size vehicle but that doesn't mean they owe the cost of a "luxury" brand.

If you have coverage through your own insurance for rental you can use that.

 

[nilsa]

@vincefield File your complaint and let us know the DOI’s response. Their carrier won’t pay beyond policy limits and neither would yours if it were the other way around. They don’t have to disclose policy limits with you because they don’t have a contract with you, and again your carrier would do the same.

You made the decision to rent without knowing you would be reimbursed.

 

[chris461]

@nilsa ____________[sup]^[/sup]

What if the insurance company is the one that still has the car. 2 months in Jan. 4th 2024.

I filled out the claim on Nov. 3, 2023. They told me to take the carcto the shop.

I did send pictures. After 2 weeks, they told me they were going to pick up the car from the shop.
I had to come up with $280.

They need to check some box.
The mechanic did not even make an ND estimate.

I rented a car 30 days expired. I still have the rental.

My question is, are they responsible for the extr crental.

 

[zemkiose]

@vincefield Do you have collision insurance?

Do you have rental coverage?

 

[andiluvs]

@vincefield

So am I in the right here to demand they pay for my rental until my car is fixed?

No. You are owed reasonable transportation for the reasonable repair time or 3-7 days after a total loss offer is made.

Should I escalate to a supervisor and then tell them I’m going to file a complaint with the state insurance board, and sue their insured motorist for the cost of the rental in small claims court?

Those are all options you have but none of them will change how they claim is gets handled.

CA is not a state where a LKQ rental is owed; only one with the same number of seats/seat belts as the one wrecked.

You can catch more flies with honey if you want an upgrade, but getting a luxury upgrade is rare. Getting a luxury upgrade while your drivable car sits waiting for the body shop you chose to get it in to start repairs is impossible.

(I have already shelled out more than $1000 on the rental car, and am worried about spending thousands more without any guarantee of getting it back.)

Return the rental you have and pick it up again once your car is back in the shop.