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You are here: Experts > Money > Personal Insurance > Insurance Law > Nationwide will not pay for the body work done to my truck because they said it's too expensive
Expert: Richard
Date: 5/8/2008
Subject: Nationwide will not pay for the body work done to my truck because they said it's too expensive
Question
QUESTION: My truck was rear ended by another drive whom was insured by Nationwide. Nationwide had claimed liability already because their insured was at fault. The issue here is that Nationwide is trying to do a incomplete paint work on my vehicle by doing a burn-in into the back left panel where my cabin was hit when the bed bended during the impact. According to a estimator p-pages, this is not the correct way to do this. Now Nationwide is refusing to pay for the body work because the body shop is wanting to do it the correct way. The adjuster is refusing to pay for it and I'm not getting any cooperation from his supervisor. What actions to do I need to take in order to get this resolved? What grounds do I have?
ANSWER: Hi Dave, get your estimates, the police report, and any correspondence from Nationwide which admits that their insured was at fault in causing the accident and sue the other driver in small claims court or if the damages are too much, in civil court. That Nationwide adjustor is being a cheap and stubborn jackass and you will have to bare your teeth and dig in your heels to show him that you will not be bullied or intimidated. When that adjustor is informed by his insured that you are suing you will see him change his tune. It is unfortunate that people have to go through so much trouble just to obtain something that is rightfully coming to them.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: I have a few more questions? Can the other Insurance discriminate against the type of vehicle that I have, the age of the vehicle and type of color? Can an Insurance company dictate which body shop I want to take it to? Can the other Insurance refuse to pay of additionally supplements if it exceeds their estimates? What if the additional supplements required were legitimate according to the estimator system P-Pages they chose; which states explicitly that they need to paint the whole panel and over if there are no breaks between the panel and roof?
I have a Black 1998 Toyota Tacoma which still has an excellent paint life on it, no fades or any major scratches, nor previous accidents. The adjuster that I was working with has refused to pay to get this done correctly and had rudely told me off and stated that they do not perform these types of procedure on a vehicle like mine since my truck is a 10 year old vehicle and that there is no warranty for the life of the paint. Does it really matter how old the paint is? Is there a difference when performing the same type of procedure on a Black 1993 Porsche 911 and mine? We ended off with the adjuster cursing my last name out and him stating that I should’ve chosen a body shop more carefully. Apparently, I have nothing against the adjuster and was willing to work with them until they disappointed me. I’m not sure if he was trying to intimidate me by this manner or was it because he was being pressured from his superiors but can I complain this to my local Insurance Commissioner? What are other ways that I can expose this problem? For all that you have answered already I wanted to say thanks and I truly admired your assistance.
Respectfully,
Dave
Answer
Hi again Dave, you can formally complain to your State Insurance Dept. or Commissioner but I doubt that they will do anything but write a letter of inquiry to Nationwide. There should not be any type of discrimmination regarding the age and type of vehicle that was damaged by Nationwide's insured except for the monetary limits doe property damage contained in the insurance policy. The key operative words here are "to bring the damaged vehicle as near as possible to it's pre-accident condition". I still feel that you are going to have to sue the other driver in order to get justice from Nationwide because in that case there will be two irate people for them to deal with, you and their insured.
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