I got hit by a half ton :(

[Richard Hoffman]

Well, as much as I hate to say it (for the sake of your Audi) I think it
might be a good idea to contact the other guy's insurance company (for the
sake of your health).  My thoughts on the subject...
The "fair market value" of our cars is pretty low, honestly, in the 3 times
I have been involved with the insurance company (none of them my fault,
thanks) they tend to really "low-ball" the value of our cars.  They don't
make money by writing checks, right?  After watching a pristine, show
quality VW GTI be declared a total loss for a minor fender bender, I fear
that the insurance company will do the same for your car.
As for your health, who knows what is going on there, but I would hazard a
guess that it is more important to maintain that than the Audi (blasphemy?
perhaps...).  Case in point - my mother (Age 38 at the time)suffered a fall
on vacation and, over the course of the following 10 years had to go in for
major neurological surgery and now can only turn her neck about 1/3 the
distance she could before thanks to having 4 of 7 vertebrae fused to prevent
further damage.  Kind of a personal story, a little off topic but really, if
this neck condition continues and becomes something serious (God forbid)
then the medical expenses could be an absolute nightmare.
Insurance companies are a real PITA most of the time but considering the
alternatives...I think it would be wise.  Of course, your call!  Every
situation is different.
Good luck with *everything*!
Richard (thankfully accident free for the last 4 years)






>From: Zsolt <zsolt1 at telusplanet.net>
>To: Quattro <Quattro at audifans.com>
>Subject: I got hit by a half ton :(
>Date: Fri, 10 Jan 2003 21:03:10 -0700
>
>As I was driving through a small intersection I was broad sided by a
>half ton. The guy even had a stop sign, but never did stop.
>
>I tried to avoid the impact by swerving around him, but he was faster
>and hit the car between the front and rear doors on the passenger side.
>As my car was still moving forward, the nose of the truck scraped the
>side of my car back all the way to the rear wheel. The car is still
>driveable, but the rear wheel is catching on bumps.
>
>We both got quite shook up (my girlfriend and I) but walked away with
>only sore necks. The guy agreed to his fault immediately and I had him
>sign a statement which describes what happened. He offered to pay for
>the damages but I am concerned that
>
>1. the repair cost is going to be high (I don't want bondoed up doors
>and quarter panel) and he's going to want to negotiate or take the car
>to his budy to fix up, etc.
>
>2. if our neck injuries get worse, I would probably like some
>compensation for that as well.
>
>Either way it's going to be a pain to deal with it all...
>
>Any advice?
>Thanks,
>   Zsolt
>   88 5ktq (damaged) :(


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