Irondequoit, NY Personal Injury Law Firms & Lawyers

You would need to go after the school district as they are employees. Yes you can go after the parents, but you would need a high level of proof that the parents knew what was going on.

The short answer to your question, "can I sue the driver and get the costs of my deductible," is yes you can sue the driver who is at fault, and caused damage to your property, i.e. your car. However, a law suit against this driver will require a lot of time and expense on your part. There may be a better way about going in getting your deductible back. First off, find out if you have underinsured motorist property damage listed as one of your options under your policy. Assuming this is the case your deductible typically is less than your normal collision coverage. This will help you offset the out of pocket expense to you directly. It appears that by not cooperating with her own insurance company the other driver risks being denied any coverage. That being said suddenly she will become uninsured. This allows you to utilize this portion of your policy. Pay the deductible, cooperate with your insurance company, have them inspect your vehicle, they will write an estimate, pay your deductible to the auto body shop and get your car repaired. This will trigger a subrogation interest for your insurance company and yourself. As an exclaims representative, I frequently contacted the state of Washington informing them of drivers who did not have insurance. Typically these folks would also not pay back the amounts paid by the insurance company I worked for. The state of Washington used not to reissue licenses as a result of these reporting's. Hence when your defendant in this case does not pay back your insurance company for monies spent on the repair to your vehicle, inquire as to what your insurance company will report to the State in regard to this matter. Finally, if the defendant in this case, wants her license back, she will begin paying your insurance company. Inquire with your own insurance company, whether or not you receive the first dollars associated with payment from the defendant as a result of having to pay your deductible. If they say that you do not get the first dollars back on a repayment schedule, then hire a lawyer! Your insurance company should take a 2nd seat in relation to being paid back. Thus, you should be paid back first i.e., for example, $300 deductible for UIM or $500 deductible for collision depending on your deductible amounts and policy language. Get your insurance company to work for you. After all, you paid your premium and they work for you. Your insurance company should be pursuing this matter against this individual. Follow-up with your adjuster, and if you are not satisfied quickly move to your adjusters manager. Place everything in writing, sent via facsimile and first-class mail, their typical excuse will be, "we did not get your letter," and make sure to save the fax confirmation form which demonstrates that you sent the letter to your insurance company. Finally inquire often; this will motivate the adjuster to bring resolution to the matter. This will allow you to avoid having to file suit in relation to a property damage claim. Otherwise you will have to, depending on the amount, file in Superior Court and pay the filing fee on top of any fees associated with tracking down the defendant, serving the defendant and then the expense of the discovery process, i.e. interrogatories, depositions, etc.