How to prove to insurance they need to replace car seat?

[laurajetter]

I was in a minor fender bender on 6/1. It was heavily raining and the car behind me rear-ended my car as we were both slowing down for a traffic light. My 9-month old was in his car seat, and everything I've ever read or heard (including the officer who was at the scene) says that a car seat should be replaced after any accident (actually, the officer said it should be replaced in any accident over 5 mph).

The bottom edge of my license plate was bent a little, and there are a few minor scratched when inspected closely, but no major damage. We do not intend on having any repairs made to the car, we just want reimbursement for the car seat so we can get a new one (this really is a shame; we just bought this Britax Marathon a few weeks ago). The officer mentioned since it is a Britax it most likely is fine but we should still probably replace it. I agree.

I contacted my insurance and they presented 2 options:

-Option A-
Place a claim with them, pay the $500 deductible. They will then pursue the other at fault insurance company to make a claim. My insurance can't guarantee they will pay up, however this option is the fastest way to get reimbursed if they do. I am also not guaranteed that my rates won't go up even though I wasn't at fault.

-Option B-
Place a claim with the at fault insurance company, and let them investigate. It will take longer, but if they accept liability they will cover 100%.

My insurance rep seemed to recommend option B, if he personally were in this situation, so that is what I intend to do. I just called the other driver's insurance company and they said they will be sending out an adjuster tomorrow to take a look at the car. I told her I am only interested in replacing the car seat, and she said well then he will look at the carseat.

I asked her how their reimbursement policy worked for this because you can't tell just by looking at the carseat whether there is damage, there could be internal damage to the infrastructure that is not visibly apparent on the outside. She said something to the extent of she hadn't heard of that and that I'll need to ask the adjuster.

So my question is, when the adjuster from this other insurance company comes out tomorrow, if after inspecting the car seat he doesn't see a reason to reimburse me for it, is there any information I can present him with to prove that safety experts say that car seats involved in any accident should get replaced? Is there any kind of documentation for that? Does anyone know if Maryland has a law requiring reimbursement?

I'm just worried he/she will say since there isn't any damage to the car itself then reimbursing for the car seat isn't warranted. I do not think I should have to pay over $270 for another car seat to replace this one since it was not my fault. Any advice is welcome!

Laura

 

[mickeyboat]

I would think that most insurance adjusters would know that a car seat that has been in an accident must be replaced. Just in case, try to find some credible support for that requirement on the internet to present to the adjuster when he comes to look at the car.

Was there any mention on the police report that the car seat was in the car at the time of the accident? That would help, too.

Glad to hear that everyone is o.k. Having an accident, even a very minor one, with a child in the car is incredibly frightening.

Denae

 

[DMickey28]

Who is the other insurance company, if you don't mind me asking?

By presenting the claim to the other insurance company they have to look at your car. You have damage on the car as a result of another person and that person is responsible for it. The other insurance company doesn't care if you fix it, you are owed the money and they will send it to you. I believe that there many be state law indicating that Child Seats need to be replaced when in an accident. If the other company is a larger respected company they should have no problem replacing it. They may ask you to purchase it and send the reciept and they may take depreciation (probably nothing since your seat is so new) and they may or may not ask you to send the other seat to them.

I work for a national insurance company in claims and we have a bunch of seats in our storage room!

Worse case senerio, use the money they send you to fix the bumper to buy a new car seat!

 

[dcgrumpy]

the following link gives you a checklist to see if it needs to be replaced after a minor accident http://www.800bucklup.org/parent/replacing CSS after crash.html

 

[GoodFairies]

from: http://www.sha.state.md.us/safety/oots/trafficsignalsandlaws/childpas.asp

Questions? Call Maryland Kids in Safety Seats at 1-800-370-SEAT or Maryland State Highway Administration at (410) 787-5822. If you require additional information or need assistance please contact us at mhso@sha.state.md.us

 

[barkley]

generaly car insurance won't pay for any items ("personal property") inside the car that are damaged or stolen (though if someone else is at fault their carrier will usualy pay). homeowners or renter's insurance has to cover these.

had a good friend who had twins (both of car seat age) and when her car was wrecked (deemed she was at fault) the insurance company paid for the repairs (post deductable) but she had to pay to replace both car seats. was told (and i later confirmed with my carrier-different company) unless it was a permanantly installed type it was not considered a part of the auto.

hope you have better luck.

 

[piglet too]

https://www.britaxusa.com/support.cfm?id=3958A81E-FBD4-433E-8CD2C1434381F74E If you look here, Britax may replace it for you if the accident was severe enough to cause any structural damage to the car. (which does not seem the case here, but you may want to call them and see what they say)

This site appears to be from the UK but provides a PDF format letter that may help you. http://www.childcarseats.org.uk/choosing/replacing.htm

Please be aware that the NHTSA says that in minor accidents, that the carseat may not need to be replaced http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/childps/ChildRestraints/ReUse/RestraintReUse.htm

 

[alexandmaddie]

I have been rear-ended twice and had the other person's insurance replace 2 different car seats. Both times I had to go buy another, submit my receipt and turn in the old car seat. I didn't have any issues. Both times I was hit they had State Farm as their carrier.

Krista

 

[RadioNate]

State Farm and USAA are both the easiest to deal with for car seat replacements. They both treat the issue as 'better safe than sorry.'

Your best bet is to call Britax. They will know best if the car seat needs to be replaced or not. If they feel it should be replaced they can issue a 'letter' stating so.

 

[mrsv98]

Also check your state law. In IL, it is the law that the person who hit you must pay for the new car seat. When we were rear-ended, I went and bought a new carseat, took the old one to the adjuster and she gave me a check for the damages and the carseat. You might want to go to your state's web site and see if it is required.

 

[laurajetter]

Who is the other insurance company, if you don't mind me asking?

Tried posting the answer to this earlier but the server was busy. The other insurance is Peninsula Insurance Company.

 

[kerrynic78]

I used to work in claims and we would always pay to replace a car seat that had been in an accident.

 

[newholidayx2]

I was rear ended and my car totaled when DS was 2. I was stopped to take a left turn when the car behind slammed into me - sunny day, lunch time, etc. When I got out of the car to get DS from the back the first words I remember saying were "Oh my God! My neck, my head hurts! I have a baby in the back seat!" I didnt know my neck was hurt until I got out of the car to get DS. When they took us by ambulance to the hospital DH insisted that DS also get checked. The insurance company did not at first want to replace DSs car seat - there was a sign on the side telling us to replace any carseat in any accident whether there is damage or not. They did finally replace it at full price and took the damaged one.

 

[ZachnElli]

I was in an accident in 2003 with my 2 kids in their boosters. Both boosters were replaced without question. I just needed the receipt of the new ones and to turn the old ones in. I had State Farm and they were taking care of everything and then turning it into the other agency all at once. It was a big accident, so lots of bills all going to the same place (not my fault btw!). I have read they did change the rules in regards to minor accidents.

 

[almacdonald]

Is your kid's life worth more than $270? In my opinion I'd just pay the money to protect my kid.

 

[laurajetter]

Is your kid's life worth more than $270? In my opinion I'd just pay the money to protect my kid.

Of course it is, and if it comes down to it, I will pay out of pocket to get a new car seat even if we don't get reimbursed. That's not the issue; the issue is that I want to make sure they realize that they should replace it for us.

I want to do whatever I can to get reimbursed for it since the accident was through no fault of our own. We hemmed and hawed over whether to get the pricier Britax and finally decided to bite the bullet and get it. Now, 2 weeks later, it's ready to be scrapped. Why should it come out of our pockets when the other guy is the reason we need a new one?