Ok...the cliff notes version.
Going to work one day. Get behind a Tri-Met bus (death on the back roads of Portland). Wife is driving, decides to change lanes. Guy in the other lane waves us in. As soon as we start to go, he speeds up and hits us in the side (no injuries, minor damage to both vehicles). We pull over and get out. He said he wasnt waving us in, that he was just a little slow on the gas. Were like, No joke, Slappy, considering the 10 cars in front of you had already made it through the intersection. Any way you dice this accident up, even though he waved us in, its our fault b/c were the ones merging into another lane.
Call our insurance company that shall remain nameless (Safeco). Tell them the story. After I get done, the adjuster says to me, So, ummmm, what do you think about the accident? I told him, Um, I think its your job to handle this. Thats why we pay you. Then the dude has the temerity to say to me, Well, it just doesnt look too good for you guys. I was like, Excuse me? He said, Yep, it looks really badly for you guys. I said, Well, since youre our insurance company, I would think that the correct statement would be it looks badly for us when it comes to causation. He said, It just looks badly for you. I concluded the argument by saying, Well, it looks pretty damn good when you guys are taking money out of my checking account every month, doesnt it? Heres whats gonna happen Mr. Adjuster, if that is your real name - Im going to take our car to the body shop of your choosing. Then, Im going to pick up a rental car from a rental place of your choosing. Then, the body shop will be in touch with you to let you know how much itll cost. Then, after its all fixed, Ill pay my $250 deductible and get the car back. If anything out of the ordinary happens, please feel free to let me know. Otherwise, unless you just miss the sound of my voice, please take care of everything else without involving me. The adjuster then gave me the info I needed and we hung up.
I deal with cranky insurance adjusters everyday. I treat them with a certain modicum of respect, but if they step out of line, Im quick to tell them. We all have a job to do and being cranky with me doesnt help the end result.
Grrrrrrr....I hate insurance companies. The biggest racket in the world.