Yeah, I know. The title of today's post sounds a little paranoid, doesn't it? If you've ever been through the ordeal that follows an accident, you'll know that it does...with good reason. You learn fairly quickly to trust no one. (That had a James Bond-kind of tone, didn't it?)
Within the first few days following the 'incident,' as the insurance company prefers to call it, there were two significant instances that set me on the path to questioning the motives of many people I would come to meet.
For some reason, getting a copy of the accident report was high on the list of things I felt I needed to do that week. So as soon as it was ready, I paid the $5.00 fee, made sure I was listed as 100% blameless...and almost screamed when I read the part where the officer chose not to issue the man who hit me a ticket.
What???!!!
That must have been a mistake. A big one. But no. It was right there in black and white. The guy admitted he hadn't been paying attention, ran the red light and hit me. Witness reports confirmed the same thing, and their names and contact information were right there. In black and white.
But he doesn't get a ticket. Or a breathalyzer test?
This was about five o'clock on a sunny, dry October afternoon. An out-of-state visitor runs a red light and totals my van-and the officer doesn't even think to see if he'd been drinking? Doesn't give him a ticket?
Reading the last few sentences, you might get the idea that I'm still a little ticked off. And you'd be correct. I thought the police were there to protect the victims. Guess I was wrong.
The next thing involved the company the officer called to tow my van away. As I mentioned in the previous post, I hit my head hard enough that I blacked out for a short time. My thought processes left a little to be desired and I didn't think to ask where they were going to take the van. To the best of my recollection, I wasn't even asked where I wanted it taken, or I might have suggested my driveway.
Now here my thoughts are a little confused (a fairly common occurrence these days). I know the van wasn't in the tow company's yard for a full seventy-two hours but, when I realized that the bill was already sky-high, and they said the insurance company 'totaled' it, they helped me arrange for a friend of theirs-who just happened to own a scrap yard-to buy the van. The van with the full tank of gas, purchased at nearly $3.00 a gallon.
Long story short, I was backed in to a corner, with storage charges climbing every day. Not exactly in my budget. So I said fine-and got enough from the sale to pay about two-thirds of what I owed.
That was when I got my first look at the bill. Which included a $50.00 fee. My half of the costs for cleaning up the accident site. Only fair, the gentleman pointed out, since my oil and anti-freeze were all over the road, too. (I'd give you my honest opinion of that statement but it would involve the use of some heavy duty profanity and I'd rather not go there)
But let me tell you, paying that charge is at the top of my 'to-do' list. And I'll pay every cent of it, too. The very instant I get word that hell has, indeed, frozen over. Just so there's no confusion, on the off chance the owner of the towing company should happen to stumble on to this blog, I am referring to the biblical hell and not Hell, Michigan, which freezes over on a fairly regular basis in the winter.
Okay, I'll admit that this post turned in to a bit of a rant. But that doesn't alter the fact that if you were-or are ever-involved in an auto accident, be aware of the fact that, except for your loved ones, no one will be looking out for your best interests.
No one. Not the cop, not the towing company. And never, ever your insurance company. I'll cover more about that in my next post.
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