Backed into in a Parking Lot While Backing, Was Completely Stopped After Backing

[Kaskade]

My question involves a traffic accident in the State of: Indiana
The accident occurred in a private parking lot however the other party refused to provide their insurance information so I did call the police department and get a case number.

I was in my car and prepared to back out of the parking spot - the spots in this lot are not slanted and face west<->east. I had looked behind me and backed all the way out of my spot and had come to a complete stop when I felt an impact. I got out of my car and saw that another driver had backed into the driver side rear door and quarter panel of my car with the rear right corner of their bumper.

The other driver was a minor that was just recently licensed and he refused to provide me his insurance information so I contacted the police department at which point the other driver's family showed up. They tried to offer me money for the damages ($50~100) and told me not to file a claim that they would cover the damages and to get them the estimates from the shops. I told them that I would get the estimates and then they could decide if they wanted to pay the damages or not.

After getting two estimates I contacted the other party and they essentially told me to get lost, etc. I filed a claim on the other party's insurance policy however that insurance company seems to have jerked me around for about 2 or 3 months at which point they simply told me that there was "not enough evidence" and that since both parties were backing that they were ruling it no-fault and declining my claim.

The damages to my vehicle are in the $700~900 range and I have high resolution photography of the damages at the accident on both vehicles. Their vehicle has a small scuff where as my door and quarter panel are dented. It can be seen from the scratches and the dent on my vehicle that the impact happened in the door and then continued down the side of the car towards the rear quarter panel.

Since their insurance company denied the claim I am considering filing a claim in small claims court however I wanted to get some insight into how accidents such as these are generally treated/handled. It's entirely possible that a court would find the same ruling as the insurance company or it could be that the other insurance company is just playing hard ball with me, I'm not knowledgeable enough in this aspect to know which is which.

It simply doesn't make sense, in my mind, for them to impact my car with the right rear of their car in my driver side rear door and for it to be "no fault". I'll be more than happy to clarify anything if you need more information, I am trying to keep this concise.

Edit: I forgot to say, that the other insurance company claims to have a video tape from the parking lot of the accident. Is there any way that I can request this from them or do they have no legal requirement to provide me a copy? They said they got it from the police department, however the police department is giving me the run-around (and has been for weeks). I know exactly what happened so if there is a tape, ultimately it would be good for me to have a copy to present as evidence.

Thank you for your time!

[Mr. Knowitall]

Should we infer that you have no collision coverage through your own insurance company?

Accidents between two cars that are backing up are very often going to be treated as shared or equal fault. Even with the claim, "I was fully stopped when hit," you didn't see or respond to his car before that point. Also, what if he claims exactly the same thing? (The video could help with that last point, but isn't necessarily decisive.")

If the other driver's insurance company defends them in your lawsuit against them, you can explore the court's discovery rules and, if possible, seek a copy of the video through discovery. If not, you can see if you can obtain a copy of the video from whatever entity controls the cameras, assuming you haven't waited too long. You can ask the other party's insurance company to voluntarily give you a copy, and maybe you'll be lucky. If you have coverage and make a claim through your own insurance company, it's possible that they'll be able to get a copy from the other insurance company in response to any subrogation claim.

[Kaskade]

Should we infer that you have no collision coverage through your own insurance company?

Fully covered, just don't want to file a claim on my own insurance as we just switched companies about a month before this incident.

Accidents between two cars that are backing up are very often going to be treated as shared or equal fault. Even with the claim, "I was fully stopped when hit," you didn't see or respond to his car before that point. Also, what if he claims exactly the same thing? (The video could help with that last point, but isn't necessarily decisive.")

Right now what I'm really concerned with is getting a copy of the video tape - do you know if this is something I can request from the insurance company or will I be forced to continue trying to get a copy from the police department.

If the other driver's insurance company defends them in your lawsuit against them, you can explore the court's discovery rules and, if possible, seek a copy of the video through discovery. If not, you can see if you can obtain a copy of the video from whatever entity controls the cameras, assuming you haven't waited too long. You can ask the other party's insurance company to voluntarily give you a copy, and maybe you'll be lucky. If you have coverage and make a claim through your own insurance company, it's possible that they'll be able to get a copy from the other insurance company in response to any subrogation claim.

I tried getting a copy of any video when it happened from the location but they would only provide a copy to the Police and the police officer said she'd give me a call if there was anything on tape and she never did. When I try to get a hold of the police department or I go in there they give me the run-around which is frustrating to say the least.

I have learned one valuable lesson however that would have made a huge difference... The second an accident occurs pull out my phone and turn on video/audio recording. If I had the forethought to do this I wouldn't be in this situation as the other party offered to pay for damages and asked me to get estimates. Very infuriating, so I'm going to do what I can.

[adam_]

While "both backing" seems to be cause people to say 'both at fault', you can look at the impact to determine if you were stopped and if he actually backed into the side of your car, meaning you had established your position. Under what rules of physics would they claim the rear of your car jumped sideways into his car? A lack of 'sideways' marks can be used to bolster your assertion.

You can file with your insurance and tell them you will not let it be filed on your collision policy. You are trying to do this yourself and they are jerking you around....

[Kaskade]

I can't seem to get my insurance company to do anything without formally filing a claim on my collision. They told me I need to work with the other insurance company and if I don't like what they come back with to file a claim on my policy, pay my deductible, and then they will try to get it reimbursed from the other insurance company...