How do Property Damage Claims Work in a No Fault State
My question involves an injury that occurred in the state of: Minnesota
On my way to work Monday, the car in front of me was cut off by another drive. She slammed on her brakes, I slammed on mine and tried to pull to the left but itr wasn't enough, I hit the side of her car with my car. A police officer showed up and said that since the damage can be buffed out, he wouldn't fill out an accident report but he would fill out an incident report if we wanted to claim insurance. Now she is threatening that if I don't pay out of pocket to fix her car she will submit to insurance.
My question is how does this work in a no fault state? If she submits a claim, do both of our insurance premiums go up?
Thank you for your reply!
Dan
Re: Rear Ending Accident in Minnesota (No Fault State) What is Next
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scda0505
My question is how does this work in a no fault state?
No-fault in Minnesota has to do only with bodily injury, not property damage.
The person who caused the damage (or his insurance company) pays for the repairs to the other vehicle.
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Quoting
scda0505
If she submits a claim, do both of our insurance premiums go up?
No. Just yours since you were the one that caused the accident. I'm sure that you think that her slamming on her brakes was the cause of the accident. It wasn't. After all, she was able to avoid hitting the car in front of her when it made a sudden move. You were either following too closely or going too fast for conditions and were unable to avoid hitting her car when she made a sudden move. That's negligence and makes you at fault.
If she makes a claim it will be your insurance that pays and your policy that will be surcharged for an at-fault accident.
Your option is to pay her for her repairs out of your pocket so your insurance rates don't go up, or report it to your insurance company and let the claims department handle it.