pwrfshn
09-28-2010, 11:03 AM
Wanted to share my “Insurance 101” experience as I think it may be helpful for other folks in the same or similar situation.
On July 31, 2010 we had just finished the first day of a two-day tourney and were on our way back to where we were staying. We were stopped at a stop sign at a major intersection and the second vehicle back waiting for traffic. As I looked up in my rear view mirror, we've all done it, that sinking feeling came over me that the vehicle coming down the hill was not slowing like they should be. Sure enough, they ran right into the back of the boat. Fortunately, I saw them coming and had my foot pressed to the floor. The impact was interesting, I was expecting more of a jolt in the truck, but I guess there were enough “give” areas to where it did not seem that bad.
Upon initial inspection of the boat, the winch stand was bent forward and the boat was moved about 8”s forward on the bunks. They hit the motor dead center, must have been the shiny silver spot on the end, and folded in the front end of their Chevy ˝ ton Silverado. We called the police immediately and did not move anything. Unfortunately, I learned that moving anything isn't a good idea if there is damage, especially if you weren't at fault. The police arrived, took statements and then had me pull my boat out from the front end of his truck. The other driver thought they would be able to drive away as it was just a “minor impact”. Thankfully the police didn't need much from me as the other driver was cited as it was obvious what happened at the scene. They let us go on our way and now the wheels were turning.
Not knowing what was wrong with the boat, we had to find another boat to use for the tourney and then move all our stuff over. We were able to borrow a boat, but it didn't have a front graph. Normally that would not have been a big deal, but we were fishing 25-40 FOW drop shotting for fish. We made it through the tourney and finished 3rd. The real challenge was just beginning.
We secured the winch stand and front of the boat on August 1 and I headed back to Albuquerque. On August 2nd, I contacted my insurance, Anglers Advantage (Old United) who I have had for years and never filed a claim. They informed me that if I was not at fault, my best bet was to go through the other drivers insurance. Thankfully they had insurance with Allstate and I was not too worried. I also contacted AAA Auto Insurance and let them know just in case there was any damage to my vehicle.
My next call was to Bob Luellen at Worldwide Marine Insurance as Bob has been a contributor here and on many other sites over the past few years educating anglers about their coverage...or lack of coverage. Ironically, Bob and I had spoken in early July about my coverage and that I was under-insured but that we would work on getting that changed. Bob was a great resource of information and explained what I was lacking and what needed to be changed on my policy at a minimum. He spent a lot of time on the phone, exchanging emails, etc. all knowing he would not get any business from me as he was not currently licensed in NM. Didn't matter to him, he wanted to make sure I was covered.
Now that I had been in an accident, I called Bob for some advice. The first thing I was told by my insurance is that if I needed to get back on the water, I could file a claim and that because the damage was higher than my “actual cash value” of my policy, they would total the boat and give me a check. That was not going to work. Actual cash value of my boat was substantially less than the market and I was getting nervous. Bob had explained this in July and instead of making it a priority, I let it go until I would have the time to deal with it, big mistake. Bob spent the next three weeks holding my hand while I went through the process and was always willing to answer my questions and lend sound advice.
In the end, Allstate paid the claim and my boat is currently getting all the repairs it needs to be as good as it was before the accident. If it wasn't for Bob, I would most likely still be fighting with Allstate or not been compensated properly for the damage. I had heard horror stories of 3-6 months for dealing with this stuff and it only took a few weeks.
Thanks again Bob and I hope we can do business some day.
Brian
On July 31, 2010 we had just finished the first day of a two-day tourney and were on our way back to where we were staying. We were stopped at a stop sign at a major intersection and the second vehicle back waiting for traffic. As I looked up in my rear view mirror, we've all done it, that sinking feeling came over me that the vehicle coming down the hill was not slowing like they should be. Sure enough, they ran right into the back of the boat. Fortunately, I saw them coming and had my foot pressed to the floor. The impact was interesting, I was expecting more of a jolt in the truck, but I guess there were enough “give” areas to where it did not seem that bad.
Upon initial inspection of the boat, the winch stand was bent forward and the boat was moved about 8”s forward on the bunks. They hit the motor dead center, must have been the shiny silver spot on the end, and folded in the front end of their Chevy ˝ ton Silverado. We called the police immediately and did not move anything. Unfortunately, I learned that moving anything isn't a good idea if there is damage, especially if you weren't at fault. The police arrived, took statements and then had me pull my boat out from the front end of his truck. The other driver thought they would be able to drive away as it was just a “minor impact”. Thankfully the police didn't need much from me as the other driver was cited as it was obvious what happened at the scene. They let us go on our way and now the wheels were turning.
Not knowing what was wrong with the boat, we had to find another boat to use for the tourney and then move all our stuff over. We were able to borrow a boat, but it didn't have a front graph. Normally that would not have been a big deal, but we were fishing 25-40 FOW drop shotting for fish. We made it through the tourney and finished 3rd. The real challenge was just beginning.
We secured the winch stand and front of the boat on August 1 and I headed back to Albuquerque. On August 2nd, I contacted my insurance, Anglers Advantage (Old United) who I have had for years and never filed a claim. They informed me that if I was not at fault, my best bet was to go through the other drivers insurance. Thankfully they had insurance with Allstate and I was not too worried. I also contacted AAA Auto Insurance and let them know just in case there was any damage to my vehicle.
My next call was to Bob Luellen at Worldwide Marine Insurance as Bob has been a contributor here and on many other sites over the past few years educating anglers about their coverage...or lack of coverage. Ironically, Bob and I had spoken in early July about my coverage and that I was under-insured but that we would work on getting that changed. Bob was a great resource of information and explained what I was lacking and what needed to be changed on my policy at a minimum. He spent a lot of time on the phone, exchanging emails, etc. all knowing he would not get any business from me as he was not currently licensed in NM. Didn't matter to him, he wanted to make sure I was covered.
Now that I had been in an accident, I called Bob for some advice. The first thing I was told by my insurance is that if I needed to get back on the water, I could file a claim and that because the damage was higher than my “actual cash value” of my policy, they would total the boat and give me a check. That was not going to work. Actual cash value of my boat was substantially less than the market and I was getting nervous. Bob had explained this in July and instead of making it a priority, I let it go until I would have the time to deal with it, big mistake. Bob spent the next three weeks holding my hand while I went through the process and was always willing to answer my questions and lend sound advice.
In the end, Allstate paid the claim and my boat is currently getting all the repairs it needs to be as good as it was before the accident. If it wasn't for Bob, I would most likely still be fighting with Allstate or not been compensated properly for the damage. I had heard horror stories of 3-6 months for dealing with this stuff and it only took a few weeks.
Thanks again Bob and I hope we can do business some day.
Brian