Animal jumped out of nowhere, now my new insurance might ghost me — anyone dealt with this?

I switched insurance about a month before a tree branch fell on my car during a storm and I had the exact same panic. My neighbors swore up and down the company would deny me. They didn't. As long as your policy was active and your premium was paid on the date of the incident, switching recently shouldn't matter. The trooper report and the witness statement are huge — that's basically airtight proof you're not making this up.

Worked in claims for years. The 'you just switched so they'll deny you' thing is mostly a myth people repeat without understanding how underwriting actually works. What matters is whether your policy was in force on the loss date — period. Where it can get complicated is if you misrepresented something on your application when you switched (like not disclosing a prior accident). If your application was accurate, you're in solid shape. The bear evidence and the trooper report make this pretty routine from a claims standpoint.

Okay, former adjuster is probably right that they shouldn't deny you, but that doesn't mean they won't try to slow-walk it or lowball your damage estimate. Keep every single piece of documentation you have, photograph everything if you haven't already, and don't let them pressure you into a quick settlement on the vehicle before you know the full picture on your injury claim. Those are two separate things and adjusters love to bundle them together when it benefits the company.

Please don't brush off the collarbone bruising from the airbag. I've seen patients who felt 'fine' after an airbag deployment and then started having real shoulder and neck issues weeks later. If anything feels off — stiffness, headaches, numbness in your arm — go back in and get it documented. It's not about being dramatic, it's about having a medical record that tracks your actual recovery.

Your documentation setup is actually really solid. Incident report from law enforcement, an independent witness statement in that report, and medical records from urgent care tying your injuries to the event — that's basically the trifecta. Just make sure there's no gap between the incident date and the urgent care visit that the adjuster could use to question causation. If you waited more than a day or two, be ready to explain why (which 'I was shaken up and thought I was fine' is a totally normal and valid reason — just say it clearly).

Stop listening to your cousin and coworker. Respectfully — they're not insurance adjusters. Your policy was active, you have a police report and a witness. File the claim, answer their questions honestly, and follow up every few days so it doesn't sit in a queue. If they deny it, then you escalate. But cross that bridge when you come to it.

Not legal advice, but from what you've described, a coverage denial would be pretty hard for them to justify. The switching-carriers timing alone is not a valid denial reason. Where I'd flag caution: if your injury ends up being more significant than it looks right now — shoulder, neck, anything that needs follow-up care — don't settle the bodily injury piece until you actually know what your treatment looks like. People close those out fast and regret it.

A bear?? First of all, I'm glad you're okay, that sounds absolutely terrifying. I hope the insurance stuff works out — it really sounds like you did everything right. Hang in there.