At-fault driver's insurance denied my claim even though I have it all on video — what now?

Oh man, this happened to me almost exactly. Other driver's insurance denied my claim even though I had a witness AND photos. What I learned is that their adjuster is literally working FOR the other driver, not for you. They will lowball or deny first and hope you just go away. I ended up going through my own insurance (I had collision coverage) and let them fight it out. It took a few months but I got my deductible back eventually. Don't let that denial letter be the end of it.

That denial letter is a tactic. Their job is to pay out as little as possible and they know most people will just give up after the first denial. Do NOT accept that as the final word. When you call them, ask specifically what their policyholder told them happened — their version of events is probably totally different from yours. Also ask whether they've even reviewed the dashcam footage you submitted. Document every call: date, time, name of rep, what was said.

Former adjuster here. When a denial comes back with no explanation like that, it almost always means one of two things: either their insured gave a completely different account of the accident and the adjuster took their word for it, or — and this is more common than people think — your evidence wasn't actually reviewed properly and just got buried in someone's queue.

When you call, ask to speak to a supervisor and specifically request a written explanation of the liability determination. They're required to provide one in most states. If they reviewed dashcam footage and still denied, that's a whole different fight, but find out first.

Not legal advice, but I'd strongly suggest at minimum a free consultation with a PI attorney before you do too much negotiating with the other insurance company on your own. A lot of people don't realize that once you start going back and forth with adjusters, things you say can be used to complicate your claim later. With clear video evidence like you're describing, an attorney can often get a reversal or push things toward a fair resolution pretty quickly. Most PI attorneys don't charge anything unless they recover for you.

Please don't forget about yourself in all of this. Even a moderate impact can cause soft tissue injuries that don't show up until a day or two later — neck, shoulders, back. If you feel anything off physically in the next few days, go get checked out and make sure it's documented medically. I've seen people focus so hard on the car damage that they don't mention they've had a headache for a week, and then it becomes really hard to connect it to the accident later.

Call them, get their reasoning in writing, then talk to a personal injury attorney. That's the short version. Don't waste too much energy being frustrated — just take the next practical step. The dashcam footage is genuinely valuable, don't downplay it.

This sounds so stressful, I'm sorry you're dealing with it. The fact that you have video and they still denied it feels so wrong. Please don't try to handle this alone — even just talking to someone who knows how this process works could take a huge load off. You deserve to have this made right.

Genuine question — did you confirm the dashcam footage was actually received and reviewed by the adjuster before they issued the denial? Sometimes files get uploaded but nobody actually opens them before making a determination, especially if the claim volume is high. Also, do you know if a police report was filed at the scene, and if so, did it assign any fault? That report can matter a lot in how the other insurer frames their decision.