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wise-lynx-047

Hit by a rental car and the rental company's insurer keeps ghosting me — anyone dealt with this?

So about three weeks ago I got rear-ended at a stoplight by someone driving a rental car. Wasn't my fault at all — I was completely stopped. The driver admitted it on scene, the police came, I got a report number, and I even have a witness who stuck around.

The problem is the rental company's insurance carrier. I've called their claims line probably eight or nine times since the accident. Every single time I get a different rep who tells me an adjuster "hasn't been assigned yet" or that my claim is "still in review." I asked to escalate to a supervisor and was told — I kid you not — that there's no one above the rep I was speaking with. That can't actually be true, right?

I also sent two emails with my police report attached and haven't gotten a single response. Not even an auto-reply.

Meanwhile I'm driving around with a cracked bumper and some rear panel damage that's getting worse every time it rains, and I've been having neck stiffness that started a couple days after the crash. I haven't gone to the doctor yet because I'm honestly not sure what the process is supposed to look like.

Has anyone had to deal with a rental company's third-party insurer before? It feels like they're deliberately running out the clock or hoping I'll just go away. Do I need to get my own insurance involved? Talk to a lawyer? I don't even know where to start.

Any advice appreciated — feeling pretty lost here. 🙏

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8replies

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8 replies

  • 12
    bold-heron-559

    A couple of things that might help: First, your own auto policy likely has something called 'uninsured/underinsured motorist' or collision coverage that you can use while fighting the other side — using it shouldn't raise your rates when you're not at fault, but double-check your policy. Second, most states require an insurer to acknowledge a claim within a set number of days (usually 10–15) and assign it within another window after that. Look up your state's insurance code or call your Department of Insurance — if they've blown past those deadlines, that's a formal violation you can report. Not legal advice, just process stuff.

    • 4
      clear-heron-400

      Not legal advice, but a lot of PI attorneys offer free consultations and will sometimes just make one call to a carrier that changes the entire tone of the conversation. Insurers move differently when there's representation involved. Worth at least one call to understand your options, especially since you have a police report and a witness — that's a solid foundation.

  • 11
    swift-vole-457

    They 100% know what they're doing. Delay, delay, delay — it's a strategy. The longer you wait without a lawyer or your own insurer involved, the more they're betting you'll either settle for less or just disappear. Don't give them that satisfaction. Document every single call: date, time, rep name if they give it, what was said. That log matters later.

  • 10
    bright-hare-866

    I used to work claims and I can tell you — rental company accounts are often handled by specialty third-party administrators, and those pipelines can be genuinely slow, but three weeks with zero adjuster assignment is on the longer end. The 'no supervisor' line is almost certainly not true; every operation has escalation paths. Ask specifically for a 'team lead' or 'unit manager' instead — sometimes the phrasing unlocks a door that 'supervisor' doesn't. Also, file a complaint with your state's Department of Insurance if they keep stonewalling. That gets attention fast.

    • 6
      swift-beaver-494

      Please go get that neck checked out sooner rather than later. I know it feels minor right now but soft tissue stuff from rear-end crashes can sneak up on you, and waiting too long sometimes makes it harder to connect it to the accident medically. Even just an urgent care visit to get it documented is worth it. Your health comes first — the claim stuff can run in parallel.

  • 7
    quick-badger-702

    Three steps: (1) File a claim with your own insurer today and let them fight it out with the rental company's carrier — that's literally what subrogation is for. (2) Go to the doctor this week. (3) Consult a PI lawyer before you sign or say anything to the other carrier. You've got leverage with that evidence — don't negotiate it away by going it alone.

  • 7
    quick-badger-825

    I'm so sorry you're dealing with this on top of recovering from the accident itself. The runaround from insurance companies is genuinely exhausting and it's not fair. Please don't let them wear you down — you did everything right by getting the police report and the witness info. You deserve to have this taken seriously.

  • 6
    clever-tern-008

    Ugh, this is almost exactly what happened to me after I got sideswiped by a rental van. The rental company's carrier strung me along for almost a month before anyone even called me back. What finally got things moving was sending a certified letter — return receipt — directly to the carrier's claims department. Something about having a paper trail they had to sign for seemed to shake things loose. Hang in there, you're not crazy for feeling like they're stalling.