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quiet-fox-802

Hit and run driver's insurance just denied my claim — how is this even legal?

I still can't wrap my head around what happened so bear with me.

About three weeks ago I was on a two-lane road heading toward the highway on-ramp. A pickup comes flying out of a parking lot, clips the entire rear quarter of my car, and just… keeps going. Didn't brake, didn't pull over, nothing. I managed to get the plate number and pulled over to call the police. Officer came out, took a report, everything.

Through the DMV lookup on the police report I tracked down the other driver's insurance. Filed a claim the same day. Felt good about it honestly — I had the plate, I had a police report, I even had a partial dashcam clip (angle wasn't perfect but you can clearly see the impact jolt).

Fast forward to yesterday. I get a letter saying the other carrier investigated and is declining liability. No explanation beyond some boilerplate about their insured disputing the account of events.

Disputng WHAT exactly? They left the scene! How do you dispute something you literally fled from?

Now I'm sitting here with a repair estimate that made my stomach drop, a rental car I'm paying out of pocket, and zero answers. My own insurance has collision coverage but I really don't want to eat the deductible for something that wasn't my fault.

Has anyone dealt with a denial like this when you had a police report AND dashcam footage? I feel like I did everything right and still got nowhere. What's the next move here?

8replies

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8 replies

  • 0
    brave-crane-582

    This is completely standard adjuster playbook — deny first, see if you go away. The other carrier's ONLY job is to protect their insured, not to be fair to you. A police report and dashcam footage are exactly the kind of things that make them nervous, which is probably why they sent the denial fast and vague. Don't let it sit. The squeaky wheel absolutely gets the grease here.

    • 0
      warm-wren-661

      Almost identical thing happened to me last year. Got denied by the other driver's insurance even though I had a witness. I ended up going through my own collision coverage just to get my car fixed fast, then my insurer went after theirs through subrogation and eventually recovered my deductible back. Took a few months but I got it. Might be worth asking your agent if that's an option while you fight the liability side.

  • 0
    spry-sparrow-560

    I used to work claims and I'll be honest with you — when a third-party claimant (that's you, since it's not your own policy) has a dashcam clip AND a police report, a denial at first contact usually means one of two things: either the adjuster hasn't actually reviewed the footage yet and just took the insured's statement at face value, or they're betting you won't push back. Submit the dashcam file directly to them in writing — email with read receipt — and explicitly reference the police report number. Make them acknowledge they have it. That changes the conversation pretty quickly.

  • 0
    mellow-kestrel-752

    A few things worth knowing: a third-party carrier denial isn't the end of the road — it just means they're not voluntarily paying. You can still file a complaint with your state's department of insurance if you believe the denial was made in bad faith, especially when there's documented evidence they seem to be ignoring. Also worth noting that a hit-and-run police report can sometimes trigger your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage even when you did ID the other driver, depending on how your state defines it. Ask your own agent specifically about that.

  • 0
    swift-mole-234

    Not legal advice, but just so you know — a denial letter from the at-fault driver's insurance doesn't prevent you from pursuing the at-fault driver directly. If the evidence is as clear as you're describing, a personal injury attorney can often send a demand letter that moves things along when a DIY claim stalls out. Most do free consultations and work on contingency, so there's no upfront cost to at least understanding your options.

  • 0
    sharp-elk-974

    Are you physically okay? Sometimes after a jolt like that people feel fine in the moment and then neck or back stuff creeps in a few days later. If anything feels off — even minor — please get checked out and document it. Medical records become really important if this turns into a bigger dispute.

  • 0
    brave-hare-950

    Send the dashcam video to the other insurer in writing TODAY. Then file a complaint with your state insurance commissioner — that complaint goes on record and adjusters hate those. Also call your own insurer and ask specifically about subrogation. Stop waiting for the other side to do the right thing on their own.

  • 0
    daring-bison-837

    What exactly did the dashcam footage show? You said the angle wasn't perfect — if the actual point of contact is off-frame they may be using that as cover to say the fault is ambiguous. Not saying you're wrong, just trying to understand why they felt confident enough to deny with a police report in play.