Comments
therearentanyleft369 t1_iydov0p wrote
My car was titled and registered in Oregon, policy holder is in Utah. I’ve been here for college for about 10 years (took a few years off to get residency for in-state tuition, and I’ve taken some gap years to figure out what I want to major in before wasting money on classes that would end up being useless). I don’t know if I was the only person listed as a driver of that car. My mom and I haven’t seen each other in person for years, though, so I don’t think either of us would’ve thought to list her as a driver for that vehicle. I’m guessing I was the only one listed unless she was added automatically since it’s her policy
NJS1993 t1_iyduouk wrote
Is the vehicle titled and registered to you, or your mom in Oregon? It sounds like it is titled/registered to you. Regardless if you are listed as a driver on your moms policy or not, they are going to unfortunately deny your claim to total your vehicle. Insurance has to be written under the name of the vehicle owner. If it is not, then that is what is called "breach of declaration", and your claim can, and will usually be denied. Your mom has no legal ownership of the vehicle, so she cannot legally insure it on her policy.
therearentanyleft369 t1_iydv64m wrote
The claim has already been processed. Do you think they just made a mistake? Should I prepare for them to come after me?
NJS1993 t1_iydvk6r wrote
Have they already paid you for the value of your vehicle? It sounds like the claim is still being processed given that they asked for the title before processing the payout.
therearentanyleft369 t1_iydxog9 wrote
My title got stolen, so I’m waiting on the replacement to send to them. They’ve already done the market valuation and told me the exact amount of payout I’ll get though
NJS1993 t1_iydyntl wrote
They will usually go over prices and values regardless. However, they will not release the funds until they have the title. This is because when they total out the vehicle, they are taking ownership. They are basically buying your car from you. Nobody buys a car without the title in hand.
therearentanyleft369 t1_iydyyss wrote
Of course, but I’m wondering if they’ll see the address on the title and me listed as the only owner and then deny the payout
NJS1993 t1_iydzbu8 wrote
Thats very possible. You would be better off asking them about it before it happens. And trying to explain the situation. If you dont bring it up, but knew about it beforehand, that can be classified as withholding information, which is a form of insurance fraud.
therearentanyleft369 t1_iye02ri wrote
I hadn’t even thought about that!! I’m definitely not going to mess around with that then. I’ll call the agent. Very, very scared though. Thank you for pointing that out and thank you for the help
FckMitch t1_iydrew5 wrote
Hmm…I changed the title and car registration to my kid in college and he is still on our insurance. I checked w insurance company, told them car is now owned by kid, kid is at college and do we need a separate policy for them? They said no. I changed the title on car on the insurance website etc.
therearentanyleft369 t1_iydw6sv wrote
I really hope that’ll be the case for me!
NJS1993 t1_iydwslw wrote
You should really call your insurance company directly and get a 2nd opinion. DOI rules vary from state to state, however insuring a vehicle you do not own is not a chance I would be willing to take right now in todays economy. Insurance companies are tightening up their claims departments across the board right now due to higher claim payouts and increased costs in vehicles & homes.
therearentanyleft369 t1_iydzelz wrote
I was the only owner of the car. So owner, title, and registration are all in Oregon, policy is in Utah. I don’t think the policy holder was listed as a driver of the car, either. I’m afraid to talk to the insurance company about it right away because I have absolutely no way to handle it if it was a mistake and they refuse the payout and sue for what they’ve already paid the other driver
Edit: I’m going to call the agent. Don’t want to mess around with fraud. Hadn’t even thought of it that way. Just gotta hope for the best at this point
NJS1993 t1_iye0065 wrote
You keep mentioning the policyholder in 3rd person. The policyholder is irrelevant in this matter. If the car is registered and titled to you, then you must be the named insured on the policy and insure the car solely in your name.
If the current policyholder is not on the title or the registration, then the insurance will likely not payout as theres no legal obligation to.
Fomention t1_iydqts6 wrote
Mistakes can be fixed. After all, you were in an accident; this happens frequently, I'm sure.
NJS1993 t1_iydnltt wrote
If youre only away at college then you are fine for the address issue. The vehicle registration address doesnt have to match the address on the insurance policy as long as its in the same state or theres a different mailing address. The issue you will run into is if the car is registered and titled in your name, but the vehicle is insured on your moms policy with you only listed as a driver.