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The Georgia Department of Insurance provides plenty of useful information to Georgian residents who are interested in learning more about the state’s insurance requirements and laws. The following information is provided by the Georgia Department of Insurance.
Vehicle Losses
There was a time when an individual’s only access to an automobile was his or her own. In current society a family usually owns two or more vehicles and may have use of his or her employer’s vehicle.
I work part-time using my car to deliver pizza. Does my insurance cover me while I am working this job?
Probably not. Most private passenger auto insurance policies do not provide coverage when the covered vehicle is used to deliver property, i.e. pizzas or people for a fee (salary, tips, etc.). Coverage would probably be denied if an accident occurred while you were using your personal vehicle to deliver. Check with your employer to determine if the employer would provide you coverage while you are engaged in that employer’s work.
Although my driver’s license expired a few days previously, I borrowed my neighbor’s car with his permission yet the neighbor’s carrier and mine have denied the claim saying I didn’t have a right to drive the car because I had no current driver’s license. Can the carrier do this?
Many policies state that you are not an insured in such a situation as you were aware that you could not legally drive that car.
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Quality of Auto Repairs
Consumers will reach an agreement with the insurance company as to the dollar value of the claim but the repairer has not repaired the car properly. This can cause obvious problems as consumers must in the final analysis contract with a repairer as carrier will not and is not required to do so.
I was in an accident with another party. The latter was at fault. The liability insurance company has paid me the cost of repairs but the repairer has not repaired the car satisfactorily. What can I do? Can your Department resolve this?
Although you settled the claim with the liability insurance company, your problem is with the repairer with whom you contracted for the repairs. You may have to settle the dispute with the shop through litigation through our civil courts. This office has no authority over the repair facility.
My insurance company has an estimate to repair my car for $1250.00 from a repairer but I want to have the car repaired at another shop for $250.00 more. Can I require the insurance to pay me the difference in the amounts of the two estimates?
If the estimate of the insurance company is that of a reputable repairer or if any other repairer will do the work for that amount, the insurance company will not have to pay you the difference in the estimates. You can, of course, take your car to any shop of your choice but in these circumstances you have to pay the cost differential.
The insurance company wants to use aftermarket parts rather than original manufacturer’s parts. Is that legal?
Yes, as long as the estimate so indicates such parts are being listed and the guarantee of the manufacturer is also stated on the estimate.
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After Market Parts
After Market Car Parts are generally defined as “parts not manufactured by the original equipment manufacturer that replace non-mechanical sheet metal parts or plastic that constitute part of the exterior of a motor vehicle, including, but not limited to an inner or outer panel.
Can the insurance company use after market parts to repair my car?
Yes. The insurance company is required, however, to identify each after market part used in the repair estimate and attach a disclosure statement that aftermarket parts were authorized in the estimate.
Must I accept the after market parts utilized by the insurance company in their estimate?
No. You can request that the repair shop use original manufactured parts but you will have to pay the difference in the cost of the original manufactured and after market parts.
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Third Party Liability Claims
These claims are ones asserted against a consumer based on the allegation that the loss resulted from that consumer’s alleged negligence. In short, it protects that consumer up to the amount of insurance involved from adverse judgments that if not otherwise paid can become a lien on your home or real property.
The other party’s liability insurance company has denied my claim stating their insured was not liable although I provided them with a copy of the police report that clearly states their insured was at fault. Can they do this?
The insurance company conducts its own investigation and makes its decision as a result of that investigation. The Georgia Code says that carriers will have a procedure to insure prompt investigation and settlement of claims. Thus a carrier has some leeway in the elements used in investigations. Carrier may take statements of both drivers and any witnesses, reviewing the police report, inspecting the accident site and checking the points of impact on the involved vehicles.
I was in an accident and the other party was clearly at fault and the policeman gave the other guy a ticket. The other guy’s insurance company is refusing to pay for my damages because they feel I was somehow at fault. Can’t the Commissioner’s office force the other guy’s insurance company to pay for my damages?
Determining who was at fault, blame or legally liable in an auto accident does not fall under the legal purview of the Commissioner’s office. This involves a question of fact and a civil matter which can only be settled in the proper court of jurisdiction. The Commissioner’s office role in third party liability claims is greatly limited and is primarily confined to ensuring that the other person’s insurer is conducting a good faith investigation.
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Diminished Value
Georgia courts have said that a person’s damage is the difference in the value of that property (automobile) before and after the accident. The courts have said that efficient repair of any vehicle damaged in an accident may not have returned that vehicle to its pre-accident condition. This has generated an upsurge in diminution in value losses and claims.
I just filed a claim with the other person’s insurance company that hit my car. Don’t they owe me diminished value?
In view of our courts’ decision, they may owe you diminishment. As a third party claimant, you will have to initiate the filing of such a claim even though the liability carrier has paid you for the repair of the car.
What is the diminution in value claim procedure if I file that claim with my collision carrier?
The determination, per the instruction of our courts, of diminishment must be done by the carrier at the time they estimate cost of repairs of vehicle damage. Such determination could result in evidence of no diminishment.
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Cancellation and Non-Renewal
Loss of a drivers license is generally caused by serious traffic offenses and failure to comply with Financial Responsibility Laws, namely, maintenance of liability insurance. All questions or inquiries regarding the status of ones drivers license should be directed to the Georgia Department of Motor Vehicles Drivers License Services at 678-413-8400 or web site www.dds.ga.gov.
I have been with my insurance company for five years and always paid my premiums on time. Now, the insurance company is not going to renew my policy just because I had to use it for three small accidents which they said were my fault. Isn’t that why you have insurance? They can’t legally non-renew me can they?
Any insurance company can non-renew a policy if their insured has had more than one at fault accident in the past three years or all claims payments total $750.00 or more.
I recently traded my 1998 Saturn for a Corvette and added it to my policy. Then, they sent me a cancellation notice. The reason given was the ownership of a Corvette. I don’t think this is right. Is it?
The acquisition of the Corvette, a so-called high performance car, could be a change in condition of the risk which would permit cancellation under current law.
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