Ok, so this is not for me, but my roommate.

from what she told me, before she moved in, last NOV, she was involved in an accident in which a kid on a bike fell onto the road, she swerved into the next lane to avoid hitting and killing him. She ended up rear ending/barely hitting the next car.

a cop was just 2 cars behind and basically praised her for not hitting the kid. The lady refused to say it was my roommate's fault, stating that it was the kid's fault. The cops couldn't do anything cause he was under 18 and according to them, he was living at a foster housing place.

The lady just took off after everyone gave their statements.

Well, today, my roommate gets a call from her mom, saying that the lady is planning on suing. According to my roommate's insurance co, Dec is the last day to file a claim.. so she is getting this in before the deadline.

Now, the question is, why is she waiting almost 1 year to do this? could it be some type of fraud? what can she do? If she leaves, and doesn't go to the doctors, and later on claim some type of injury, can she get away with that?

 

if there was a police report, it is a moot point. Generally, you are rquired to be in control of your vehicle at all times, and are responsible for damages, even if you were required to swerve by something in the road. If your friend has insurance, it isn't your friend who is getting sued. That's what insurance is for. Your friend just needs to let her insurance company lawyers handle it.

It doesn't matter if the cop praised her or yelled at her - a cop isn't a judge, nor are they lawyers. If the cop gave her a ticket for the accident, it is pretty much already decided. If not, it is this lady's word vs. whatever.

I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV

 

wow what a tight situation

 

heres the thing. the foster family is making a fraudulent claim to get money to pay for the kid.


what was the claim on the suit for? injuries to the kid? your friend did not hit the kid.

my best suggestion is get the insurance involve and the insurance will fight back. insurance love to fight fraud cases like these

 

no.... no.... no...

it isn't the kid that is suing.. it is the lady that she hit, avoiding the kid....

after 11 months, she decides to come and sue her, 2 weeks before the claim deadline.. according the statefarm, which is her insurance co...

 

First, did your friend pay for anything related to the claim? If she did, did she pay for the lady's damage to her car in exchange for not taking it up on insurance?

Second, what is she suing for?

 

should've hit the kid... lol

on a serious note... don't even worry about it. trust me... my neighbor ran into my sisters car and fell, claiming she hit him and tried to file a fradulent claim on her. this was years back... nothing happened. even if something did arise, i would've shot that kid and his mother then wrote a book about it.

 

I am not a lawyer, and it varies state to state, but, if there are no injuries in question then she might not have a case. There IS a deadline for cases like this, and you cannot just sue when the mood strikes you. So, if the lady was NOT injured, and she is suing simply for damages to the vehicle, she might not be able to. When the police wrote the report, when did the woman get it (the lady your friend hit?)


However, I do not understand your post very well.....

after your friend hit the lady/car, the lady just left? Or did she get out, and give her statement to the cop, then left?


Regardless, my mother is an attorney. So, the lady that got hit has 30 days to file a claim (In NY anyway, other states vary, but never 1 year). Meaning, if the claim was filed, your friend would have known about it. Since she didnt, the lady probably never filed a claim. However ,IF THE CLAIM WAS FILED, she has up to 3 years to move on with the lawsuit. Hope that helps.


*Edit....I cant tell if you are from Richmond CA, or Richmond Virginia. To the best of my knowledge, neither state has a NEAR 1 year timeframe to file a claim. Your friend has an excellent chance of getting this thrown out of court.

 

sorry if the post wasn't all too clear.

I am hearing this a year after it happens so who knows what happened.

basically, she said, she hit the lady, ran to see if she was ok.. she was... the cop came... they both gave their statement, when my roommate's mother came, she, the lady, took off....

*the lady was (just being nice) and let my roommate sit in the car since it was cold.

*nothing happened to the lady's car, only scratches, so i don't think she filed a claim.. my roommate did, cause her car was totaled...

it's richmond, va

 

Always take pictures at the scene of an accident.