Advice concerning an auto accident in Mar '05?

Question:

In Mar '05 a person behind the wheel lost consciousness while driving alone. A firetruck coincidently behind the car saw the driver slump and they tried to use the truck to steer the car from colliding. The car hit one car in the intersection and 2 cars were hit by that car. An ambulance was also at the scene, waiting at the light. The offending driver was the only person to go to hosp. That person woke up in the ambulance. He was not given a ticket.
The cars owner insurance paid for all claims. One car had a lawyer and sued. No info came from insurance as to result of that suit.
Last week, over 2 years later, driver is being sued by the ppl that had the suit w insurance company. Suit is being taken to court in state of car owner and driver. Accident happened in another state.
Whats up with this? Any statutes of limitations? Can anyone provide any links that give info? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Answer:
The jurisdiction of WHERE the accident happened applies, not where the guy lives. If the guy was sued in the state he lives in (IL), state law of where the accident happened (IN)applies but court procedure for the state the suit was filed in (IL) applies as well. So it's very possible to have 2 different laws, or procedures, in place. Statute of limitations vary from state to state, and these are issues to be raised in court by the defense should they apply.

If there is more than one insurance policy covering the same accident (one for the driver and one for the car), then both insurance companies should have open claims filed and both should be working together to defend their insured.

The insurance isn't liable; the at fault driver is liable, if that person happens to have insurance then the insurance pays up to the policy limits. The at fault driver is the tortfeasor; the insurance company is who writes the check.

Let's say for example the statute in IN is 3 years for injury claims, but 2 years for property damage claims. The statute has expired for the property damage claim IF suit was filed after March 2007. If it was filed PRIOR to March 2007, the plaintiff is preserving the statute. Same with the injury claim, although it may expire March 2008, by filing suit, they have preserved the statute of limitations for this claim.

Yes, there are statutes of limitations...and depending on the state the accident happened in it would be anywhere from 2 years+. When a suit is filed, it typically names the insurance, the driver who was negligent, and if the state allows-the registered owner as well.

Just because there's insurance doesn't mean they have to take what the insurance offered. Sound like there was a mighty lot of property damage and the insurance for the vehicle may not have had sufficient limits to properly make this party "whole." They can come after the additional parties in a court of law for contribution, or the balance of the excess that is not on the table from the insurance.

The whole description of the loss is fairly vague. To be honest, if the at-fault driver carries his/her own insurance now would be the time to have this loss reported to them to try and pay for the excess that these folks are seeking.

Best of luck.

here are some links hope they help good luck Will hold this situation up in pray God bless

I think you're confusing presenting a claim for damages with suing. When an accident first happens the other parties can present a claim, which is not a lawsuit, and if they cannot resolve and make a settlement they will bring a suit prior to the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations of the state where the accident occurred and where the suit would be brought is normally what you go by. However, if one or all of the parties live in a different state and the statute of limitations is more favorable they can sue there as well. they will have to prove that the venue where they sued is proper if questioned by the Defendant's counsel.

It really sounds to me like you're confusing a claim with a suit. What probably happened is that the parties could not come to an agreement on the value, a lot of time went by, and before the time ran out a suit was filed to keep the statute from running. The insurance company owes you a defense so you should be ok. let the attorney they get to represent you worry about this stuff.

In addition, people often confuse venue and jurisdiction with each other. Venue is the location (geographically) such as IN or IL. Jurisdiction is the court level at which the case is filed such as District Court, Circuit Court, or Federal court, Court of Common Pleas, etc and whether it has the power and authority to hear the case. Your issue is the venue at this point. They will likely prevail on that if they can connect themselves or you to IN.

3 years to file suit. I believe that's nationwide. But if this case had already been settled they can TRY to sue but it's doubtful that they will see anything more then a reprimand from the judge.

But also, the suit has to be filed in the state of the infraction, not the state the people live.

I don't see this going far. The judge will probably be more upset at the people who filed suit for wasting his time as well as the person being sued can now in turn sue them for any damages he/she incurred due to this frivolous lawsuit.

Advice concerning an auto accident in Mar '05?

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