Risky Business
How a Drunk Driver Can Cost You Down Time
Hi Everyone,
A few months ago a good client, Tammy, called to say she had been T-Boned by a drunk driver in her straight truck. The guy was cited and it seemed pretty straight forward that he and his wife’s policy would pay Tammy’s damage to her vehicle as well as her lost wages since she couldn’t work without her truck.
I kept calling his insurance carrier to see why they were dragging their feet on paying Tammy. Turns out, the guy didn’t have coverage. He had chosen to exclude himself from his wife’s policy to save money. That insurance carrier denied coverage to Tammy, her own insurance kicked in and they paid to repair her vehicle under her Collision coverage she had purchased on her own policy.
The worst part was that she hadn’t purchased her own “Downtime Coverageâ€, so she was out of work for over 3 weeks and didn’t have any pay.
Moral of Risky Business: Don’t assume if an accident isn’t your fault you'll be compensated for your lost wages.
Shelly Benisch
Commercial Insurance Solutions, Inc.