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Geico Didn’t Save Me Money
By Jacob Cohen | February 2, 2007
On Dec 15, 2006, my car was rear-ended on the freeway. There were no injuries, but my car sustained considerable damage. The bumper and muffler were dragging on the ground, both rear quarter panels were crumpled, and the trunk was stuck open.
The guy who hit me had Geico, so I figured I’d be able to get my car fixed pretty quickly and easily and be back to normal in no time. This turned out to not be the case at all.
The other guy didn’t call Geico for about a week and a half, meaning they couldn’t accept liability and get the process started. My car was undrivable, so I had to pay for a rental myself to get to work that week. After a few days of Geico being unable to contact their insured driver, I decided to call my own insurance company (USAA) to get the ball rolling. They got my car in a shop the next day.
It turns out there was a lot of damage to the rear subframe assemblies and floor pan in addition to the visible damage, so it took about four weeks to fix everything. During this time I was still in a rental car, having no other practical way to get to work or anywhere else.
Now my car is fixed, I want to get reimbursed for my rental car expenses, and the cost of the tow truck that moved my car off the side of the freeway.
Geico, however, requires my insurance company to file a subrogation demand that includes repair shop estimates for downtime, etc. They won’t deal with me directly.
So I’m going through USAA again. They were very helpful when I explained the situation, giving me a fax number for sending the receipts, and the name and number of the subrogation agent who will be handling this.
I understand Geico’s hesitation to begin the claim before they had talked to their insured driver. They have an obligation to protect the people they insure. However, I don’t understand why they’re continuing to drag their feet after they’ve accepted liability for the claim. This is much more of a hassle than it needs to be.
I used to use Geico before I switched to USAA. Every now and then they send me a letter asking me to let them run numbers again to see if they can save me some money if I switch back (they can’t). But now I have another reason not to go back.
Topics: General |
March 5th, 2007 at 9:16 am
Did you have to rent a car? You could have hitchhiked.
March 13th, 2007 at 5:38 am
Unfortunately, insurance companies do have to wait until they receive a subrogation demand from your company. That is simply because in the past, people would receive payments from their insurance company, then demand payments from the at-fault insurance company, receiving double payments. The fastest way is what you did; filed a claim with your own carrier. Contact your company and make sure they have copies of all of your out of pocket expenses. Write a letter explaining why you needed a tow, etc., and request reimbursement from your company. If you do not have coverage for towing or rental under your own policy, call your company and ask to speak w/ your Subrogation representative and see how you can get any out of pocket expenses reimbursed. As soon as Geico gets a subrogation packet, it shouldn’t take very long (1-2 weeks) for them to respond. Your company will probably send you a check for your deductible. Companies, due to state law, have to respond to subrogation demands in a timely manner, but your company can only send a subrogation demand after they have gotten all your payments for your vehicle settled.
Best of luck!
March 13th, 2007 at 10:59 am
Hmm. Good advice. Thanks!
March 27th, 2007 at 10:31 am
Geico does suck. Look at what they wanted and didn’t want to do to this woman’s car. She had a freakin’ crushed air bag sensor! The poor woman has two baby girls. Watching her videos make my heart break.
August 9th, 2007 at 7:35 am
GEICO played a bait and switch tactic on me. When I asked for a quote online, they gave me one figure, but when I applied online and gave them my credit card, they raised the rate. Then, once my insurance took effect a month later, they raised the rate again stating that my zip code was wrong and the rate needed to be adjusted again. I checked my zip code with the USPS website and it was correct. The person on
the GEICO phone stated that they used some other facility to check my zip code. I cancelled my car insurance immediately with GEICO but they charged me for a day. The bastards!
December 2nd, 2007 at 7:48 pm
Geico profit sharing was at 28.6 percent last years that means that geico’s employees got to keep 28.6 % of YOUR PREMIUMS! that you pay. Think about it, if your car insurance is 300-500$ per 6 months thats almost a $100 dollars or more. How sucky is that. You have to pay high rates and then give their rude employees a pay increase with your hard earned money.
November 3rd, 2008 at 3:39 pm
There is more fun about Geico ads:
http://www.designfail.org/2008/11/03/geicos-real-savings/