This is my letter, sent to them today:
"To whom it may concern,
The following is a demand letter before serving papers against your employer, Direct General Insurance Company, for the results following the accident that occurred on November 1st, 2005, claim # 891588.
I (Nicholas Nordness) have been in contact with Starr Davis at extension 6185 since November 2nd, 2005. Since then, it has been a nightmare attempting to get this situation resolved. As of January 27th, 2006, I received the check for my car in the amount of 4500.00, which was agreed upon by both parties (after several weeks of disputing.) What it being disputed is the amount of the rental car reimbursement. On November 7th, I obtained a rental car from Hertz, and explained the situation. They stated that I would need to get someone on the line from Direct General Insurance while I was in the office to direct bill the company, otherwise I would need to use a credit card. I attempted to use their phone twice, and called 800-403-1077 as well as 813-663-9550 with no response. I have two bills, totaling 2891.26 (one for 2133.49 from the rental car use from November 7th, 2005 to January 3rd, 2006, the other is 757.77 from January 3rd to January 24th, 2006.) I have received a check from Direct General in the amount of 1290.91, with the argument that:
“Direct is not responsible for your rental expensive during the time we are investigating coverage. We are responsible for your rental charges starting on December 07, 2005 to January 3, 2006.”
I have three credible witness’ stating that your insured was at fault, three separate people saw the accident, saw him fail to yield, and saw me make an attempt to avoid the accident at all costs. I also made it a point to ask the officer as to who was at fault. He stated that he cited him, and obtained all of his information first, because he was at fault and gave him a ticket for failure to yield. I advised Starr Davis of this, and she said it wasn’t necessary when we spoke on November 2nd, and stated that we will discuss the rental bill at a later time.
Furthermore, I personally had to drive up to Bay County Sheriff’s Office, and obtain the police report myself, after several attempts at calling Direct General, asking them if they had the report, or when they would have it, I was told that they have the short form, and that they needed the long police report. Every time I called, I was told it should be “within 3-5 days.” It was then, on December 7th that I drove to the office, obtained the report, and faxed it over at my inconvenience. The clerk at the office stated when I obtained it that they had the report for quite some time.
My Nextel records show that I called the insurance company on twenty-one separate occasions from November 1st to January 9th, 2006. These do not include the attempts I made while at work, as well. A voice mail was left every time, with my contact number. Since November 2nd, I have received five incoming calls from Direct General Insurance. My insurance agent also made several attempts to get this resolved, left several messages and received no response.
At this point, I am asking for the total bill of the rental car that I had to personally finance (2891.26 plus interest) plus damages for emotional stress, bad faith, and negligence during this entire ordeal. The total amount I am requesting is 4,500.00 dollars to cover the rental car bill on my credit card, as well as the damages for my severe inconvenience. The maximum amount allowed in small claims in that state of Florida is 5,000.00 dollars which is what I will seek if I do need to file a claim. There is no reason that an automobile accident dispute should last almost three months, and I feel I have done more than what should be required of the victim, given the circumstances. If I am not contacted with a settlement within 10 business days of January 31st, 2006, I will file paperwork and your company will be served. I do not feel that what I am asking for is unreasonable, as I have made several attempts to get this resolved out of court, with no response.
Sincerely,
Nicholas James Nordness
Contact Information:
Nicholas Nordness
Personal: 850-xxx-xxxx
Work: 850-xxx-xxxx"