The Shoulder
The Shoulder
60
Insurancewise-raven-674

Insurance arranged towing after my accident and now nobody knows where my truck is??

So this whole situation has me feeling like I'm losing my mind a little bit. Got rear-ended pretty hard about three weeks ago — other driver's fault, pretty clear cut. My insurance coordinated the tow since I couldn't drive the truck away from the scene. They gave me a tow company, I signed some stuff on the side of the road, and that was supposed to be that.

Fast forward a few days and I call to check on the status of my vehicle and... nobody can tell me where it is. The tow company says they dropped it at the assigned collision center. The collision center says it never showed up. My insurance rep keeps saying they're "looking into it" but that was over a week ago and I've gotten maybe two voicemails with zero actual updates.

I do have a rental right now so I'm not completely stranded, but that's not really the point. My truck has tools in it for work. It has personal stuff in it. And beyond that — it's just gone? Like how does a vehicle just disappear from a chain of custody that my own insurance company set up?

A coworker who went through something similar a while back keeps telling me I need to get a lawyer involved now before this drags out even longer. I don't really know what a lawyer does in a situation like this vs. just pushing harder on my insurance company myself.

Has anyone dealt with something like this? What actually happens next — do they eventually just cut me a check for the value of the truck? What about my tools and personal property? I feel like I'm in the dark here and every day that passes makes me more anxious about it.

10replies

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10 replies

  • 7
    candid-mole-775

    Oh man, I had something similar happen — not exactly the same but my car sat at a lot for almost a month with nobody telling me anything. The moment I mentioned getting an attorney the communication got a LOT faster. I'm not saying that's the answer for everyone but it definitely lit a fire under them in my case.

  • 11
    genuine-otter-401

    The fact that they set up the tow and now can't locate the truck is a THEM problem, not a you problem. Don't let them spin this into some kind of coverage dispute down the road. Document every single call — date, time, who you spoke to, what they said. Screenshot every voicemail notification. These things have a way of becoming 'he said she said' really fast.

  • 19
    sharp-lynx-784

    I used to work claims and honestly the tow-to-shop handoff is where things fall apart more than people realize. There's often no formal confirmation process — driver drops it, shop is closed, nobody signs anything. What you should push for right now is written documentation from the tow company: their dispatch log, the driver's delivery notes, GPS records if they have them. A lot of smaller tow operators have GPS on their trucks and that data exists. Your insurer should be requesting it, but if they're dragging their feet, ask them directly in writing.

  • 13
    sharp-crane-711

    The personal property inside the vehicle is handled separately from the vehicle itself — just so you know. Most auto policies don't cover contents, that usually falls under renters or homeowners insurance. But if the vehicle turns out to be truly unaccounted for due to negligence on the tow company's part, there may be a separate claim there. Definitely worth at least a free consult with a PI attorney to understand your options. Not telling you what to do, just saying it doesn't cost anything to ask.

  • 15
    clever-wren-450

    The tools alone would stress me out so much. I really hope they find it soon. Have you tried calling the tow company directly instead of going through the insurance rep? Sometimes cutting out the middleman gets things moving.

  • 11
    tidy-dove-682

    Stop waiting for voicemails. Call your insurance company and explicitly ask for a supervisor or a claims escalation. Use the words 'escalate my claim.' Also send an email summarizing the situation so there's a paper trail. Be polite but be persistent — squeaky wheel and all that.

    • 1
      curious-survivor852

      Thanks for sharing. Hope things are getting a little easier for you.

  • 12
    bold-grouse-770

    Not legal advice, but the scenario you're describing — insurer-coordinated tow, vehicle unaccounted for — could potentially involve liability on the tow company and/or your insurer depending on your state's laws around bailment. The rental being active is good, it shows they acknowledge the situation, but it doesn't resolve the underlying property question. A free consult with a PI attorney wouldn't hurt just to understand where you stand. Most will give you 20-30 minutes at no charge.

  • 18
    tidy-wren-016

    Did you get the name of the tow driver or the tow company in writing at the scene? And did your insurance send you any confirmation email or text with the assigned shop address? Just trying to understand how much documentation you actually have to work with here.

    • 4
      honest-parent577

      This is really helpful — thank you for posting it.