Son's Car Wreck

[SteveR]

My youngest son called last night and said he was in an accident. He was struck head on by a driver making an illegal U turn who then lost control of his car on the slick snow-covered road and hit my sons car. After the initial impact his car was diverted into a building where he hit a natural gas main. The car is a total loss with the entire front end smashed and even the frame is bent. My son had only a bruise on his hand. Air bags saved his life..........and the fact that he was in a Volvo. This was the car I gave him when his died a couple of years ago. The car belonged to my late wife and was in premo condition. The car was a Black 1997 Volvo 850 R and was kind of like her final gift to him. Now it is a pile of scrap metal. I am just very thankful he was not seriously hurt.

The rest of the story..........
He was not wearing his seatbelt and never felt the air bag deploy. He has no face burns from the bag deployment and only remember the feeling of being held in place as the accident occured. I am not one to believe in ghosts or such, but when he tells me he felt the presence of my late wife holding him back in his seat; it makes me wonder. Sure it could just be his mind playing tricks on him and what he felt was actually the air bag.........but then again. Just feeling kind of wierded out today with his accout of the accident and his insistance he was being protected by the "something" he cannot explain. Just something to ponder today.

[JPatrick]

Glad your son is alright.* Not many come out as lucky without benefit of seat/shoulder belts, so maybe...............

I went through a similar ordeal with my DS.* He was also OK.* Hope your insurance adventure goes well also.

[Outtahere]

I'm glad he's okay Steve, as for what kept him safe you'll never know for sure but there was something more than safety equipment involved.

[cube_rat]

I'm glad he's okay. Your story is a parent's worst nightmare.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Ditto... unseen mystical forces are most welcome at times like these.

[KB]

I'm glad your son was ok. That's a parent's worst nighmare... in my opinion.

My son totaled his car in November and is still working through his back problems. And his accident sounds like it was not as bad as your son's.

Please ask your son to start using his seatbelt. He's already tempted fate once and won.

[SteveR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KB I'm glad your son was ok.* That's a parent's worst nighmare... in my opinion. My son totaled his car in November and is still working through his back problems.* And his accident sounds like it was not as bad as your son's. Please ask your son to start using his seatbelt.* He's already tempted fate once and won.*

We have already had the "Seatbelts are not there as an accessory" speach. He knows better. I will blame it on testosternone poisoning (he is 21).

He is now driving my truck until the insurance companies duke it out and he gets a check to go buy a car. I am just thankful he was not seriously injured...no marks at all. Seeing the condition of the car, I am amazed he was not killed. I have seen many car wrecks and was a EMT for several years so I know what to expect in the way of human damage when evaluating a car wreck. He got off very very lucky.

Now we get to deal with the insurance company run around. The guy who hit him was cited for the accident so he is liable. The problem seems to be the validity of this guy's insurance. We will see what the day brings.

[brewer12345]

Steve, I would imagine that you could go after the other driver even if his insurance didn't turn out to be valid. Did you carry uninsured/underisnured insurance coverage? If so, you should be A-OK regardless of the other driver's status.

[MasterBlaster]

SteveR:

Since the other driver was cited, tell your insurance company that you want a rental car (at their expense) until the check arrives. You are entitled to it.

I had the delightful experience of witnessing a high speed multi-car pileup on the freeway. We were all speeding at 75-80 when a car changed lanes three cars in front of me right into the front of another car. Well the cars started bouncing and rolling over and around like bowling pins. I personally was able to skid around the carnage but others weren't so lucky.

Events like that make you think...that could've been me. After that I started driving larger cars with all of the safety equipment. It just isn't worth it to save a little gas when your butt is on the line.

Think about what you'd like to be hit in not what kind of gas milage it gets or how nice the stereo is. even if you are a careful driver there are lots of not-so careful drivers out there.

[Jay_Gatsby]

Ditto on being glad your son is okay. *On the other hand, I'd prohibit him from driving for a period of time as an appropriate punishment fo not wearing his seatbelt. *Why on earth would anyone NOT wear their seatbelt?

[JPatrick]

Steve--I'd spend a bit of time reserching the replacement value of your car.* Look in all the usual places to find local area prices.* Also be prepared to document stuff like brand new tires, add on sound system yadayada.* It is almost a given that your company will lo-ball you.* With effort you may add $500 to your check.
If your guy didn't have insurance, you can collect on your collison after which your insurance company will go after him for the cost AND your deductible.

[SteveR]

Thanks for the tips.

We are working all the things you guys pointed out here. The rental car thing is still up in the air since he does not have coverage for it in his policy (he carries his own insurance with his mother my ex.) so they are working on it. I am not really involved in it yet. His mom is a real b*tch when it comes to money (I should know :) so I am sure she will go after every dime she can get.

I think he just wanted to drive my truck for a while anyway. I don't really care as I am not using it for a couple of weeks.

For the seat belt thing..........he is 21 and owned the car outright ( I "sold" it to him a couple of years ago) and he does not live with me so there is not much I can do to him other than tell him how stupid that was which I have already done....several times.


Thanks for the show of support. It helps.

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveR so there is not much I can do to him other than tell him how stupid that was which I have already done....several times.

We tell our kid that's how parents say "I love you."

[LakeRat]

Steve, I am so glad your son is OK. I want you to know that I cried reading your sons story. I am sure his Mom was with him.

[Dreamer]

I am so glad that he is okay. Most 21 year old males would not make up a story about an unseen force protecting him in an accident. If that is his version, I would have a tendency to believe him.

Dreamer

[wabmester]

How old was the driver making an illegal U-turn?

Looking back on my early years of driving, I am amazed I survived. I think we should raise the license age to 30.

I just looked at some fatality stats, and basically you're 2-3x more likely to die in a car from age 16-24 than from age 35-55. After age 74, probabilities of fatalities start going up again. Minimum age 30, maximum age 70!

[SteveR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wab How old was the driver making an illegal U-turn? Looking back on my early years of driving, I am amazed I survived.* * I think we should raise the license age to 30. I just looked at some fatality stats, and basically you're 2-3x more likely to die in a car from age 16-24 than from age 35-55.* * After age 74, probabilities of fatalities start going up again.* * *Minimum age 30, maximum age 70!

WAB,

The guy who caused the accident was making an illegal U turn, in a snowstorm, on a busy 6 lane highway and lost control and spun out in front of my son. The guy appears to be an illegal from Mexico, speaks no English and may not have car insurance. He was cited for the wreck but did not even check to see if my son was Ok after the accident...he just called someone on his cell phone and it was not the police or ambulance dept. My son say he thought the guy was in his early 30s.

Thanks to you all for your kind thoughts and support. The thoughts of him being killed in this accident keep going through my head. I don't know how I would deal with losing him.

[Jarhead*]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wab I just looked at some fatality stats, and basically you're 2-3x more likely to die in a car from age 16-24 than from age 35-55.* * After age 74, probabilities of fatalities start going up again.* * *Minimum age 30, maximum age 70!

What do you think, ReWahoo? Should I? Nah.

Oh, what the hell.

Wab: I remember you live in the Puget Sound Area. What kind of cars do you drive to get you around that beautiful area.?

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jarhead* Wab: I remember you live in the Puget Sound Area. What kind of cars do you drive to get you around that beautiful area.?

[brewer12345]

Steve, for your son's next car, check out the IIHS' top safety picks at http://www.iihs.org/ratings/default.aspx

The only non-luxury cars that got top awards were the Ford 500/Mercury Montego (only with optional side airbags), the Subaru Legacy, and the Hnda Civic.

FWIW, I put a lot more credence in the IIHS' numbers and tests than govt tests.