Woman stuck waiting for repairs more than 2 months after car crash
By Megan De Mar
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BENSENVILLE, Illinois (WBBM) — A driver in west suburban Bensenville thought dashboard camera video showing another driver rear-ending her would be enough to get the damage covered by insurance, but two months later, her car is still undrivable, and she has a warning for other drivers.
Emily Mendiola was driving on Grand Avenue in Bensenville with her friend and toddler in the backseat of the car on Aug. 9 when her dashcam shows her slowing down gently as the car behind her rams into the back of her 2024 Toyota Highlander.
The other driver told an officer that “he was unable to stop in time to avoid collision,” according to a police report on the crash.
“Obviously, the bumper needs to be repaired,” Mendiola said.
Just from a visual inspection, the officer noted there had been more than $1500 in damage to the car.
Mendiola went to her repair shop in Elmhurst, which estimated the damage at over $8000.
“The liftgate’s completely smashed in half,” she said. “This whole thing’s cracked open.”
More than two months later, the other driver’s insurer, Direct Auto, has repeatedly told her — despite the police report and the dashcam video — they couldn’t “establish liability” in this case.
“It’s been nothing but a nightmare,” Mendiola said.
The mother a 2-year-old hasn’t been able to drive her car for two months. Mendiola went to the Illinois Department of Insurance for help.
In a response to the Illinois Department of Insurance, Direct Auto said they were in dispute about the cost of the repairs and that the repairs could be performed at one of the company’s “preferred vendors” – not for $8,000, but for less than $1,300.
“You should be able to use any licensed repair shop, and insurers can’t require that you use theirs,” said Scott Holeman, spokesman for the Insurance Information Institute.
Holeman said that’s the law in Illinois, but insurance companies might only cover damages equal to the estimate from their preferred shops, which explains Mendiola’s situation.
She said the insurance company has given her until Oct. 26 to take their offer or leave it.
“I’m giving up at this point,” she said.
Holeman said his best advice for Mendiola is to get her insurance company involved.
“Even if you’re not at fault, you may want to have your insurer work out the details with the other insurer to recoup costs. Now, initially, you may have to pay your deductible, but often your insurer will go negotiate those claims for you and get that deductible back,” she said.
Mendiola said that’s what she plans to do, and she wants other drivers to know it’s something they might have to consider from the start.
“Even if you do everything right, you still might not get the answers that you know you actually need; not even that you want, that you need,” she said.
A Direct Auto spokesperson said the company “does not comment on any individual claim nor do we provide any documentation to outside parties not relative to the claim. Direct Auto has no comment.”
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