Has anybody ever been in this situation? Help!!

[Asparagus and Lemons]

not sure if this is in the right place..

But I'll start from the begining..
Probably about a month and a half ago now I was coming home from the shops, going through a round-a-bout and a truck decided to come out on my left and he hit me, my car was very damaged, both doors on the passenger side and the back panel. The truck driver was very abusive saying I am meant to give way to him because he thought he was at the round about first, even though I was already out of it.

I called the police, they would not come out because there were no oil leaks etc.. The man was yelling at me in front of pedestrians, one man stopped and told me to just leave, he started getting abused by the truck driver too, so he left.. so I got no witnesses. I needed the drivers details but he was too abusive, so I called my mum who came out straight away and we got his name, rego and company he works for. That was all, he was not being co-operative.

As soon as I got home I called my insurance and told them what happened. They told me to go get a quote and they will let me know when it can get fixed, as they have to get the truck driver to pay first, admit he was in the wrong, because I only have 3rd Party.
Seeing as though we have a baby due soon, I did it that night. Trying to avoid any delays as the only other cars we have are utes, so I need my car to take the bub home from the hospital.
A week later the insurance calls me up and said that they cant find him, so they need to do a rego check on the car to see who owns it.. which would take up to 2 weeks. So I wait
Today they call up (3 weeks later) and say they are closing the case (wtf!?) They said there is nothing more they can do for me. The truck driver has not told his insurance so unless he contacts me, then my car will not be fixed. So I just have to wait for that. He is not gong to contact me!! Why would he!? He was an bumhole who thinks he owns the road and does not give a stuff about anyone else.
The really frustrating thing is that I see him driving around the area at least once a week, I know where he works, why cant the insurance call him up and tell him to pay? Why is it so hard for them?
I just dont get it. It was clearly his fault and I do not have the money to fix my car!
I'd like to get legal advice, but that can be costly.
I dont know what to do anymore.. Do I go to the police?
If anybody knows, or has been in this situation before I'd love to know what happened. Im very glad that the car still runs and the baby seat will fit in there still. But I can only fit 2 people in there as the doors dont work, so we have to get to the passenger seat through the drivers side. It is horrible. I now know it wont be fixed in time for baby. It's making me very upset and stressed, we bought the car only in feb, just for baby, and now it's ruined. I hate driving a smashed up car around, people look at me and think im a crap driver. But Im not! Can anybody give me advice on what to do?
Thanks for reading.

[Pandora]

They should be taking him to court. I don't know why they aren't... You should be able to get a free iniial consult for legal advice lots of places offer that

It should be evident from the damage who hit whom, if he was on your left and he hit you then it seems fairly obvious that you were on the roundabout already. It's give way to the right not first in best dressed.

If he was already on the roundabout you would have hit him

He won't hve told his boss cos it's probably a work vehicle, can you call the company and say you want to speak to someoe about the accident you were in with their driver when he hit you?

[Asparagus and Lemons]

Thanks Pandora, If I was able to speak with the driver.. what would I need to ask him? Dh is pretty keen on visiting his work with my father, but Im sure there would be alot of screaming happening.
Maybe I should call the insurance again and see why they arent taking him to court.. hmm..

[Bumperstump Cummerbund]

He was driving a company car? If so, I'd just ring the company and give them the rego, I wouldn't even mention the guys name, just that he hit you and refused to give any insurance details. As Pandora said, he probably has lied to his boss (my DH did a similar thing once ) so I'm sure they'll be most interested to hear your side.

Did you put in a police report?

[Pandora]

Yea what Berenice said, more for the effect of then finding out about the accident as talking to him

[Lisa]

Is the driver the owner of the truck or does he work for a company?

If you think he may just drive the truck for a company, I would take the insurance matter up with his company and keep him out of it and let his place of work deal with him.

If he is the owner of the truck and just being a tool, I would definitely seek legal advice in regards to this. It is definitely obvious if your passenger side of your car is wrecked that the other driver was at fault.

All the best hun. I hope things are worked out for you before bub arrives

ETA - Berenice beat me to it! So yeah, everything Berenice said

[Asparagus and Lemons]

Ah ok, thanks, I guess that if they know they would probably want it dealt with asap so I dont sue the company right.. not that I'd know how to..

[black_rose]

Go to the police again, dh was hit by a car and the driver was abusive too. All he had was the rego and car type. He went to the police and they contacted him for the insurance and also charged him for dangerous driving.

[Asparagus and Lemons]

Yeah we did not get a police report because they didnt come down, And we are guessing it was the company's truck, no damage to it whatsoever so it would make it easy for him not to tell anybody.
I will go to the police tonight. Thanks for your help girls. xx

[Visitor7]

Definitely get a police report asap in these situations. Like Berenice and Lisa have said, contact the company directly. The driver probably hasn't even told his boss what happened!

[Bumperstump Cummerbund]

Just for future reference, you don't need the police to attend the accident to get a report, generally you would have to go to your local station to put one in if the damage is estimated over $1000. I think you can do it online these days, but don't quote me on that

[Starfish]

Oh no, what an awful thing to happen! (where is the hug emoticon when you need it??) Just letting you know, if you want some legal advice, there should be free Legal Aid in your state (google it or maybe ask at your local library or community centre). Also, please remember to be quick in settling this (looks like you're really on to it), as insurance companies have cut off dates to get claims in (and I may be being paranoid here, but I swear that they do everything to delay the process so that you miss it), and if you don't get everything in prior to this date they won't process it. Keep all your paperwork, and don't let this guy or his insurance company stuff you around. GL.

[Peg]

If you know where he works, have you thought about approaching him thru his employer? Was he driving the companies truck? If so then the company would be liable to pay...perhaps he hasnt told them about the accident.

[Jaffaz]

I had a lady reverse into my car and then not answer my calls or report it to her insurance co. After a while of trying I went to the police station and they were very helpful, they went to her home and threatened to charge her with failure to report an accident. That got her moving and her insurance co called me a day later. I would go to the police and explain the situation.

Good luck.