In late March, I was traveling north along Interstate 94 in the Deerfield, IL area. A car insured by Founders Insurance swerved into my lane, broadsiding my car. We exchanged insurance information, but did not file a police report - response times were two hours and over (the Northern suburbs would get nine inches of snow by the end of the day). I contacted Founders, filed the requisite paperwork and got damage repair estimates. After six weeks and a number of phone calls, I was told my claim was being denied - their insured was not at fault. I asked how they could claim he was not at fault - I didn't hit him, he hit me! Their reasoning was that since their insured swerved to avoid another car, this first car was the proximate cause of the accident and not their insured. I pointed out that I had been hit by their insured, not by this "proximate cause" but they continued to pronounce their insured not at fault and were denying the claim. I asked if they were also blaming the Illinois Tollway Authority for the condition of the road surface and the Sun for shining in their poor widdle insured eyes. They failed to see the humor of the situation, again stated firmly they were denying the claim because their insured had not caused the accident. So not only did I have to fill out their forms, go see Founders-approved repair shops and make numerous calls, but they take six weeks to blow me off.
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