Poop What a dick move by Progressive - Page 2

MIAdragon · 07:27 PM

http://mattfisher.tumblr.com/post/29...-to-defend-her

**This did not happen to me or my family, just passing this BS along**

My Sister Paid Progressive Insurance to Defend Her Killer In Court

I’ve been sending out some impertinent tweets about Progressive Insurance lately, but I haven’t explained how they pissed me off. So I will do that here as succinctly as possible. There’s a general understanding that says, “insurance companies— oh they’re awful,” but since Progressive turned their shit hose on my late sister and my parents, I’ve learned some things that really surprised me.

I’ll try to cleave to the facts. On June 19, 2010, my sister was driving in Baltimore when her car was struck by another car and she was killed. The other driver had run a red light and hit my sister as she crossed the intersection on the green light.

Now, I don’t discount the possibility that Katie was at fault in the accident, but it never really looked that way. The only witness who gave a statement on the day said that Katie had the light, etc. The totality of the evidence left some room for argument, but that will be the case any time there’s a catastrophic car accident that doesn’t happen underneath an array of video cameras.

One indication that the case was pretty open-and-shut was that the other guy’s insurance company looked at the situation and settled with my sister’s estate basically immediately. Now, because the other driver was underinsured, that payment didn’t amount to much, but my sister carried a policy with Progressive against the possibility of an accident with an underinsured driver. So Progressive was now on the hook for the difference between the other guy’s insurance and the value of Katie’s policy.

At which point we learned the first surprising thing about Progressive: Carrying Progressive insurance and getting into an accident does not entitle you to the value of your insurance policy. It just pisses off Progressive’s lawyers. Here I address you, Prospective Progressive Insurance Customer: someday when you have your accident, I promise that there will be enough wiggle room for Progressive’s bottomless stack of in-house attorneys to make a court case out of it and to hammer at that court case until you or your surviving loved ones run out of money.

Which is what Progressive decided to do to my family. In hopes that a jury would hang or decide that the accident was her fault, they refused to pay the policy to my sister’s estate.

Out of a sense of honor, and out of a sense of the cost of my sister’s outstanding student loans, my folks opted to try to go after the money through legal channels. At which point they learned another delightful thing. In Maryland, you may not sue an insurance company when they refuse to fork over your money. Instead, what they had to do was sue the guy who killed my sister, establish his negligence in court, and then leverage that decision to force Progressive to pay the policy.

Now my parents don’t harbor much venom for the guy who killed my sister. It was an accident, and kicking that guy around won’t bring Katie back. But kicking that guy around was the only way to get Progressive to pay. So they filed a civil suit against the other driver in hopes that, rather than going to court, Progressive would settle. Progressive did not. Progressive made a series of offers (never higher than 1/3 the amount they owe) and then let it go to a trial.

At the trial, the guy who killed my sister was defended by Progressive’s legal team.

If you are insured by Progressive, and they owe you money, they will defend your killer in court in order to not pay you your policy.

The trial was a real shitshow for my parents, and I did not love it either. As it happens, the jury did find that the other driver was negligent, which, if justice or decency are priorities for Progressive, will result in them finally honoring Katie’s policy. At this point, I hope you’ll forgive me if I wait for it to actually happen.

Don’t buy insurance from Progressive. Not only will you be paying the salaries of people who put my family through the wringer (really a smaller wringer that Progressive attached to the main wringer of my sister’s death), but also when the chips are down, your money will have bought you nothing but a kick in the face.

Today (August 14) Progressive made an announcement about the case. This is my statement in response.

Al Bundy · 08-16-2012, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KChiefer

Progressive did nothing wrong here. Their sole duty is to the stock holders.

I hope this is sarcasm I am sensing.

BIG_DADDY · 08-16-2012, 07:46 PM

Very sorry to hear about your loss. I will never by Progressive

Al Bundy · 08-16-2012, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paniero

Progressive did nothing wrong. It's a defendant in MD's UM/UIM process. I know insurance law well, know that MD is second only to CA in the difficulty in insurance issues, and know people are ragIng over nothing in this case.

Legally? Probably not... but yeah they did do a lot wrong, I understand that Insurance companies are there only to make money and not help people.

KChiefer · 08-16-2012, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Al Bundy

I hope this is sarcasm I am sensing.

Time's Yours · 08-16-2012, 07:48 PM

This isn't that uncommon. Glad it's finally getting press.

**alnorth** · 08-16-2012, 07:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brock

Progressive wouldn't pay it without arguing about it if there were 10 eyewitnesses and a video.

I'm sure thats the cool, hip thing to say about the big, bad insurance company, but lawyers are expensive ESPECIALLY if it goes to trial, and if you are 99% sure that the policyholder is entitled to be paid, then its a sunk cost. Pay them and move on. Insurance companies don't like paying for lawyers any more than you do.

**BigMeatballDave** · 08-16-2012, 07:52 PM

Scumbags.

These laws are set up to protect corporate, not the consumer.

**BigMeatballDave** · 08-16-2012, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brock

Has Flo made a comment on this yet?

KChiefer · 08-16-2012, 07:53 PM

If you wanna argue whether they should be on the hook then fine. But wouldn't the part where they said they didn't provide counsel to the killer even though his lawyer declared himself a lawyer with "Progressive Advanced Insurance Company" tell you there's serious malfeasance afoot?

**Saul Good** · 08-16-2012, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Al Bundy

Legally? Probably not... but yeah they did do a lot wrong, I understand that Insurance companies are there only to make money and not help people.

What did they do wrong? Enlighten me.

As far as I can tell the only thing they did "wrong" was to not immediately cut a check for a claim they didn't necessarily owe.

stonedstooge · 08-16-2012, 07:54 PM

I think I'd be contacting the Insurance Regulation Board in your state to see about the legality of your sisters insurer representing the defendent. And sorry for your loss man. A person has to lose a sibling to know how it feels. Life's not fair

Brock · 08-16-2012, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alnorth

I'm sure thats the cool, hip thing to say about the big, bad insurance company, but lawyers are expensive ESPECIALLY if it goes to trial, and if you are 99% sure that the policyholder is entitled to be paid, then its a sunk cost. Pay them and move on. Insurance companies don't like paying for lawyers any more than you do.

Progressive is the worst insurance company I've ever dealt with. I don't really give a shit about what you think is cool and hip. It was my misfortune to deal with them, and thankfully I won't ever have to do it again. From my experience they are chintzy and cheap and they don't make collecting money from them an easy experience even when you've bought every conceivable bell and whistle and it's perfectly clear they're supposed to. **** progressive.

ElGringo · 08-16-2012, 07:58 PM

Just a question, if the defendant in this case wins, would he turn around and sue Progressive for damages as the insurance carrier of her car?

**morphius** · 08-16-2012, 07:58 PM

insurance and lawyers, yup, sounds like hell. One can say that Progressive didn't do anything wrong, but it would be more difficult to argue that they did anything right as members of human race.

BIG_DADDY · 08-16-2012, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alnorth

I'm sure thats the cool, hip thing to say about the big, bad insurance company, but lawyers are expensive ESPECIALLY if it goes to trial, and if you are 99% sure that the policyholder is entitled to be paid, then its a sunk cost. Pay them and move on. Insurance companies don't like paying for lawyers any more than you do.

Only you would come in and defend the nobility of of Progressive in a thread like this.

08-16-2012, 07:11 PM
MIAdragon Someone pass the antifreeze Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Miami (North Cuba) Casino cash: $-2252181	What a dick move by Progressive http://mattfisher.tumblr.com/post/29...-to-defend-her This did not happen to me or my family, just passing this BS along My Sister Paid Progressive Insurance to Defend Her Killer In Court I’ve been sending out some impertinent tweets about Progressive Insurance lately, but I haven’t explained how they pissed me off. So I will do that here as succinctly as possible. There’s a general understanding that says, “insurance companies— oh they’re awful,” but since Progressive turned their shit hose on my late sister and my parents, I’ve learned some things that really surprised me. I’ll try to cleave to the facts. On June 19, 2010, my sister was driving in Baltimore when her car was struck by another car and she was killed. The other driver had run a red light and hit my sister as she crossed the intersection on the green light. Now, I don’t discount the possibility that Katie was at fault in the accident, but it never really looked that way. The only witness who gave a statement on the day said that Katie had the light, etc. The totality of the evidence left some room for argument, but that will be the case any time there’s a catastrophic car accident that doesn’t happen underneath an array of video cameras. One indication that the case was pretty open-and-shut was that the other guy’s insurance company looked at the situation and settled with my sister’s estate basically immediately. Now, because the other driver was underinsured, that payment didn’t amount to much, but my sister carried a policy with Progressive against the possibility of an accident with an underinsured driver. So Progressive was now on the hook for the difference between the other guy’s insurance and the value of Katie’s policy. At which point we learned the first surprising thing about Progressive: Carrying Progressive insurance and getting into an accident does not entitle you to the value of your insurance policy. It just pisses off Progressive’s lawyers. Here I address you, Prospective Progressive Insurance Customer: someday when you have your accident, I promise that there will be enough wiggle room for Progressive’s bottomless stack of in-house attorneys to make a court case out of it and to hammer at that court case until you or your surviving loved ones run out of money. Which is what Progressive decided to do to my family. In hopes that a jury would hang or decide that the accident was her fault, they refused to pay the policy to my sister’s estate. Out of a sense of honor, and out of a sense of the cost of my sister’s outstanding student loans, my folks opted to try to go after the money through legal channels. At which point they learned another delightful thing. In Maryland, you may not sue an insurance company when they refuse to fork over your money. Instead, what they had to do was sue the guy who killed my sister, establish his negligence in court, and then leverage that decision to force Progressive to pay the policy. Now my parents don’t harbor much venom for the guy who killed my sister. It was an accident, and kicking that guy around won’t bring Katie back. But kicking that guy around was the only way to get Progressive to pay. So they filed a civil suit against the other driver in hopes that, rather than going to court, Progressive would settle. Progressive did not. Progressive made a series of offers (never higher than 1/3 the amount they owe) and then let it go to a trial. At the trial, the guy who killed my sister was defended by Progressive’s legal team. If you are insured by Progressive, and they owe you money, they will defend your killer in court in order to not pay you your policy. The trial was a real shitshow for my parents, and I did not love it either. As it happens, the jury did find that the other driver was negligent, which, if justice or decency are priorities for Progressive, will result in them finally honoring Katie’s policy. At this point, I hope you’ll forgive me if I wait for it to actually happen. Don’t buy insurance from Progressive. Not only will you be paying the salaries of people who put my family through the wringer (really a smaller wringer that Progressive attached to the main wringer of my sister’s death), but also when the chips are down, your money will have bought you nothing but a kick in the face. Today (August 14) Progressive made an announcement about the case. This is my statement in response. Last edited by MIAdragon; 08-16-2012 at 07:27 PM..
Posts: 15,944

08-16-2012, 07:46 PM	#17
BIG_DADDY THE RED MENACE Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Texas Casino cash: $2558410	Very sorry to hear about your loss. I will never by Progressive __________________ The diabolical genius of Marxism-Socialism is that it provides the emotional and intellectual road map for autocrats to persuade millions of people to support their own enslavement to government. ~Mark Levin April 15, 2019
Posts: 32,522

08-16-2012, 07:48 PM	#20
Time's Yours Starter Join Date: Dec 2006 Casino cash: $7127317	This isn't that uncommon. Glad it's finally getting press.
Posts: 510

08-16-2012, 07:52 PM	#22
BigMeatballDave GBM 8-12-15 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Dayton, Oh. Casino cash: $10052154	Scumbags. These laws are set up to protect corporate, not the consumer. __________________ 2015 Adopt-a-Chief: Tamba Hali
Posts: 59,997

08-16-2012, 07:53 PM	#24
KChiefer Fantastic Planeteer Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Champaign, IL Casino cash: $10006721	If you wanna argue whether they should be on the hook then fine. But wouldn't the part where they said they didn't provide counsel to the killer even though his lawyer declared himself a lawyer with "Progressive Advanced Insurance Company" tell you there's serious malfeasance afoot?
Posts: 4,943

08-16-2012, 07:54 PM	#26
stonedstooge Arf! Arf! Arf! Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: North Casino cash: $3794173	I think I'd be contacting the Insurance Regulation Board in your state to see about the legality of your sisters insurer representing the defendent. And sorry for your loss man. A person has to lose a sibling to know how it feels. Life's not fair __________________ 2013 ADOPT A CHIEF Eric Kush "Often is a word I seldom use"--JP
Posts: 25,289

08-16-2012, 07:58 PM	#28
ElGringo Veteran Join Date: May 2008 Location: Shreveport, La Casino cash: $9975100	Just a question, if the defendant in this case wins, would he turn around and sue Progressive for damages as the insurance carrier of her car?
Posts: 1,196

08-16-2012, 07:58 PM	#29
morphius World's finest morphius Join Date: Aug 2000 Casino cash: $5715027	insurance and lawyers, yup, sounds like hell. One can say that Progressive didn't do anything wrong, but it would be more difficult to argue that they did anything right as members of human race.
Posts: 26,023