[marutiblr]

Yesterday there was an accident in Yamalur road, where a drunken driver in hyundai santro, hit 3 cars, one biker, one cyclist. I dont think there was any major injury to anyone, My car got hit on rear side/bumper. Today I visited the police station to file a complaint and to claim for damage through his 3rd party insurance. Cop asked me to write a letter about the incident and asked me to use my insurance for claims. I was shocked to hear this and tried to explain him that I would lose lots of money, if i use my insurance. Cop was saying that even if I file a case against him, it would take lot of time to settle the claims and it's not worth it. Looks like no one has filed any case and the drunken driver seems to be an influential guy, not bothered much about the incident. I called his mobile number and that is un-reachable. I am left with no option but go through cops, if i have to seek compensation for the damage.

How should I proceed with this?

1] File FIR, get my car inspected thro RTO, go through lawyer to file a case, if he is willing to settle off the court, withdraw the case later.

2] I have no interest in continuing the case, if he is not bothered, not willing to settle off court, and he wishes to contest/drag the case.

3] Just use my insurance as nothing would work legally , forget about everything.

Thanks for your help.

[ritz3645]

fyi,
Was the drunken driver in hyundai santro taken for an alcohol test by a muncipal doctor. The doc's assistant checks the eyes in presence and then they certifies.
Only with a test you can say driver was DUI ie in India, for legal matters.

[marutiblr]

I am attaching pic, any guesstimate on cost would be appreciated. Thanks.

[StrangeWizard]

How much damage has your car suffered ?
If it is not too much then maybe you should claim your insurance and get it repaired and forget about everything.
Its not worth going through all the hassles of RTO, police, court etc etc if the damage is not much.
Though you can try calling him a few more times and try to talk to him and settle out of court.

[suhaas307]

Proceed with a reputed lawyer immediately.

This is a case of DUI. Do not let him get away.

Consult a learned attorney and take the next step. That would be to get all your documents in order. Your insurance papers, your car's RC book, your licence, etc. And then get more information on this guy. Do you have the tests to prove the DUI? I'm assuming you have his registration number? Insist with the police that you don't want to proceed with your insurance. What's 3rd party insurance for?

Sort the help of some higher-ups in the police-department. Try using the BTP Facebook page. It doesn't hurt to network.

Drag this low-life to court and make sure you squeeze every little bit of self-respect out of him. He deserves it! Driving under the influence must NOT be tolerated. If he gets away scot-free, he will not learn and might even be bold enough to try this stunt again.

For the sake of the others who were affected by this, I strongly advise you to go ahead with this. Don't fold!

EDIT: The whole process is going to be a long and tiresome one, but it will be worth it even if it doesn't seem it.

EDIT 2: It looks like you might need to shell out around 10k for the repairs. That is IF no other damage is apparent. Make sure you take it for a thorough diagnostic test.

A few years ago, my parked car was the victim of what seemed like an accelerator-happy drunken-driver. LINK. (Hit and Run Driver damages my parked car) I just couldn't trace the guy because he had gone by the time I went out to check on my car. It only looked like body damage but some suspension components required replacement too (tie-rod) as a result of the impact.

[ritz3645]

Pardon for frequent post.
We had a similar incident when our new wagonr was bumped by a uncontrolled bus whose brake failed. We refused settling with our insurance and threatened with a FIR, the owner was shrewd and threatening us with statements like we are lucky to be alive etc.
Finally we got 3.5 k in presence of police for the damage.
Never think taking phone no to resolve the issue later will help neither in india or Canada/usa as the driver can also file a counter claim with police/ insurance and evidence get lost.
If i were you would have taken it forward at the spot itself.
Insurance does not pay total claim, then who pays for it?

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by marutiblr

Yesterday there was an accident in Yamalur road, where a drunken driver in hyundai santro, hit 3 cars, one biker, one cyclist. I dont think there was any major injury to anyone, My car got hit on rear side/bumper. Today I visited the police station to file a complaint and to claim for damage through his 3rd party insurance.

Before anything, please read my highlighted words, happened yesterday and reported today. Makes a BIG difference, please do not take it personally, but if I was in your situation and wanted the other guy's insurance to take care of my damage, the first thing I would do is to take his ICand jot down the details and take photos of the accident scene. This has rarely happened, so the next best thing is to take lots of photos (to send to his Insurance company)and cross your fingers that the 3rd party (if he had one) will take care of your damages. OR just forget it and leave.

[Off Roadie]

I can't suggest legal ways, but this is what I have done numerous times, you won't believe the number of times I have been hit while stationary.
since your tail light is good this much of damage can be repaired by a good bodywork (roadside) shop for about 3-4K
Don't claim insurance, you will loose your NCB and it is specially valuable when you buy a new car.
The ASC will charge you a lot more and if the roadside guy is good, you won't know the difference.

[mayankjha1806]

As far as i can remember, there are few things needed in case of Drunken Driving related accident.

1. The blood sample, to prove he was drunken needs to be taken immediately. Later on it would be difficult to prove he was drunken.
2. In this case the evidence has been destroyed, so for you to proceed in this path may not yield positive results.

[marutiblr]

Thanks for all the replies.

More info, I waited till cops arrive at the accident site, and explained him about the incident. He inspected, took my car number, along with all other car's number and took the driver along with him/his car to the police station (he was so drunk that he could barely walk, further he was beaten up by the mob, someone else was driving his car to station) . Car is now in captive at the police station. Since it was around 9PM, i thought i would visit police station next day. I guess that is a mistake.

So bottomline is only way you can get compensated would be on the spot. But let me talk to a lawyer and give a shot.

[Sam Kapasi]

I agree with the people on the forum. You cannot prove somebody was drunk, based entirely on hearsay or your statement.
In order to prove that someone is drunk, he needs to be tested by the legal/medical authorities as soon as possible and the fact that the perpetrator was DUI put on record/panchnama.

Today, you would not be able to prove that he was drunk.

[marutiblr]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

I agree with the people on the forum. You cannot prove somebody was drunk, based entirely on hearsay or your statement.
In order to prove that someone is drunk, he needs to be tested by the legal/medical authorities as soon as possible and the fact that the perpetrator was DUI put on record/panchnama.

Today, you would not be able to prove that he was drunk.

What would be cops role in this accident? I assume, cops should have tested him if he was drunk and work with me to build the case?

Or I am totally way off!!!

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by marutiblr

What would be cops role in this accident? I assume, cops should have tested him if he was drunk and work with me to build the case?

Or I am totally way off!!!

So here is what I believe should have happened.

A policeman should have insisted on taking both the perpetrator and the victim to the police station immediately. In case a policeman was not present, it would have been your duty to insist that perpetrator accompany you to the nearest police station.
The police would then either use a breath-analyzer to prove that the perpetrator was DUI or in case of no breath-analyzer, have a government doctor test and report that he was DUI.

Had the perpetrator refused to cooperate (i.e. refuse to accompany you to the police station and choose to leave), you would then have had to immediately gather as much information as possible (car number, mobile number, license copy etc) and visit the police station immediately and have a panchnama written with your statement that the perpetrator was inebriated and refused to accompany you to the police station.

Since there were multiple victims in this case, all of the victims would have acted as witnesses to the incident.

But yes, to answer your question: YES the police should have worked with you to build a case. Step one is to file a First Information Report. Step two is to prove legally that the perpetrator was inebriated. Legally prove it and include that information in the report.
THEN, you have a case.

Then you take this case and visit a lawyer if you choose to do so.

[apachelongbow]

You can do one thing. Ignore the fact that the moron was drunk. Just file a FIR stating that the said moron driving the said car (number xx-xx-xxxx) banged into my car, damaged it and escaped.
Your insurance company will claim insurance from the moron's insurance company and you will get compensated. The entire process will not take much time. However FIR is important.

[srishiva]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

You can do one thing. Ignore the fact that the moron was drunk. Just file a FIR stating that the said moron driving the said car (number xx-xx-xxxx) banged into my car, damaged it and escaped.
Your insurance company will claim insurance from the moron's insurance company and you will get compensated. The entire process will not take much time. However FIR is important. If nothing bribe the pandus and get the FIR.

If insurance companies could get the other's insurer to pay !

I think you need to file a case (go to court etc) to get the money from other's insurer.