Beaverton, OR asked in Car Accidents, Civil Litigation and Insurance Bad Faith for Oregon

Q: Need to take an insurance to small claims, they have agents in the county does this count as having a physical presence

An at fault party's insurance company has neglected to reimburse for car rentals, which they agreed to pay for, or provide any closure. Even with police report (which I had to provide at my own expense) and video evidence it took almost 2 months to accept liability. One month after having my car fixed (and 120 days since accident, where liability is 100% clear) they will not return phone calls, emails, or any communication. They wont respond to my diminished value claim either. I have made every effort to provide information and cooperated every step of the way, at this point it is clear they are acting in bad faith.

I would like to take them to small claims court for the car rentals, and the diminished value of the car. They have job listings for positions in my county (but no locatable address) and many agents in my county as well, I need to know if an agent having a presence here will be sufficient to take them to court and attempt some sort of arbitration or settlement.

1 Lawyer Answer
Jeff Merrick
Jeff Merrick
Answered
  • Personal Injury Lawyer
  • Milwaukie, OR
  • Licensed in Oregon

A: If your question is whether your county has jurisdiction over the insurer, odds are it does.

If you can't find the insurer's proper address with the Secretary of State's business registry, try the State Insurance Division.

It might be worth buying an hour of a lawyer's time to make sure your plan makes sense, get some pointers, and maybe see if there is a better approach.

Good Luck,

Jeff

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