Tempe, AZ asked in Personal Injury for Arizona

Q: I am being sued for 50k personal injury for car accident I was not involved in-occurred in another state. What do I do?

I was served with a summons yesterday to appear regarding a personal injury claim. Apparently about one year ago someone rear-ended a man in OR, and he is suing me for 40k in non-economic damages and 9.5k in medical expenses. I live in AZ and was not in the state of OR last year. My credit card records show that I was not in OR on that day, and my insurance company has not heard about this claim. What do I do?

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3 Lawyer Answers

A: Report the claim to your insurance company immediately. They will pay for a lawyer for you to defend the claim and to answer the complaint. If you truly weren't in this wreck, then the lawyer from the insurance company should be able to get the claim dismissed fairly quickly. Fear not because the plaintiff's attorney will want you out to get the right party involved.

Tim Akpinar agrees with this answer

Tim Akpinar
Tim Akpinar
Answered
  • Little Neck, NY

A: This could be a matter of transcription error, incredible coincidence, or possible misuse of your personal identification information. Consider reviewing your financial records for anything suspicious. Good luck

Tim Akpinar

Freddy Saavedra
PREMIUM
Freddy Saavedra
Answered
  • Phoenix, AZ
  • Licensed in Arizona

A: From the facts it may be that you share the same name as the actual defendant in the subject claim.

In the past I have had clients who this same issue has happened to. I have been able to resolve the situation by presenting evidence to the Plaintiff's attorney that he has the wrong person.

The Plaintiff's attorney is usually grateful to learn he has served the wrong person as he can now focus on finding the correct defendant for his claim.

Another option is to call your insurance and have them assist with this claim. After all you have liability insurance for accidents, and this is what you are being sued for. Because the Plaintiff's attorney has named the wrong person it should be easy for your insurance company to resolve this issue.

Tim Akpinar agrees with this answer

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