Bronco Raptor Accident w/ Concrete Truck -- Aftermath. Thankful to be alive!

[Rayz Garage]

Posting this as a bit of a vent but also for anyone who likes to see post accident results on their cars.

Let me start by saying I really believe the Braptor saved my life today. I had to wrestle like hell to keep from spiraling into 5 other vehicles, but I was run off the road by a fully loaded concrete truck today who decided to merge into my lane with no warning on a very crowded highway. The damage should have been a lot worse and I'm still completely stunned it's as intact as it is after what I experienced.

We tangoed for about 50ft while trying to stop before he finally won and I spun into the opposing lanes, when I finally came to a stop I got love tapped by a semi who was trying to stop. I really believe that most other vehicles I've owned would have put me right under that concrete truck and they'd still be cleaning me off the highway. Fortunately the driver admitted fault on the police report and was cited for failure to merge properly so that will hopefully save a couple headaches.

While I'm thankful to be alive, I'm pretty devastated for my truck. My kids might be more sad than I am. After waiting 2.5 years, we only got about 7 months together and I loved every single mile. Was just looking forward to that first fall weather .

If anyone has any advice for how to navigate this with the driver's insurance, please don't hesitate to reach out as I've never been in this situation. I'm quite mixed on whether or not I'd accept a repair (which seems highly unlikely anyway) given the Carfax report is gonna be ugly as hell...versus just totaling it and trying again in another 3 years.

Stuff can be replaced. Life is short. Hug your kids.

Now queue the comments about "safer ways to get rid of your ugly fenders"

I'm surprised it doesn't really look that bad. I'm not undermining the seriousness of this accident but your insurance company may refuse to total it without frame damage. However, based on the supply chain shortage worldwide, your repair shop may not have access to parts indefinitely. As a insurance adjuster myself, I highly recommend you seek the advice of an attorney without giving any further information to the insurance company about what happened, your intentions or what you expect. If your attempt to total the vehicle is successful, I would also demand the full asking price that includes accessories, taxes, tags and everything you spent for this vehicle that is only 7 months old. Also if you have the etched windshield option, Ford will give you $5000.00 extra to what the insurer is paying. Keep us posted

Sponsored

 

[Jltexas]

There should be a cost associated for lost warranty time too. Your warranty is ticking down while your vehicle may be in the shop for months. I’d say the same thing for the cost of maintaining vehicle insurance on a vehicle you may not be able to drive in 3-6 months. They may tell ya to pound sand but you never know unless you ask. I remember when I had a pretty serious accident with my F150 and got t-boned, going with well reviewed body shops got me a lifetime warranty on the repairs/paint for my vehicle. Keep that in consideration.

Wow that’s crazy, glad you are ok, I have a 2023 Raptor Bronco same color I have been debating about selling, has right at 300 miles, bought it thinking we would use more but with everything going on it mostly sets in the garage, pretty loaded and all stock except for XL Amp power boards, tried to send you a private message but not real familiar with the site

 

[timhood]

Posting this as a bit of a vent but also for anyone who likes to see post accident results on their cars.

Let me start by saying I really believe the Braptor saved my life today. I had to wrestle like hell to keep from spiraling into 5 other vehicles, but I was run off the road by a fully loaded concrete truck today who decided to merge into my lane with no warning on a very crowded highway. The damage should have been a lot worse and I'm still completely stunned it's as intact as it is after what I experienced.

We tangoed for about 50ft while trying to stop before he finally won and I spun into the opposing lanes, when I finally came to a stop I got love tapped by a semi who was trying to stop. I really believe that most other vehicles I've owned would have put me right under that concrete truck and they'd still be cleaning me off the highway. Fortunately the driver admitted fault on the police report and was cited for failure to merge properly so that will hopefully save a couple headaches.

While I'm thankful to be alive, I'm pretty devastated for my truck. My kids might be more sad than I am. After waiting 2.5 years, we only got about 7 months together and I loved every single mile. Was just looking forward to that first fall weather .

If anyone has any advice for how to navigate this with the driver's insurance, please don't hesitate to reach out as I've never been in this situation. I'm quite mixed on whether or not I'd accept a repair (which seems highly unlikely anyway) given the Carfax report is gonna be ugly as hell...versus just totaling it and trying again in another 3 years.

Stuff can be replaced. Life is short. Hug your kids.

Now queue the comments about "safer ways to get rid of your ugly fenders"

I'm just going to leave these here...I think you need them.

 

[j_marinelli]

Ka-CHOW!

 

[TTT]

how much for the hood ?

 

[HCGxKaLiBeR]

Glad you are ok OP.

Unrelated note. I see the half shaft and all the wheel bolts are shinny for over 7 months.
Mine is not even a year old. Only driven in the rain like twice, yet various of surface rust on the shaft and bolts... I'd say the raptor has the higher build quality than the regular Broncos.

 

[jeff in ohio]

Having been struck by a a car on my motorcycle, here is my feeling on a lawyer. The short answer is...do not do it.

1. If you see a decent lawyer, they will tell you this....
"If they have insurance, you do not need me. If they do not have insurance, come back and see me. I will take 1/3 of what they give you if I get involved." Insurance companines will tell you this 1/3 is inaccurate. After lots of tic tac charges get added on, you loose typically 52% of your settlement. Progressive and State Farm will tell you this.

2. Assuming they have insurance, they will pay for the vehicle damage or replacment. You can negotiate with them on this. The vehicle damage/loss is handled by a different team within the agancy and this will be settled quickly. if you have a lawyer negotiate for you, then part of what they give you for your vehicle goes to him. (see above)...which means you can't afford to get a new one since he jsut took 1/3 for negotiating a value of the vehicle. I had a check for my total motorcycle in 10 days and received more than what I paid for it. The value of the vehicle comes out of the property damage portion of their claim. Hopefully they have $100k+. If their property damage coverage is not high enough, hopefully you have "under-insured" motorist on your policy which will pay the shortfall. If they do not have enough property damage coverage and you do not have under-insured coverage, a lawyer can help you get the additional needed...but remember, he takes a 1/3...which still leaves you with not enough to replace the vehicle.

3. Go to doctor and document any injuries. Someone from the medical side of their insurance will contact you and throw an offer at you quickly for medical expenses. Do NOT take it. Let the dust settle on any injuries. If you have real injuries, doctor wil document them, treat them, etc. you have TWO years to settle the injury portion. Also, submit all medical thru YOUR medical insurance and let them know it was in an accident. They will subrogate to the truck owners insurance for anything they pay ut to recover their portion. YOU will still have to pay your deductale, co-pay etc. Why do this? Because your medical insurance will write down the medical bills just like any other medical visit. This allows more money into your pocket for pain and suffering. Example.... Say your bills before medical insurance are $20,000 but after insurance writes them down/discounts them they are $8,000. Your bills come out of what their insurance pay out for laibility. If their policy is $25,000 and they decide to pay out the max, then they cut you a check for $25,000 MINUS whatever they owe you're medical insurance thru subrogation. If you did not submit to your medical, then you only have $5,000 in your pocket for pain and suffering after you pay off the $20,000 to the hospital. If you did submit to your medical, then you have $17,000 in your pocket for pain and suffering after you pay the $8,000 in bills. If you hired a lawyer, then he takes 1/3 of that leaving you maybe not able to pay your bills in full or getting very little in pain and suffering. A lawyer CANNOT get more out of the insurance company than their limits of liability. The only way a lawyer gets you more is by going directly after the owner of the vehicle and the driver.
-Pros....you have two years. if anything lingering does not go away or pops up, well, you have 2 years. make sure to visit doctor and document. If you can keep all your paperwork straight, you do NOT need a lawyer. If you get one, you are essentially paying him to keep track of medical bills for you. He only helps if their limits of laibility are low and you WANT more (greed). If injuries are legit, the insurance will may you a sum of money that you would never imagine...up to limits of course. This is what happened to me. I got paid limits on the policy which surprised me greatly. A commercial truck copmapny will have very high limits of liability. You will NOT need a lawyer to get a decent amount for injuries if they are legitimate. The industry uses standard tables to determine the valuie fo an injury. The value is surpisingly high even for items you might think are trivial.
-Cons....if the medical claims process drags out, you have to still pay your medical bills. Most medical places will let you go 4 months with no payments before they turn you over to collections. This is one place where a lawyer can help, They can either draft a letter to the medical professional stating that the claim is under litigation and request they hold bills, or they essentially pay your bills (if they feel their will be a giant settlmnt and are feeling nice) knowing that their will be a settlement and the bills come out of that...plus the 1/3 that he is keeping. Basically, if you can afford to pay your meidcal bills out of pocket AFTER you have submitted them to your medical insurance, than do so. Skip the lawyer

Been thru 2 motorcycle accidents...the first with a lawyer, the second one without. You are paying them to organize paper work and keep bill collectors off your back if you can't pay your portion of the medical bills. It's your decision if you think that is worth 1/3 of the settlement. They only come in handy if they are grossly under-insured or there is death/severe long lasting injury....and they get the extra cash by going after the owner/driver. Once the insurance company reaches their policy limits, no lawyer on the planet can get more out of them.

If I would have NOT submitted to my medical AND used a lawyer I would have walked away with $844 after paying bills. By NOT having a lawyer AND then submitting to my own medical for injuries I walked away with let's just say...substantially more after paying bills. I was into 5 figure numbers by doing it my way.

Skip the lawyer and learn how to keep track of medical records and pay your bills. It's not that hard.

 

[mike8675309]

Ready Mix companies of a decent size are often self-insured for stuff like this. That can make dealing with them a pain. You should be in a much better position if you just have your Insurance company take care of everything.

 

[Knownman]

Used to work for an insurance company. Granted I worked on the engineering side of insurance so I know nothing about insurance itself, BUT I made a lot of friends along the way who taught me more about insurance than I care to know.

This is a job for your insurance company and the other driver's insurance company to handle. Lots of people will suggest to involve a lawyer, but WAY too early for that at this stage. Let the insurance companies figure it out, and if you are unhappy after the dust settles... THEN you can visit the idea of involving a lawyer.

Glad you're alright!! That looked like a wild ride.

I don't necessarily agree with you on this one. I had a similar incident with my Tundra getting totaled by a commercial straight truck in NJ. By the end of it had I settled via insurance I would have not been paid for my pain and suffering. And there was plenty of that plus the unlikely chance that he'll get a new Raptor in favor of some low ball percentage of the true value.

Lawyer up immediately if you have any injuries. That driver sounds like he had intentions to drive through you, no interest in the safety of anyone around him. Just saying some times it ain't an accident. But in the end OP you were there. Did it seem like he cared about you or your life?
And in most cases if you can prove it was his fault and there were injuries, Not sure that there was, The Lawyer will be limited to 1/3rd of the payout. And they will not take the case if they don't think they can get it. Check your local laws.

 

[Krieger]

Glad you are ok. Let us know how it goes. So many things to consider in this one. I never even thought about what an accident would do to its value until I went to sell my last car and they mentioned it.

You're not kidding. Processes started today but good Lord I have a long road ahead.

So having owned more than one vehicle that got totalled (mostly thanks to my ex), I used to look at it this way... It's pre-disastered... The statistical likelihood of another disaster for that vehicle is extremely low... I have never had a vehicle that was totalled twice!

this is a great point! It also means I can feel better about thrashing around off-road afterwards lol

Wow. I'm so glad you all are OK.

This hits a little close to home as I was run off the road three days ago by a semi driver who insisted on occupying my lane at the same time I was in it. Thankful for having runoff in that case; another 1000 feet along there wouldn't have been.

This is what I keep replaying in my head. I am a very defensive driver and I always leave an out- no one was following too close behind me and I had a hundred feet of open road ahead of me. You can see where I impacted the concrete truck -when he started coming into my lane I hit my brakes immediately, if it was any other vehicle it would have cleared me no problem but some skid marks, but because of the length he snagged me on the back half and started dragging me into the express lane. I'm not sure if I actually said it out loud but I remember yelling in my head "if he gets you into the express lane you are dead" and tried fighting to stay in control of the vehicle. I have no idea how the cars that skidded past me once I hit that express lane were able to mostly avoid me.

Glad you are OK. Good job Braptor. Windex could help repair this. I mean the car is not important, again glad you are all safe.

I'll actually need it lol! You can actually see the coffee all over my windshield. The interior is covered in it- two days ago it had the new car smell. Now it's covered in coffee baking in the hot sun in a dirt lot

I'm just going to leave these here...I think you need them.

My dad loves this movie, and it's a bit of a thanksgiving tradition for us- thanks for the laugh!

how much for the hood ?

If you look at my previous posts about that hood- you don't want it

 

[Krieger]

Having been struck by a a car on my motorcycle, here is my feeling on a lawyer. The short answer is...do not do it.

1. If you see a decent lawyer, they will tell you this....
"If they have insurance, you do not need me. If they do not have insurance, come back and see me. I will take 1/3 of what they give you if I get involved." Insurance companines will tell you this 1/3 is inaccurate. After lots of tic tac charges get added on, you loose typically 52% of your settlement. Progressive and State Farm will tell you this.

2. Assuming they have insurance, they will pay for the vehicle damage or replacment. You can negotiate with them on this. The vehicle damage/loss is handled by a different team within the agancy and this will be settled quickly. if you have a lawyer negotiate for you, then part of what they give you for your vehicle goes to him. (see above)...which means you can't afford to get a new one since he jsut took 1/3 for negotiating a value of the vehicle. I had a check for my total motorcycle in 10 days and received more than what I paid for it. The value of the vehicle comes out of the property damage portion of their claim. Hopefully they have $100k+. If their property damage coverage is not high enough, hopefully you have "under-insured" motorist on your policy which will pay the shortfall. If they do not have enough property damage coverage and you do not have under-insured coverage, a lawyer can help you get the additional needed...but remember, he takes a 1/3...which still leaves you with not enough to replace the vehicle.

3. Go to doctor and document any injuries. Someone from the medical side of their insurance will contact you and throw an offer at you quickly for medical expenses. Do NOT take it. Let the dust settle on any injuries. If you have real injuries, doctor wil document them, treat them, etc. you have TWO years to settle the injury portion. Also, submit all medical thru YOUR medical insurance and let them know it was in an accident. They will subrogate to the truck owners insurance for anything they pay ut to recover their portion. YOU will still have to pay your deductale, co-pay etc. Why do this? Because your medical insurance will write down the medical bills just like any other medical visit. This allows more money into your pocket for pain and suffering. Example.... Say your bills before medical insurance are $20,000 but after insurance writes them down/discounts them they are $8,000. Your bills come out of what their insurance pay out for laibility. If their policy is $25,000 and they decide to pay out the max, then they cut you a check for $25,000 MINUS whatever they owe you're medical insurance thru subrogation. If you did not submit to your medical, then you only have $5,000 in your pocket for pain and suffering after you pay off the $20,000 to the hospital. If you did submit to your medical, then you have $17,000 in your pocket for pain and suffering after you pay the $8,000 in bills. If you hired a lawyer, then he takes 1/3 of that leaving you maybe not able to pay your bills in full or getting very little in pain and suffering. A lawyer CANNOT get more out of the insurance company than their limits of liability. The only way a lawyer gets you more is by going directly after the owner of the vehicle and the driver.
-Pros....you have two years. if anything lingering does not go away or pops up, well, you have 2 years. make sure to visit doctor and document. If you can keep all your paperwork straight, you do NOT need a lawyer. If you get one, you are essentially paying him to keep track of medical bills for you. He only helps if their limits of laibility are low and you WANT more (greed). If injuries are legit, the insurance will may you a sum of money that you would never imagine...up to limits of course. This is what happened to me. I got paid limits on the policy which surprised me greatly. A commercial truck copmapny will have very high limits of liability. You will NOT need a lawyer to get a decent amount for injuries if they are legitimate. The industry uses standard tables to determine the valuie fo an injury. The value is surpisingly high even for items you might think are trivial.
-Cons....if the medical claims process drags out, you have to still pay your medical bills. Most medical places will let you go 4 months with no payments before they turn you over to collections. This is one place where a lawyer can help, They can either draft a letter to the medical professional stating that the claim is under litigation and request they hold bills, or they essentially pay your bills (if they feel their will be a giant settlmnt and are feeling nice) knowing that their will be a settlement and the bills come out of that...plus the 1/3 that he is keeping. Basically, if you can afford to pay your meidcal bills out of pocket AFTER you have submitted them to your medical insurance, than do so. Skip the lawyer

Been thru 2 motorcycle accidents...the first with a lawyer, the second one without. You are paying them to organize paper work and keep bill collectors off your back if you can't pay your portion of the medical bills. It's your decision if you think that is worth 1/3 of the settlement. They only come in handy if they are grossly under-insured or there is death/severe long lasting injury....and they get the extra cash by going after the owner/driver. Once the insurance company reaches their policy limits, no lawyer on the planet can get more out of them.

If I would have NOT submitted to my medical AND used a lawyer I would have walked away with $844 after paying bills. By NOT having a lawyer AND then submitting to my own medical for injuries I walked away with let's just say...substantially more after paying bills. I was into 5 figure numbers by doing it my way.

Skip the lawyer and learn how to keep track of medical records and pay your bills. It's not that hard.

Thanks for your thorough advice! Sorry you're well experienced in this. This is definitely the same information my advisors have given- that the evidence is pretty cut and dry and there's really no need to involve anyone additional at this point unless I am unhappy with the settlement. The biggest concern I have, is because there was a third vehicle that took damage at the end of the accident, their insurance is now playing the game of well even though you weren't responsible for any of it, we still have to fight it out with the other truck to make sure that they weren't responsible for anything for failure to avoid a crash etc. That's where things appear to get tricky for me- but as you said my insurance can hopefully navigate that. I've never had to use them for an accident so I'm really flying blind in their ability to come to a fair settlement.

Ready Mix companies of a decent size are often self-insured for stuff like this. That can make dealing with them a pain. You should be in a much better position if you just have your Insurance company take care of everything.

Yeah I ran into these headaches with a commercial property that was struck by several truck drivers last summer- 6 in all, doing significant damage to the building up to about 50K worth of damage when it was all said and done. It was like pulling teeth to get most of their insurances to work with me, they were hole on the wall places and the "company" was usually just the single driver with a random LLC that he would liquidate whenever he got sued and start up another one with a new sketchy insurance company. I finally came out on top through sheer stubbornness when one of the drivers had progressive and I was able to work them to settle for the repairs. Fortunately that doesn't seem to be the case here but you never know.

 

[Quicklime]

Posting this as a bit of a vent but also for anyone who likes to see post accident results on their cars.

Let me start by saying I really believe the Braptor saved my life today. I had to wrestle like hell to keep from spiraling into 5 other vehicles, but I was run off the road by a fully loaded concrete truck today who decided to merge into my lane with no warning on a very crowded highway. The damage should have been a lot worse and I'm still completely stunned it's as intact as it is after what I experienced.

We tangoed for about 50ft while trying to stop before he finally won and I spun into the opposing lanes, when I finally came to a stop I got love tapped by a semi who was trying to stop. I really believe that most other vehicles I've owned would have put me right under that concrete truck and they'd still be cleaning me off the highway. Fortunately the driver admitted fault on the police report and was cited for failure to merge properly so that will hopefully save a couple headaches.

While I'm thankful to be alive, I'm pretty devastated for my truck. My kids might be more sad than I am. After waiting 2.5 years, we only got about 7 months together and I loved every single mile. Was just looking forward to that first fall weather .

If anyone has any advice for how to navigate this with the driver's insurance, please don't hesitate to reach out as I've never been in this situation. I'm quite mixed on whether or not I'd accept a repair (which seems highly unlikely anyway) given the Carfax report is gonna be ugly as hell...versus just totaling it and trying again in another 3 years.

Stuff can be replaced. Life is short. Hug your kids.

Now queue the comments about "safer ways to get rid of your ugly fenders"


You're still breathing! I know State Farm is more than others, but nobody fights them. I once had a semi tire blow out and go into a front wheel well on I-5 at night. Trucker wouldn't stop. Called state police. He eventually was pulled over and ticketed(at our exit!). The trucking company insurance carrier tried to run me around. One of the girls in my insurance agent's office asked me on the phone "Do you want me to call them?" Boom done. No more problems. But thirty three years of homeowners insurance and never even making a claim sucks...

 

[BroncoLV]

Just my two cents. I was hit by a school bus 4.5 years ago. 100% the school buses fault. It totaled my brand new F-150 it was only 2 months old, the truck towing the boat in front of me it totaled his boat, trailer and his truck. I've had 2 neck surgeries, 4 surgeries for a Spinal Cord Stimulator Implant and over a 2 years of physical therapy. My insurance handled everything as far as getting me reimbursed for my car, the school buses insurance has denied all responsability and I did retain a personal injury lawyer but it has been in the courts for over 4.5 years now. It is now a fast process and you can expect to cover everything 100% and hope to get some compensation at the end but like others have said only expect 1/3 of the settlement as 1/3 goes to the lawyers, 1/3 goes to medical as in my case the lawyers got me into some better doctors on leins than what my insurance could do and then you get the remaining 1/3. My accident was March 26, 2019 and we are finally scheduled for trial December 8, 2023 assuming it doesn't get pushed off again. Don't expect anything to happen fast if you go the lawyer route. Not sure if it is the same in every state in but the state my accident happened they company had 6 months to accept or deny responsibility before we could even file a lawsuit and they waited the enter 6 months before denying responsibility. Make sure you document every single injury no matter how small it seems.

 

[Blucifer]

Ive been through an accident before. Ive learned the following;

Hire an attorney from a smaller firm (not a law mill like M&M) before talking to insurance.

Go see a doctor and describe every injury/whatever you have. Dont downplay; document everything. Consistently in med records will help your case (e.g. broken bone mentioned immediately and throughout treatment not 2 weeks later)

Prob should total your vehicle if given a choice by insurance.

Its a long and slow process. Hopefully you can find a replacement Braptor.

I hope youre not too injured and that all goes well.

 

[Krieger]

@Rayz Garage

It's not letting me reply to your post because you inserted your reply into my quote

But yes- I really hope I can get the footage because the pictures absolutely do not do the situation justice. That raptor held up incredibly well and had probably sold me on Ford trucks for the foreseeable future.

Also Etched windshield? No idea what this is, I don't recall it being an option when I ordered but you have my attention.

Sponsored