Reckless Imprudence???

[kxc91]

Really need some advice..
A friend of mine hit another car last december, damaged the door but no injuries. My friend has full-coverage insurance so payment of the damages should not have been a problem but the other party would not present a certificate of no claim from his own insurance so he could not claim payment from my friend's insurance. So this guy filed a Reckless Imprudence case against my friend last March. Thing is, my friend has already migrated to another country and won't back for quite a while. The insurance assured her that they would handle it, so dapat ok na right? but then last night her family got a Resolution to the case that said my friend did not file counter affidavit and should pay bail(?) amounting to 100k++
Should this still be handled by the insurance, or should she get some other lawyer? does this mean that she can go to jail or what? I thinks this really got out of hand. I think guy really wanted to milk this for all its worth

[lma1911]

Gosh! I thought that when you filed a police reports, (Pay the Police for filing the case) Your insurance will take care of it. I think this is a good post.

[larpit09]

Your lady friend should have filed an affidavit.
Bail should be posted, so she won't be arrested when she comes back.
You now need a lawyer.

[leolop]

without going to the merits of the case, these are my thoughts. (di pa ako lawyer, ha)

reckless imprudence resulting in damage to property is a crime that is punishable by a fine up to 3x the value of the value of the property. there is no jail time.

the resolution that the family received is probably a resolution from the prosecutor's office that they've found reason to believe an offense has been committed and a criminal charge should be filed. the bail figure might be just a recommended amount. yung judge ang may final say kung magkano dapat.

i'm not sure what the contractual agreement is with the insurance company when it comes to this situation (check the contract), but definitely she can't escape the charge on the sole basis that she has comprehensive insurance.

but here are some suggested courses of action:

1. if your friend is in another country then the court cannot acquire jurisdiction over her and the case can not continue. i really doubt if they'd even extradite her over this. it's not the best thing, but she can choose to do nothing about it.

2. the best thing is to get her own lawyer to represent her. unfortunately, this will entail cost. any decent lawyer can have this case dismissed if he can show the court that the damages can be shouldered by the insurance company.

3. you can talk to the insurance company. it is in their interest to resolve this because they may be liable for whatever fine and damages that may be awarded by the court if the case continues. they might agree to use their own lawyer to represent her in the case.

from a bargaining stand point, i think if the complainant realizes that the accused is no longer in the country then they'd think twice about continuing the case dahil wala na yung hinahabol nila.

the request by your friend's insurance company for a certificate of non-claim is a reasonable one to avoid a double compensation for 1 accident from 2 insurance companies. sana dapat ginawa na lang ito nung kabilang party. affidavit lang naman ito.

[kxc91]

Thanks leolop! you've really cleared things up
Glad to know there's no jail time whew! I think her family will try with the insurance company first for representation. Hope it works out. Thanks again!

[Tailhook]

there is no bail for reckless imprudence cases resulting to damage to property since the maximum imposable penalty is only a fine.

once the case is filed in court, no warrant of arrest can be issued for the same reason.

your friend should not worry. at most, he will pay a fine. but nevertheless, tell him to hire a lawyer, the complainant might inflate his claim and your friend might be required to pay more than the damage he caused.

[kxc91]

hi Tailhook, i'll definitely tell her your advice.

You guys have been really helpful. Thanks all!

[Galactus]

Sorry ha, I'm not trying to flame, but I don't think the guy wants to milk your friend. I would do the same if I were in his shoes, kasi from your post, it's quite obvious that your friend was at fault, and he hasn't been compensated for the damage

To add insult to injury, umalis pa ng bansa and the excuse "let the insurance company handle it" is just so lame. Kawawa naman yung tao, hindi naman nya kasalanan, tinakasan pa.

Being a civil case, no warrant of arrest can be issued, which is why I'm wondering why bail is required. Maybe a judgment (resolution) has already been issued, ordering your friend to pay damages. Actually, maliit pa yung 100,000 (kung resolution nga), kasi normally may actual and exemplary damages pa na ina-award, aside from the costs of suit, which must be shouldered by the losing side. No offense, ha? Pero during these instances, I always picture myself if I were on the other side's shoes to arrive at an objective reasoning

[kxc91]

hi Galactus, no offense taken. I understand the guy's need for compensation, but what I don't understand is why he has file the case in the first place since the insurance was willing to compensate, and in fact, according to the insurance, the check was already prepared, but was not claimed.

About "letting the insurance handle it" part, I don't think it was an excuse. After the accident my friend even personally accompanied the guy to the her insurance's place for assesment of damage, etc... then after that its in the insurance's hands, right? Isn't that how most people handle these incidents? thats what insurance is for right? i might be wrong though since never had experience with this before.

[OTEP]

Baka naman gusto nun mag-double claim kaya ayaw maglabas ng quit claim.

[swimstroke]

Hehe, mukhang may ibang nasa nga kasi hindi naman nagkulang yung friend mo according to you post. Kung may habol pa, habulin niyo kahit may gastos para matauhan yung kabila.

[konde]

Baka naman gusto nun mag-double claim kaya ayaw maglabas ng quit claim.

baka pinsan ni doc otep yan.