What to do??? PennDot/Insurance miscommunication??

[soup]

I recently bought a house (Sept of 07) when I bought my house I switched insurance companies because I got a better deal with the one for multiple insurance etc... In Jan I received a letter from PennDot saying my insurance had lapsed and that I have x amount of days to provide them with the correct info. I called up my insurance company and apparently there was miscommunication between the new and old insurance companies... apparently the old one (Allstate never sent them some document they requested about previously insured etc...) so instead of calling to get the info they just assumed I was never previously insured. Nationwide in their infinite wisdom sent a letter to PennDot saying I was no longer insured. I called my agent she insisted everything was taken care of and that they sent a letter stating there was no lapse in coverage and everything was fine. I even called back 3 days later to follow up that the document was mailed... I should have called to follow up with PennDot but I assumed I wouldn't be lied to.

FFWD: Yesterday in the mail I get a letter from PennDot saying my registration is being suspended and I have a $50 reregistration fee (Fine) and that I have 30 days to appeal in court... I called my agent and I haven't gotten a call back yet.... I'm just a tad pissed off .... I was on the phone with PennDot and they said it should be ok if I get them the information they need before my suspension kicks in and that should fix everything... I'm not sure but I don't know if the guy I talked to on the phone was giving me the right info or not...

Has anyone else had this problem? Can I just send them the information and thats it? Or will this be an ongoing issue for me and I'll have to actually appeal it in court?

[billamj]

Take it to court and make a point of bringing all of your paperwork. All fees/fines should be dropped because you are/were covered and they made the decision in error.

[mauser]

Your insurance company should be able to fax the info to PennDot and resolve the issue in a matter of minutes. Is the office close enough that you can be there in person while they do it?
Make sure you talk to the main agent and not a receptionist, part time worker, or the "new" associate in the office. Explain the situation and politely demand that it be taken care of properly and promptly, then follow up with PennDot to be sure they got the info. It is possible that the first time you asked, the info got faxed to a wrong number, the insurance policy number was wrong, your name was spelled wrong, digits of your registration # or VIN were transposed, etc..
That's why I suggest talking to a higher-up at the insurance company, you would think that a higher level of attention to the task at hand could be attained.
You may also be able to photo copy and fax a copy of your "proof of insurance" card to PennDot as an added form of verification.
No matter what, follow up right away with PennDot to make sure it's properly taken care of.
Good luck.

[Zef_66]

I agree to try and go to the office in person. My insurance office has evening hours a couple hours a day to help fit people's schedules. But it is much harder to blow off someone in person and I think you get much straighter answer face to face.

But I think this is the insurance companies fault and they should take care of everything, including the reinstatement fee.

[soup]

After 4 hours of getting answering machines I was finally able to get a hold of the office manager. I explained the situation and she said this was supposed to be taken care of back in Jan but couldn't give me a reason as to why it wasn't. I told her that I was told by her company that this was taken care of and I didn't need to send anything at all to PennDot. She asked me to fax over the letter and she would take care of it personally. I told her I needed written proof from her, signed by her that this was taken care of and is no longer a concern. I also said that because of being told before that this was taken care of I would also like to see a letter from PennDot also stating this has been resolved... so we shall see what happens...

[billamj]

Good luck! I hope that they get it right for you this time.

[Zef_66]

After 4 hours of getting answering machines I was finally able to get a hold of the office manager. I explained the situation and she said this was supposed to be taken care of back in Jan but couldn't give me a reason as to why it wasn't. I told her that I was told by her company that this was taken care of and I didn't need to send anything at all to PennDot. She asked me to fax over the letter and she would take care of it personally. I told her I needed written proof from her, signed by her that this was taken care of and is no longer a concern. I also said that because of being told before that this was taken care of I would also like to see a letter from PennDot also stating this has been resolved... so we shall see what happens...

Good Deal! Excellant! You are paying them to take care of all of this. They should take care of it, not you. Great way to go about it. Hopefully everything will be taken care of in short time.

Just sucks your car registration isn't valid right now. Can't drive anywhere or you would be in violation of the law.

[str8shooter]

PennDot is just doing what they have to do based on the information they've been provided. You have to keep on the insurance agents' butts to get it settled quickly and accurately. It may take a few calls, faxes and letters, but you won't be liable for any fines if it's a clarical error on the part of either insurance company, and going to court won't do anything but waste time and money.

Copy all letters, keep all faxes originals, and document all calls including time and person you spoke to. It goes a long way when you can recite this information when proving you're doing your part in getting this resolved.

Good luck.

[Montanya]

Get your declarations page for the old and new insurance showing dates of coverage and take it to a PENDOT office and give them copies, I had a similar issue but don't have a PENDOT office by me so I took it to one of those "Online" messenger services and they sent a notarized fax over to PENDOT for me with all the info and that cleared it up. Now that is just in my instance, but it's worth a shot.

[mauser]

Get your declarations page for the old and new insurance showing dates of coverage and take it to a PENDOT office and give them copies, I had a similar issue but don't have a PENDOT office by me so I took it to one of those "Online" messenger services and they sent a notarized fax over to PENDOT for me with all the info and that cleared it up. Now that is just in my instance, but it's worth a shot.

That sounds like the best advice yet!
You don't even have to pay an online or any other messenger service, just take it to your District Representative's office, they send a messenger to Harrisburg on a daily basis and they won't charge you anything to include your correspondence with theirs. I've used their service many times for several things, including vehicle registration that I forgot about until it was almost too late. I got it back through the Representatives office in just a few days.
We're paying taxes to fund our government, why be shy about using the services they're willing to provide?
As an added bonus, you can let your Rep. know what's going on with the situation, that certainly won't hurt, and will probably help if things don't turn out the way they should.