Crash

This morning I got up to get ready for school. Got the kids feed, dressed, and ready. Just like any other tuesday morning. Got into our 09 Toyota Sienna, I have a 20min country hwy drive to the school. I dropped off my oldest daughter, who will be 6 in June & rides in a GN. I headed back home. On the way is a yeild sign to turn right. I stopped at the yield sign and looked twice, I thought I saw a car but the sun & trees make it hard to see 100% clearly. Well there was a lady behind me, I never even saw her. All of a sudden a big loud boom, my baby (15month old rear facing in a myride) screaming, and Ive moved pretty far forward. I had been rear ended
I was able to pull over into a gas station and the women did also (thank goodness she didnt drive off). I checked on the baby and she was fine and just spooked. I then checked on the women. She was ok and her unrestrained 4yr old was also fine(she got a ticket for no booster and hitting me) Im having neck and back pain. I was in a crash almost 3yrs ago, rear end, and seem to be having a repeat and I pulled a muscle in my neck and my knees hit the under part of the dash and are sore, not bruised though. Ill need to see a chiropractor for my neck/back which I HATE but if I dont Ill get constant painful head aches like last time. Im upset because I wont be able to wear my 15month old in my wrap/carriers for awhile either BUT I shall live thank God!
My car didnt do so well though. Bumper is hanging and bent, the hatch is hard to open and dent also and I cant use the passenger sliding door because it will hit the fallen off bumper. I took the car to a body shop to make sure it was 100% safe to drive and it is. I spoke with graco, my insurance and her insurance. All agreed to replace the seats. So my MIL took me with her car and car seat and I bought replacements(same seats). Different prints because its all I can find. O well.
Both my daughter and I saw our family doctor. I got some muscle relaxers but I cant take them because I have no other care for my kids. So Tylenol only for me :-/
Im waiting for the lady who hit me to contacted her insurance, they wont pay till they speak with her. But hopefully that will happen tomorrow and I can get the adjuster out this week. The body shop will order parts and then take 4-5 days to replace the hatch & bumper. Ill have to have a rental during that time, which sucks because I love my van. I just hope a get a rental that fits my car seat, or itll be pointless. We will see, Im not too worried about the car, just greatful we are alive and well

Im so happy I 1. knew enough to rear face past my dd 1st bday. She could have been really hurt today ff at 15m. Thinking about this makes me cry. 2. I took the cpst course 2wks ago and learned exactly how to install and use my seat. And it did its job. She was scared but not a single scratch and not even cranky acting sore.

I learned almost all I know from here and another site and I wanna say THANK YOU! My daughter is safe sleeping in my arms because of all the great advice, articles, and website and forum!

That sounds really scary. I'm so glad that you both are relatively okay.

Glad you're both ok. And you can use the covers from your old seats on your new ones.

First of all, I'm so glad you're all ok! (And yay for the officer who ticketed for the unrestrained child!)

Secondly, you should be able to take the covers off of your crashed seats and keep them, so you can use your new covers as backups. (Check with your insurance adjuster, but I haven't heard of a case where they're not ok with that.)

Third of all, the MyRide and Nautilus should fit in just about any car -- even a small sedan -- so as long as that's all that you need to fit in there, rest your mind about that.

Fourth of all, would you be open to allowing us (techs) to cite your story? Many parents are concerned about RFing past the first birthday and rear end crashes, and yours is good example that those kids remain well-protected. :thumbsup:

Again, I'm SO glad you're okay... crashes (even less severe ones) are really scary. I can still hear the BOOM you talked about, and it's been over a year since mine. I hope you and your DD recover fully and quickly. (And that that other lady starts properly restraining her child.)

Glad you're relatively ok, and DD is fine.


Make sure you keep the covers to the crashed seats

Thank you everyone!

Carrie_R said:

Secondly, you should be able to take the covers off of your crashed seats and keep them, so you can use your new covers as backups. (Check with your insurance adjuster, but I haven't heard of a case where they're not ok with that.)

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I had no idea you could do that! Thanks If her insurance (geico) covers it they require me to give them the seats but if my insrance covers it I can do what I want with them. So hopefully I can keep the covers.

Carrie_R said:

Third of all, the MyRide and Nautilus should fit in just about any car -- even a small sedan -- so as long as that's all that you need to fit in there, rest your mind about that.

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Thats good to know! One last thing to deal with

Carrie_R said:

Fourth of all, would you be open to allowing us (techs) to cite your story? Many parents are concerned about RFing past the first birthday and rear end crashes, and yours is good example that those kids remain well-protected. :thumbsup:

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And no I dont mind if you use the story. Anything to spread the word!! I dont have a blog or anything but I dont mind if someone else wants to use it in promoting extended rear facing. Im telling everyone I know personally in hopes it will change thier minds.

MommaWhitney said:

Thank you everyone!
I had no idea you could do that! Thanks If her insurance (geico) covers it they require me to give them the seats but if my insrance covers it I can do what I want with them. So hopefully I can keep the covers.

.

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Tell Geico you are keeping the covers even if they want the seat. I don't remember what company it was, but I kept the covers, and cut the harness straps in front of the adjuster I was turning them in to. They only want the seat to make sure you're not still using it after they pay for a new one.

ETA: Do you have any pictures? Blog readers love pictures

I'm glad you're all okay! That sounds very scary!

So glad to hear that you and your LO are safe. :thumbsup: for the officer ticketing for no booster. I hope you are feeling better soon.

Glad your all ok! How scary!! I hope the other lady will put her LO in a seat now! Scary!

If the insurance company insists on having covers I'd put the new ones you don't like on the old seats.

Amazing that such little actual damage could be such a problem. Her car was much worse. The car seat(my 15m olds myride) foam picture is strange. I dunno if it happened in the crash or when I took the seat out, cause I carried it in by the harness. But I always do that and nothing ever happens.

And I dont dislike the paterns I got its just not exactly what I would have picked out myself. If I could have ordered online I would have gotten differently.

wow, that is scary I'm so happy to hear that your both ok. Thank you for sharing your story with us

MommaWhitney said:

Amazing that such little actual damage could be such a problem. Her car was much worse. The car seat(my 15m olds myride) foam picture is strange. I dunno if it happened in the crash or when I took the seat out, cause I carried it in by the harness. But I always do that and nothing ever happens.

And I dont dislike the paterns I got its just not exactly what I would have picked out myself. If I could have ordered online I would have gotten differently.

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Thanks for sharing the pics. Was there any other damage to the seat that you could see? Maybe stretched webbing on the harness or a crack/stress mark in that area? Just wondering.

How fast was she going when she hit you?

Glad you're all ok

No the seat look fine from the outside. Just that and I know that wasnt there last week when I washed the cover. But I can look again.
And there is one more thing with the car Ill get a pic for you. The foam padding under the bumper broke broke.

I have no clue how fast she was going. I wish I had a picture of her car. It was drivable but looked worse than my van. No air bags went off so she couldnt have been going super fast, I dont know the force in which air bags go off.
I think what she did was, as she approached the yield sign she was slowing down, the spead limit before the yield sign is 55 but people go 60+, she looked way before reaching the yeild sign saw no one was coming and gassed it. I think she thought I was going or about to go but I didnt go because I thought I saw a car and doubled checked, and she hit me. Thank God no one was coming because she pushed my car into the line of on coming traffic.

So glad your relatively okay! Glad your dd is okay too! I would keep the covers too!

Glad you are ok!

I know that loud boom all too well. Ds and I were rearended at 40-45 mph (left their car to be towed from scene, airbags deployed, etc.). The chiro will be no fun, but from what I was told, not seeing it coming helped alot in what damage was done to my spine, muscles, and nerves.

Geico most likely won't even take the seats. They insured the person who hit me a couple of years ago. I had to e-mail him (the adjustor) the link on BRU to the seat I needed replacing, and he mailed me a check. That was it.

And as for the insurance, for the same accident I was without my 6 month old minivan. I told the adjustor I needed another minivan because I needed to transport a number of children regularly. They approved it. They also paid for it until the day my car was completely ready at the dealership (who was doing the repairs).

Don't let them get away with giving you a subcompact, THEIR insured was at fault here!

So glad you and your little one are ok. :thumbsup: