<prompt> Human: So my car was totaled a few nights ago by a college student who fell asleep at the wheel. She ended up slamming into the back of my car while it was parked in front of my apartment street parking is all thats available. It was so loud that it woke me up. She wasnt injured, the police came and took all of our insurance information, and both of our vehicles were towed. I have been in contact with her insurance agency and she had already made a claim and admitted fault seeing as I wasnt even in my vehicle. I talked to my insurance but wanted to file with hers so I wouldnt have to pay a deductible. Her insurance agent said she was fully covered and I could get a rental vehicle and that I would be fully reimbursed for it. Fast forward to today. I called her insurance agent back because I hadnt heard anything. He said the claim was canceled because she hadnt been making payments so she wasnt insured with them anymore and now I would have to file under my insurance. They were going to send me a letter to inform me instead of calling me back. I mentioned this to my insurance because it sounded fishy for her to have already filed a claim with them and gotten a claim number. My insurance doesnt cover rentals and I would have to pay a larger deductible for being hit by an uninsured motorist. I filed a claim with them but they advised I take her to court to claim the rest. I am now paying over 1000 already and they havent even inspected the vehicle yet or hired a lawyer. I just graduated college last semester and have a very small emergency fund 2500. I had just finished paying off my vehicle 2014 Mazda CX-5 last month and I had just put all new tires on it two weeks ago which totaled around 600.I looked at the same model vehicle in my area and have an idea on price. Do I need to make sure the settlement includes sales tax and dealer fees? Could I put the receipt for the tires in the claim? I contacted her today and left a voicemail but Im almost positive she wont call back. I know she is probably broke since shes in college hell I was and still am and I wanted to give her a chance to make amends without lawyers. Any suggestions on what I should do or where to go from here? Any advise would be great because Im very new to all of this.Thank you my Reddit heroes.Assistant: If she doesnt have insurance or any money it might be hard to collect even going to small claims court. I mean she can be required to pay you but it could be on a payment plan if she has any income. Its possible her parents would cover her debt is she is a student. Having a deductible of was your choice as was not having car rental coverage. What have you paid the 1000 for?If you go through your own insurance and they pay you for the car being totaled it will include the registration fees and what ever they deem the car to be worth. This recently happened to me and I gave my insurance company receipts for things I had just added. If you had new tires on the car by all means give them the receipts for any extras you have added: new tires, after market radio, etc.Your insurance will give you a check minus the deductible. Next time add the car rental thing as it only costs a few dollars. In the mean time use Uber or borrow a car. Rentals can be expensive unless you can work out a cheap deal.Human: I have a 500 deductible and a little over a 500 car rental this week. Im below 25 and the only vehicles in my area that are available to rent are luxury SUVs that can only be acquired through business use my company ended up getting me the rental. The Talladega NASCAR race is this week and I cant find anything to rent.Thanks so letting me know about your experience. Ill gather the receipts. Thank you so much!EDIT: Ill definitely add the rental coverage to uninsured motorists. I didnt realize that was an option.Assistant: The rental will kill you. Once NASCAR is over you might get something better. There are rental companies that will rent to under 25 if you have a credit card. They tack on a fee though. 500 is crazy. I hate people that drive without insurance. You shouldnt have to pay the deductible up front. It took a month to get a check for my totaled car. You should be thinking about what you want to buy.Human: I didnt realize it was going to be that much until my office manager gave me the bill. I immediately told her to cancel the rental. Im just going to wait out this weekend and look into a cheaper rental Monday. Ill use Uber, like you suggested, in the the meantime. I see why she was crying hysterically and screaming that she couldnt afford this right now. Im so grateful Im not in her shoes. This stinks for me but its a hell of a life lesson for her.  <response>: Shes lucky she didnt injure someone. Falling asleep at the wheel is bad news. I recently totaled a car. Ended up using Uber and found it was actually cheaper then owning a car. No insurance, gas, parking, etc. Not a permanent solution but doable. I did have to rent a car for a day or two here and there -- to look at new cars and take a trip. Research and find out who will rent you a car at your age. 