Bethany's Road to Recovery: Help Needed After Car Accident

Hello, I'm Bethany.

On Monday, May 13th at 9:30 PM, I was driving through an intersection when a car pulled out slowly in front of me to get onto an interstate ramp, resulting in an accident.

Both vehicles suffered severe damage. The force of the collision resulted in me breaking my hand and suffering a deep laceration to my palm and thumb. These last few weeks have been incredibly difficult as I was without a rental car until recently. I've been caught in a frustrating cycle of phone calls, emails, and confusion with car insurance companies, doctors, and attorneys.

Yesterday, the insurance adjuster from the opposing car insurance company examined my car and deemed it a total loss. Fortunately, I have gap insurance, which will cover the remaining amount as long as there are no missed payments. However, I was behind on my car payments due to recent mechanical issues that required out-of-pocket expenses for repairs. These costs along with unexpected life emergencies bled into the money I needed for my mortgage, putting me behind on that as well.

Today, I spoke with my attorney, who informed me that while gap insurance and the opposing car insurance offer will cover most costs, I will still be without a car. I am in a challenging situation because I rely on my car for my livelihood. I have four jobs: a full-time job as an inclusion specialist working with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with disabilities and special needs, a part-time job as a tutor, another part-time job as an assessment scorer, and an author. Without a car, I can't perform my full-time job because I must travel to other counties to serve the children.

I can no longer work my part-time positions as a tutor and a scorer because I couldn’t guarantee when I would have reliable transportation or how long it would take for my hand to heal to perform my duties. In fact, this message to you is thanks to dictation.

Despite the misconception that being a traditionally published author brings in lots of money, it simply doesn’t. With multiple projects on submission and trying to secure writing gigs with very little success, being an author doesn't support me. At this point, I need other jobs to support it.

Balancing it all alone has been incredibly challenging. I’ve been struggling since the end of January when my partner of eight years left, leaving me to manage on a single income in what was a two-income household. I’ve worked four different jobs, but no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to catch up.

I'm in need of assistance to pay for the missing car payments, catch up on my mortgage, and make a down payment for a new car.

My mortgage payments increased to $1,400 in April, and I need to pay for both April and May's payments, totaling $2,800. My car payments are $660, and to get back up to speed, I need $2100 for 3 months of missed payments and late fees. Additionally, I need $6,100 for a down payment on a new car because my credit score is very low due to all the missed payments. This amounts to $11,000.

I am reaching out to your generosity to help me get back on my feet. I'm in desperate need of a car to avoid jeopardizing the only stable income I have as an inclusion specialist. Any help you can provide would mean the world to me.

Thank you so much for your time.

Sincerely,

Bethany