Hit by an unlicensed & uninsured driver

Hi, my name is Kelsey and I am fundraising in hopes of getting my vehicle back on the road after an injustice occurred to me.

This past weekend, I was driving along the backroad in my town going the speed limit, wearing my seatbelt, licensed, insured, in a fully legal vehicle (just purchased in April). A van coming from the opposite direction suddenly swerved into my lane and started coming at me head on. I slammed on the horn and started to swerve right, but a pedestrian was just to the right side of my vehicle and a telephone pole was 5 or so feet in front of him. There was no where to go and the driver had no response to my horn. I let off the gas, laid on the horn, and braced for impact.

He picked up speed as he slammed into me at my front fender and wheel, and then plowed me off of the street, damaging my entire drivers side. I came to it after a brief "black out" and called the police in shock. I was ok at a quick glance and the pedestrian was as well. The other driver seemed to be driving away, but after his tire blew out, he hobbled to a stop. Witnesses in the vehicle behind me rushed over to see if I was ok and let me know they saw the whole thing. We speculated the driver was intoxicated or fell asleep.

The police arrived and initiated the standard procedure. I was very concerned about getting the other driver's information as well as the witnesses' and pedestrian's testimony. The police told me they would get all of his information and put it in the report, that insurance will do the rest. They told me they were writing him multiple citations but did not say what for. Their priority was getting me off of the scene and home safe.

Inevitably the driver was unlicensed, uninsured, and seemingly homeless as the address listed on the report is a public beach park. I have liability insurance but no collision, and my under insured, uninsured motorist policy covers medical, but not property damage.

All of this to say, I believe I did everything right in this situation, and was hit by essentially a ghost in the system... and I am left with a mild concussion, whiplash, a week off of work, and an estimate starting at $2,200 for necessary vehicle repairs which will all be out of pocket expenses on my end.

I feel this is a failure on the system. People should not be able to get away with a crime like this. Lesson of the day... always have collision insurance.

Moving forward, I simply hope to recover from my injuries, and have my car repaired to the point that it's drive-able to enable me to get back to work and life as usual. If you feel inclined to donate the funds will go towards fixing my front driver's side control arm, and my front driver's side door. Both of which are necessary repairs. I would be more than appreciative for any and all support. Thank you SO much for giving me your time and attention.

- Kelsey