A dumpster on wheels hit my car while it was parked. why should I have to file this with my insurance company?

I'm not licensed in your state so can’t give you legal advice on Virginia issues. However, a claim for negligence would seem viable here. The elements of a negligence claim are duty, breach, causation and damages. Depending on the facts and contractual relationships at play here, either or both of the dumpster company and your employer could be liable to you based on their negligence. One thing you could do is report the claim to your insurance company and lean on them to go after your employer or the dumpster company under their subrogation rights. If they recover the total amount of the damage, they’ll pay you your deductible. If you don’t want to take the chance that your insurance company elects not to pursue a claim, you could bring a claim against either the dumpster company or your employer. Depending on the jurisdictional limits of your local courts, you may be able to bring the claim in small claims or justice court. Keep in mind that if you press a claim against your employer, that may not get you the employee of the month award.

To bring a tort suit in civil court you need for negligence against the defendant. In general terms, negligence is either the failure to do something that an ordinarily prudent person would do under given circumstances or the doing of something that an ordinarily prudent person would not do under those same circumstances. Any lawsuit grounded in a negligence theory involves a breach of a legal duty imposed by statute or otherwise, owed by the defendant to the person injured. There must be damages that are the proximate result of the breach of the duty owed by the defendant to the injured person. You have a good start so..... get a lawyer. You need to get talking to an attorney quickly. You should quickly seek a lawyer because the time limit to take action to protect your rights is short. You have rights but you must act to protect those rights. If you wait too long the time to act expires. You might find helpful my Legal Guide helpful "How to Choose A Lawyer For You" http://www.attorneyqna.com/legal-guides/ugc/how-to-choose-a-lawyer-for-you You might find my Legal Guide helpful " What Do I Tell My Lawyer" http://www.attorneyqna.com/legal-guides/ugc/what-do-i-tell-my-lawyer Good luck to you. God bless. I am in Chicago and do not practice in your state. NOTE: This answer is made available by the out-of-state lawyer for educational purposes only. By using or participating in this site you understand that there is no attorney client privilege between you and the attorney responding. This site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state. The law changes frequently and varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The information and materials provided are general in nature, and may not apply to a specific factual or legal circumstance described in the question.