Anyone can get involved in a car accident. You might be trying to turn carefully at a stop sign, and all of a sudden, right out of nowhere, a car comes speeding in your direction and hits your vehicle. Now, the question you might be pondering on repeatedly is how long do I have to repair my car after an accident.
The fact is getting involved in a car accident can actually be scary, but they also happen frequently and can also impact someone’s life. Millions of people every hear have been left injured or disabled because of a car accident.
Moreover, injuries are not just the only thing you have to think about after being involved in a car accident, and you should also ponder what you actually need if you must repair your car. Should you go ahead and pay for the repair out of your pocket or file a claim with the insurance company.
In some cases, cars are marked as a total loss after an accident and what this means is that the cost of repairing the damaged vehicle is actually higher than the actual value of the car before the accident.
The prayer is not to be involved in an accident where there would be a great amount of damage or loss, but a fender bender accident can be manageable.
If you do not have sufficient cash at hand and the damage your car suffered is minimal, you might hesitate to get the car repaired. Even though this is okay if the car in question here is yours, it is also possible for your insurance company to allow you to skip repairing the car if there is still a loan on the car. It means you make monthly payments on the car.
How Long Do I Have To Repair My Car After An Accident
Making monthly payments towards the car means one day, you hope to pay off all the debt owed on the car, but technically, the car isn’t yours. If a person lends you his car, he would expect the car to still function without any damage while it remains in their possession.
If the vehicle here is yours, then your insurance company offers you the option of a totaled car or repairing the damages on it. These options vary, however, depending on what you have in your insurance policy. If you have been involved in a car accident and made up your mind to file a claim, you should ensure that you file the claim as soon as possible.
Internally, it might take a little bit of time for insurance companies to process a claim, and you would not be the only one involved, but there would also be a body repair shop where they will do the repairs, as well as an insurance claims adjuster. File a claim as soon as possible should be done, especially if you make use of this car a lot.
Call up your insurance company and give them your policy number, information regarding the accident, as well as a police report number. Photos of the damaged car should be provided as well. After providing all of these, it is also possible for the insurance company to ask you to carry out repairs at a particular body repair shop.
Even though this might seem convenient, it also takes away some negotiating power or edge from your hands. Read up your insurance policy thoroughly to know if you can fix your car somewhere else.
If your insurance policy provides you with that option, getting a repair shop where you can get the lowest possible quote is what you should do. In some cases, you might feel reluctant to file the claim and choose to pay out of your pocket.
Failure to file a claim simply means that you have spent money every month on premium payments for nothing. However, it makes a little bit of sense if you decide not to file a claim when the damages suffered are minor.
You can also go-ahead to file a claim with your insurance company and not the insurance company of the other driver or drivers if there are other parties involved in the accident as well. Once you have filed a claim and the claims adjuster is finalizing your claim, you would receive the money you would use to fix up your vehicle.
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