A claim that a person makes to an insurance company that would enable him or her receive compensation is referred to as an auto insurance claim. Insurance claims are used in covering for damages that one has sustained during a car accident. Insurance claims can also be used for representing or intervening on behalf of someone that is insured when they are liable for damages. It is a fact that repairing cars can be very expensive and you have this insurance claim process for car accidents article to guide you while processing an auto claim.
Insurance Claim Process For Car Accidents
Contacting The Police
The first step towards filing a claim after you have been involved in a car accident if reporting the accident to the police. You may not be in the best position to make some assessment because you might be a bit shaken up after the accident and that is why you would need the help of a police officer to help you take down details of the incident or accident. Under worst case scenarios where the other driver might be acting violent, you will need the help of a police officer to ensure that you are safe.
It is also the job of the police officer to make sure that emergency services and ambulances perform their duties like handling the injured or dealing with any dangerous damage like oil leakage or fuel leakage. Making sure that you report the accident to the police and having the police document everything that happened at the scene of the accident could also help you when it comes to filing a claim for compensation.
File An Accident Report
There are laws in different states that insists reporting every accident that happens to the police or department of motor vehicles and you should ensure that you do all that needs to be done as well as having a perfect understanding of what your legal responsibilities are. You can also contact the state insurance commissioner’s office or your insurance agent if you are still not sure of what needs to be done or if you still do not fully understand your legal rights and responsibilities.
Call Your Insurance Company
From the scene where the accident happened, the next thing that you should do is contacting your insurance company when it is safe for you to do so. They would guide you through every step and inform you on the next steps you need to take. They would also tell you the type of information that you would need to send across and if you cannot drive your car after the accident, the insurance company would direct you on how you can get transportation for your car and for you as well.
Arranging a car to tow your vehicle is also an option but this is dependent on your insurance coverage and your insurance coverage would also determine how you can get yourself a rental car for the time being. Failing to call your insurance company after an accident leaves you in a position where you won’t know if they can help you or not and it may even cost you to spend more money than you should.
Claim Specialist
After reporting the accident you have been involved in to the insurance company, they would assign a claims adjuster to work with you and it is the duty of the claims adjuster to represent you when dealing with a third party or maybe another insurance company. The claims adjuster would work with you and make sure that you get settled with a worthy compensation. You can meet this claims adjuster either through the phone or in person and if your car is at the garage then he would go there to assess and make an estimate of repairs.
Specifying a particular garage where you car would be repaired might also be suggested by the claims adjuster and insurance companies sometimes might pick a particular garage to work with because the garages offer guarantees on any vehicle they work on. Your claims adjuster can also help you in getting a rental car provided you have insurance coverage for rental cars so you can still make use of a car while yours gets repaired.
Reviewing of potential injuries is also done by the claims adjuster and he also handles payments as well as approving the costs charged for repairing your car. It is important that you provide the insurance claims adjuster with any information that he would be needing so as to make sure that your claim is processed quickly.
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