Insurance Claim Process For Car Accidents – Steps To Filing A Claim

A claim that a person makes to an insurance company that would enable them to receive compensation is an auto insurance claim.

Insurance claims are used in covering for damages that one has sustained during a car accident. Insurance claims can also represent or intervene on behalf of the insured when they are liable for damages.

It is a fact that repairing cars can be costly, 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 being involved in a car accident is 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 accident scene could also help you file a compensation claim.

File An Accident Report

There are laws in different states that insist on reporting every accident to the police or department of motor vehicles. Therefore, you should ensure that you do all that needs to be done and have a perfect understanding of your legal responsibilities.

You can also contact the state insurance commissioner’s office or your insurance agent if you are still unsure what needs to be done or 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 of 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 you.

Arranging a car to tow your vehicle is also an option, but this depends on your insurance coverage. 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 the insurance company. They would assign a claims adjuster to work with you. 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, he will go there to assess and make an estimate of repairs.

Specifying a particular garage where they would repair your car might also be suggested by the claims adjuster. In addition, insurance companies sometimes might pick a particular garage to work with because the garages offer guarantees on any vehicle they work on.

Final Thoughts – Insurance Claim Process For Car Accidents

Your claims adjuster can also help you get 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 and approves the costs charged for repairing your car.

You must provide the insurance claims adjuster with any information that he would need to make sure that your claim is processed quickly.

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