Auto Claim Information
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Tips for Consumers: Filing An Auto Insurance Claim
- Always have on hand your company's claim service card with your agent's name and
phone number, and your policy identification
number.
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- Notify the police immediately. Get the police officer's name and badge
number and theaddress and phone number of the police station. Ask the
officer when the accident report will be filed and how you can obtain a
copy.
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- Review your insurance company's filing procedures, and store a copy in
your glove compartment as a reminder of the information the company
requires.
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- Notify your insurance company or agent. Do it as soon as possible even if
you're far from home and even if someone else caused the accident. Ask your
agent how to proceed and what forms or documents will be needed to support
your claim. Be familiar with your insurance company's policy regarding
qualified repair shops and pre-inspections.
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- Whatever you send to the Insurance Company, make sure that you send it
Certified/Return Receipt Requested. Also, absolutely make copies of
everything for yourself. If the Insurance Company sends you forms to complete, do it in a timely manner.
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- Make sure you get the name of the other driver,
his or her address, work and home telephone numbers; license plate number and state;
insurance company name and policy number and the telephone number of his or her insurance agent. Also, obtain the names and addresses of all passengers
and witnesses.
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- Make notes describing the accident, the
vehicles involved, their approximate speeds, the setting, the weather, traffic signs and signals,
and the road conditions. Take photographs if possible; or draw simple diagrams of the roads and the accident.
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- Don't make any oral or written statements as to responsibility or blame.
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- Don't tell others involved in the accident how much liability insurance
you carry.
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- Don't discuss the specifics of the accident with other drivers, witnesses
or passengers.
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- Don't accept offers to settle for payment on the spot without thinking
about it carefully. You may be held liable later for the same damages.
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Who pays for damage to my auto and how much?
If you have Collision Coverage or Comprehensive Coverage on your own Auto
Policy your insurance company will pay for the damage to your vehicle
regardless of who may have been at fault in the accident or incident.
Collision and Comprehensive Coverage covers damages sustained by your vehicle.
If you do not have Collision and/or Comprehensive Coverage on your policy and
the damage is the result of negligence of someone else, your only remaining
option is to collect from the negligent party who caused the damage.
Hopefully, that party will have Liability Insurance that will pay you on
behalf of their insured. If another party is responsible for your damage but
does not have insurance, your only remaining option is to pursue your claim
against the negligent party personally. If the responsible party does not
voluntarily pay for your damages, you may have to pursue legal action against
them.
If you have the option of collecting for your vehicle damage from either your
own insurance company or the other party's insurance company, we recommend you
utilize your own coverage. There are several reasons for this as follows:
- In most states, your insurance company can not increase your future auto
insurance policy premiums for claims submitted which do not involve
negligence on your part.
- Your own auto insurance policy may afford you rights that you do not
have in your dealings with the other party's insurance company. Those
rights may include your access to a quick and cost effective process for
resolving disputes.
Generally speaking, the maximum that will be paid for damage to your vehicle
will be the amount necessary to replace your vehicle with a comparable used
vehicle (plus sales tax, title and registration fees). This is referred to as
the vehicle's ACV (Actual Cash Value). This is where the reality sets in that
replacement cost is not the same thing as market value. Your car can easily be
declared a total loss even though the money you'd receive is nowhere near what
it would cost you to replace the vehicle.
The best advice about getting your car fixed is to remember that the money may
be coming from the insurance company but you should control the repair
process. This means refusing to settle for a repair job you don't like. And it
may also mean refusing to accept the use of generic replacement parts instead
of the original manufacturer's parts (your policy may give your insurer the
right to use generic parts, so it's important to check the fine print to know
your rights). An exception to this rule would be if you had purchased an RCV
(Replacement Cost Value) endorsement as part of the Collision and
Comprehensive Coverage on your own insurance policy. That would raise the
maximum collectable to an amount necessary to replace your vehicle with a
comparable new vehicle. These amounts would be collectable if your vehicle
claim were to be resolved on a Total Loss basis.
If the damage is not severe enough to total your vehicle, you are owed
whatever amount is required to return your vehicle to it's pre-loss condition.
What if additional damage is found during repairs?
This is not unusual and does not usually pose a problem. The repairing shop
will notify the insurance company who may send their appraiser back out to
the shop to re-inspect the vehicle and reach an agreed price increase to
repair this new damage.
Which Body Shop should I choose?
You have the right to select the shop that will be repairing your vehicle.
Here are some things to consider when choosing a repair shop . . .
- Shop should provide written warranty
- Shop should not use "economy" parts
- Ask to see "I-CAR" training certificates of technicians
- Shop should have MIG welders
- Shop should use "Weld-Through" primer
- Shop should have a "dedicated bench"
- Verify shop status with the Better Business Bureau
Do I get substitute transportation?
If you have Rental Reimbursement coverage on your own policy the answer is
yes, regardless of who may have been at fault in the accident. If you do not
have Rental Reimbursement coverage and the accident was your fault, the
answer is no. If you do not have Rental Reimbursement coverage and the
accident was the other party's fault and they have liability insurance, the
answer is probably! You may have to front the rental expense on your
credit card and then submit receipts for reimbursement.
Will my repaired vehicle be worth what it was before the accident?
Probably not ! If your vehicle was substantially damaged in the current
accident and has no history of significant collision involvement, you
probably have sustained a post-repair reduction in the resale value of your
vehicle. In most states you are entitled to be compensated, by the other
party's insurance company (if the other party were at fault), for any
reduction in the resale value of your repaired vehicle. In some states, you
can even collect for this damage from your own collision carrier.
How are Total Loss settlements figured?
Most all Total Loss Settlements are based upon the pre-loss actual cash
value (ACV) or depreciated value of the vehicle. In order to define a
realistic ACV it is necessary to find vehicles comparable to the Total Loss
vehicle and see how much they are being sold for. To that amount the
insurance company should add sales tax, title and registration fees.
However, the ACV of your vehicle could vary dramatically based upon the
motivation of the appraiser locating the "Comp" vehicles. Most
insurance companies use an independent automated market survey service to
locate "Comps" and make a value recommendation for the Total Loss
vehicle. As there are more than one such automated services competing for
work from various insurance companies, there is an implied incentive to have
a service provide lower priced Comps which will save insurance companies
money and theoretically encourage an insurance company to use that service
again in the future. It is for this reason that more and more consumers are
exercising their right to appraisal which is discussed in the next section.
What if I do not agree with the settlement being offered?
Your auto insurance policy probably has an Appraisal Clause. If you and your
insurance company do not agree as to the settlement value of your damage claim,
either you or the company may invoke the Appraisal Clause. That means you would
hire an appraiser to represent your interests, the insurance company would hire
an appraiser to represent their interests and they would hire a third appraiser
to act as "Referee". If the first two appraisers fail to reach an
agreement as to a reasonable settlement value, they would each submit their
figures to the third appraiser for determination. If either of the first two
appraisers agrees with the determination of the third appraiser, the settlement
amount has been resolved and is binding on the insurance company. In this
process, the insured pays the fee of their appraiser. The insurance company pays
the fee of their appraiser. The insured and insurance company split the fee of
the third appraiser. Submitting your claim settlement value dispute to appraisal
can be quick, cost effective and can result in a settlement increase.
Unfortunately, your right to appraisal exists only in matters of dispute between
you and your own insurance company. You have no right to appraisal in matters of
dispute between you and the other party's insurance company. If the other
party's insurance company does not agree to submit your dispute to appraisal,
your only remaining option would then be litigation.
Other helpful links:
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration
Great page that includes crash test results, child safety information and
much more
Edmunds
Comprehensive site
that features new and used car and truck pricing and reviews