After a car accident there are many things on your mind. Most of which are concern for the health and safety of yourself and passengers. One must also remember that in order to have everything taken care of financially, filing a claim with the insurance company is a must. Filing a claim with the insurance company is never something that one enjoys doing. The following will assist you in navigating through the rough waters after your crash so that you are taken care of.
From Accident to Claim Resolution
1. After the accident ensure that everyone is ok, or if you need to call for medical help. Exchange information with the other driver. If there are any witnesses take their information also. File a police report or call to have the police on the scene.
2. Notify your insurance company as soon as possible.
3. Once the insurance company has been notified an adjuster will examine the accident report.
4. If the other party was at fault the adjuster will then contact the other party's insurance company to work out the details of your claim. In some instances if this takes a long period of time your insurance adjuster will recommend that you file the claim under your insurance, if you have collision insurance, repair the vehicle and seek reimbursement from the other insurance party later. Don't release your insurance company from its responsibility until you are satisfied that the claim has been handled appropriately.
5. Insurance companies should try to settle the claim with you quickly. The following areas must be remembered prior to signing a settlement:
a. Bodily Injuries: many companies will settle bodily injury claims with a monetary settlement. Make sure that you have sought adequate treatment. Some injuries don't become apparent for several days and they need to be covered under the claim. The settlement will be to cover your medical expenses that you have paid to date and some future medical expenses. This settlement will mean you can't file against the insurance company again for injuries that arise later related to this accident. Be hesitant and ensure you are healed prior to accepting a settlement for bodily injuries.
b. Damages: this is a settlement for reimbursement at a reasonable amount to you for your damaged vehicles. This can be done in a couple of ways. The insurance adjuster can examine the car and make an estimate for the cost to repair the damages to the vehicle. If the estimate is acceptable to you they will issue a payment. Or you will be asked to obtain several estimates locally and submit them to the adjuster. The adjuster will then arrange which body shop is going to take care of your car. The payment will generally be made out directly to the body shop for exactly the amount of the estimate.
Filing a claim can be intimidating because there is money involved and the settlement terms generally are difficult to understand. Remember the keys given above as the basics to insurance claim filing. If you have any questions or concerns about your settlement offer you can get clarification from your adjuster and you always have the right to seek representation in the event you feel it's needed.