One of the most important things to know when it comes to insurance is how to file a claim, as that’s why you buy insurance in the first place. This blog will take you step-by-step on how to file an auto insurance claim in the event of an accident in Lancaster, PA.
When you file an auto insurance claim, it usually means that something has happened to your vehicle. For our purposes, let’s assume that you were in an accident.
Let’s go back to the scene of the accident.
The first and foremost thing you want to do at the scene of the accident is to make sure that you, your passengers, and anyone else involved are okay.
Then, you will want to take some photos, or even videos, of the scene and what is going on. This is a good practice to get in the habit of doing because if the accident occurred at a busy intersection, you may need to move to the side of the road and those pictures and/or videos can help the police officers or investigators figure out who was at fault.
The last step to take at the scene of the accident is to call the police. The police will be able to craft a detailed report of the accident which is often required by insurance companies to file an auto accident claim. If you were involved in a small fender bender and the other party is super cooperative with exchanging information, then the police may not be necessary. But it is always a good idea to have a police officer on the scene to ensure all your bases are covered.
Now that you have dealt with the accident and have left the scene, it is now time to file the auto insurance claim. It is important to keep in mind whether you were at fault or not at fault as the course of action to file that claim will differ.
At Fault
If you were at fault in the accident, you will want to call your insurance company and notify them that you were in an accident. Then, they will ask some follow-up questions to get the full details of what happened to file that auto insurance claim. Some questions the insurance company will ask you are where the accident took place, who was driving the vehicle, what happened that caused the accident, what are the damages to your vehicle, and who the other party is involved. Once this information is collected, the insurance company can begin reaching out to the other party and their insurance company to work on getting the claim all squared away. If you have collision coverage on your vehicle, the insurance company will also begin repairing any of the damages incurred from the accident.
Not At Fault
If you were not at fault in the accident, you have two options. You can either go through your own insurance company or the other party’s insurance company to resolve the accident claim. There are pros and cons to both, depending on the situation.
If the other party at fault was driving an older vehicle or was not very cooperative with providing insurance at the scene of the accident or you feel kind of suspicious of the whole situation, it might make sense to go through your own insurance company. When you go through your insurance company, you will be responsible for paying your collision deductible, which is not always ideal, but it ensures that the situation is dealt with, and your vehicle is repaired in a timely manner. On the back end of things, your insurance company will subrogate back against the other party’s insurance company and try to get them to pay the damages that your insurance company already paid out. In Pennsylvania, the state minimums are $5,000 for property damage, which does not cover a lot in today’s world, and if the party at fault has the state minimum, you may be forced to pay the entire thing as is, which is not ideal. Nonetheless, your insurance company will pay you back your deductible and any expenses they had to pay out when you file an auto insurance claim that you were not at fault for.
The second option you have for filing an auto insurance claim that you were not at fault for is through the other party’s insurance company. If they provided you with their identification and their insurance card at the scene of the accident, you can simply contact their insurance company and they will start that claim for you. Like filing a claim when you are at fault, the other party’s insurance company will ask you some questions to start the claim on their end so that they can pay out for all of the damages. You do not have to pay any kind of deductible, so that is a benefit of filing an auto insurance claim through the at-fault party’s insurance company.
Independent insurance agents are the middleman between you and the insurance company that is there to help you decide when to file an auto insurance claim or not. For example, if you backed into your mailbox, it might not be worth filing a claim for, but it all depends on how large your deductible is. Call your local insurance agent to discuss whether it makes sense to file an auto insurance claim or not.
If you have any questions on how to file an auto insurance claim or have had a bad claims experience in the past, give us a call. Our agents would be happy to quote you on some of our companies that have great claims representatives. We want to ensure that your claims in the future are well taken care of, as that is why you purchase insurance in the first place, to be protected.