About Car Insurance Claims

Most people will make a claim with their car insurance company at least once in their lifetime. Unfortunately, only then will they understand what they've been paying for in premiums throughout the years and how the claims process works. The underlying premise of any car insurance claim is an exploration of the facts in order to determine whether a claim can be paid.

The Facts

Auto adjusters are insurance professionals who handle an auto claim. They usually get new claims on a daily basis. After a claim is received, an adjuster reviews the insurance contract of the person making the report and sees whether coverage exists. If it does, then he investigates the facts of the claim. This investigation normally includes a call to all of the parties involved in the loss, recorded statements, police reports and vehicle appraisals. The auto adjuster takes into account all of these things and then determines who was at fault for the accident and who should be paid. The process can take as little as one day or several years.

Features

Coverage includes a review of the auto policy held by the person making the claim. The types of coverage include bodily injury liability, property damage liability, medical payments or personal injury protection, collision, comprehensive, rental car and towing. Two, collision and comprehensive, have deductibles. All the coverages available on an auto policy have specific aspects of an auto accident that they can potentially pay for. Bodily injury liability covers the injuries of a third party if you are at fault for the accident. Property damage liability pays for the damage of a third party's vehicle if you are at fault. Medical payments and personal injury protection pay for the injuries of the people in your vehicle. Collision pays for damages to your vehicle if you collide with an object. Comprehensive pays for noncollision accidents such as hail damage. Rental car pays for a substitute rental vehicle. Towing pays for your vehicle to be towed.

Features

Liability is one of the most debated features of an auto claim. It is a fancy term used to describe fault. If an adjuster states that you are liable for an accident, it means that he thinks you are the one responsible for causing the accident. Unfortunately, if you are considered at fault, your premium rates are likely to go up. However, most companies will raise your coverage for only three years. Also, you can fight a decision that you feel is wrong by writing to the company and stating your side of the story. It doesn't always work, but it's worth a try.

Type

One-vehicle auto claims are ones that include only a policyholder's vehicle. They usually fall under the following coverages: comprehensive, collision and medical. In these types of claims, an auto adjuster will normally speak only to the policyholder or person in possession of the vehicle at the type of the loss. If necessary, he will order a police report. Then, a quick determination will be made in regards to coverage and payment. The most common one-vehicle accidents are fire, tree-collisions, icy road-collisions and hail damage.

Type

Multicar auto claims are ones involving two or more vehicles. Unlike one-vehicle accidents, they are usually complicated, and determining who's at fault isn't always easy. The adjuster can distribute liability between parties. A full investigation is needed for many multicar auto claims. This includes recorded statements, police reports, scene investigations and a review of Department of Motor Vehicle rules. An auto adjuster must use all of this information to determine exactly what happened in an auto accident and decide who gets paid and for what. The most common multicar accident is a rear-end accident that involves two cars only.

Benefits

The fact that people are able to make an auto claim and offset their financial risk in an auto accident is great. Most people don't have large sums of money sitting around to pay for the repair of their vehicle, let alone someone else's. Also, insurance companies often act as moderators, meting out judgments between two parties who might otherwise fight for years over an incident.

Resources

• How to Avoid Making a Claim