Types of Car Accident Claims
When you’ve been injured in a car accident, it’s important to understand the different types of car accident claims that can be made against the liability insurance company, as well as possibly against your own automobile insurance company.
Many times, a car accident will cause extreme hardship on the injured person as well as on their family. Mounting medical bills in addition to an inability to work add to the pain and stress involved with trying to recover from the injury. And then, when the at-fault party’s insurance company doesn’t give you a fair settlement offer, the stress of the situation can simply be too much.
Liability Car Insurance Claim
There are several types of car accident claims that can be filed with an insurance company. A “liability” auto insurance claim is a claim that is filed with the company for the other driver, when that driver is responsible for causing the accident and any damages or injuries. In this situation, you need to file a liability car accident claim with this other driver’s insurance company.
A liability insurance claim may include claims for property damage and personal injuries. If your claim is for damage to your car, you will usually need to give the liability insurance company a repair shop estimate of all of your vehicle damage. Often, the insurance company will also want to know the vehicle location, so they can send their own adjuster to assess the repair costs. The insurance company will then work with the repair shop and pay the bill for the repairs. You may be entitled to a rental vehicle while your car is being repaired.
If your vehicle is totaled, the insurance company will make a property damage settlement offer and will send you a check for the value of your vehicle. If your car is totaled and you still have a loan on the vehicle, the insurance company send the check for the value of the car directly to your lender to be applied against the remainder of your car loan.
When it comes to a car accident claim for personal injuries, an insurance company adjuster will request information about your injuries and medical treatment. The insurance adjuster will also likely want to see a copy of the police report to verify that they are liable for the damages.
Your Car Insurance Company
Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist Accident Claim
If the other driver who caused a car accident doesn’t have any auto insurance or insufficient insurance coverage to cover your car insurance claim, you may be entitled to use uninsured or underinsured coverage with a claim to your own insurance company. As it’s name implies, uninsured coverage is used in the instance that the at-fault driver does not have any insurance coverage of their own. Uninsured coverage can also be used to cover the reasonable costs of your property damage and injuries in the situation where there is a hit and run driver.
On the other hand, underinsured coverage on your own automobile insurance policy is used to cover your medical expenses and claim for injuries when the other driver’s insurance coverage is not sufficient to cover all of your injuries. When underinsured coverage is used, typically it provides extra coverage on top of the coverage provided by the at-fault’s party’s insurance. There are some exceptions to this though, as some states require the amount of the other driver’s total coverage to be subtracted from the total underinsured coverage to determine the amount of underinsurance available.
Medical Payments Coverage
If your auto insurance policy lists coverage for medical expenses payments (or “med-pay”), you may be entitled to payment of your medical bills from your policy, even if the accident was caused by someone else. If you have med-pay coverage on your auto insurance policy, you will submit your medical invoices and records to both your insurance company as well as the other driver’s insurance company. Because you pay a separate premium for med-pay coverage, your insurance rates will not increase simply because you filed a claim with your own company.
Talk with a Virginia and West Virginia Car Accident Attorney
When another driver is responsible for causing your car accident injuries, the Ritchie Law Firm is here to help. The experienced personal injury lawyers at the Ritchie Law Firm help car accident victims get the recovery they deserve after your car accident. Some of the best personal injury lawyers will have substantial recoveries for their clients. Check out Ritchie Law Firm’s settlements and recoveries.
DON’T GET HURT TWICE!! Your legal team at the Ritchie Law Firm will make them pay for their recklessness. We have helped thousands of injured people get the money they deserve after they’ve been injured. Call today to get your free case evaluation — 800-277-6124.
