Insurance Claim After an Accident: A How-To Guide


Perhaps you have been in an accident, but you were not injured in the accident. You filed a claim with the insurance company for the driver that caused the accident, and they then helped you get your car repaired. However, if you have been injured in a car accident, you may be wondering how to make a car accident injury claim. The answer is that making a claim after road traffic accident that resulted in an injury is the same as making a claim after an accident and there were no injuries, only property damage. Auto insurance claim laws require that every driver carry proof of insurance in case they have been involved in an accident. Like every other state, Nevada and Utah have laws on the books that mandate every driver carry proof of insurance in their vehicles. Carrying proof of insurance serves multiple purposes – all of which relate to what you should do after an accident – file an accident case insurance claim. Proof of insurance shows that a person has insurance, tells you who the insurance company is for the vehicle, gives the policy number for the applicable policy, and gives the contact information for the insurance company. Proof of insurance comes in the form of an insurance card. The insurance card contains all of the information listed above. By having that information, a claim be can filed for an insurance claim injury car accident. You will know which company to call, you will have the number to call, and the policy number that needs to be referenced, so the insurance company knows which policy the claim applies to. Therefore, one key to filing an insurance claim after an accident is locating the insurance card for the driver that caused the accident. However, if you have been seriously injured in an accident, you may be taken from the scene of the accident by ambulance and therefore may not be able to obtain the insurance card for the driver who caused the accident. If that is the case, then you can obtain the insurance information from the police department that responds to the accident. When a serious accident occurs, the police will always be called to the scene. Part of the police officer’s investigation will include gathering the applicable insurance information. You or your loved one will be contacted by the police for your insurance information, along with a description of how the accident occurred. At that time, you can obtain the insurance information found on the proof of insurance card. If the police do not contact you, then you should contact them for the information.

Which insurance company should you file a claim with?

After an accident and insurance claim, you may learn that the driver who caused the accident does not have insurance. Since not everyone carries auto insurance like they are supposed to do, you should always file a claim with your own insurance company at the same time you file a claim with the insurance company for the driver who caused the accident. It is important to file a claim with your own insurance company for a number of reasons. First, if you have insurance on your vehicle that will allow your vehicle to be repaired after a crash, which is called collision coverage, then you can repair your car through your own insurance company. Second, if the driver who caused the accident does not have insurance or does not have enough insurance to compensate you for the full extent of your injuries, then you can file a claim with your insurance company through your uninsured/underinsured (UM/UIM) policy. For those reasons, you should file a claim with the insurance company for the driver who caused the accident, along with your own insurance company.

Why is it important to make an insurance claim after an accident?

If you get into an accident and injury claim is not made, then you run the risk of not being compensated for the injuries you sustain in the accident. Insurance companies have the right to be notified of an accident within a reasonable amount of time. They get this right from the insurance agreements they have with the customers they provide insurance for. In other words, if you cause an accident, then you must contact your insurance company and tell them you were involved in an accident. However, if you did not cause the crash, you should not rely on the person who caused the crash to file a claim. They may not do what they are supposed to do and file a claim. If a claim is not filed with an insurance company in a timely manner, then the insurance company has the right to deny the claim and not provide coverage. That may result in you not being fairly compensated for your injuries. Or, if you caused the accident and failed to file a claim with your insurance company, you may be held personally responsible for the crash. Filing an insurance claim after an accident is not something that should slip through the cracks. The process is straightforward and should not take more than 30 minutes. However, dealing with an insurance company after a claim is filed can be much more complicated. You should never handle a claim alone when you have been seriously injured. Instead, you should rely on an attorney to help you through the process. The experienced personal injury attorneys at Valiente Mott will give you a great chance of having a positive outcome. 

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