If you carry car insurance, this is likely not just because it is legally required to do so—but so that you have a place to turn when you have an accident or experience car damage. Making a car insurance claim is one way to help you get the funds to pay for fixing your vehicle. Unfortunately, it is often a frustrating experience, and insurance companies don’t always make good on their promises.
This is because your insurance company, even though you're a paying customer, does not always have your best interest in mind, and may not do everything possible to help put you in a good position to recover compensation. Understanding how to get insurance to pay for car damage is important because a few tips and tricks can increase your chances of getting the funds that you need.
At Morgan & Morgan, our legal team is here to help you through the whole process to support you if you're having trouble getting insurance to pay for your damages. If at any point you struggle to get your insurance company to be able to pay out the benefits that are owed to you, you need to share this information with an attorney. If you've already provided ample evidence and have continued to communicate with the company about the status of your claim but are not getting results, you may need to hire a lawyer to show that you mean business.
To get started, contact Morgan & Morgan today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.
Understanding Car Insurance Claims
You may file an insurance claim after an accident, and many people do. Every single year, over $165 billion in car insurance payouts are made. The action steps needed are typically the same, even though the process and rules can vary slightly between insurance companies and states. Deciding to file your claim is based on the depth of and the cause of the physical damage or injuries. It is always recommended that you communicate quickly regarding any severe damage or bodily injury to your car insurance company, as it is important to get the ball rolling on recovering benefits.
However, not every accident or incident of damage will necessarily need to lead to a car insurance claim. You may decide that the deductible required or the potential increase in your rates for minor property damage, for example, is not worth the effort of filing a claim. In that case, you may pay out of pocket and decide not to figure out how to get insurance to pay for car damage. However, if you do decide that you want your car insurance company to pay for damage or if you were recently injured in an accident, you need to reach out to your insurance company as soon as you can after the incident and share with them any details and documentation about that accident.
Auto insurance claims can have a very negative impact on your premium. On average, they increase your car insurance premium by anywhere from 10 to 40%, based on the situation surrounding the accident and the overall insurance company. For this reason, it can be very frustrating for someone who was seriously hurt in an accident caused by someone else to go through the process of watching their rates go up for an action that was not their fault. However, you may have no other option but to turn to your car insurance company if you've been seriously damaged.