Hopefully you will never be involved in an automobile accident or need to file an insurance claim. Even the most careful and skilled drivers, however, can easily find themselves in the middle of a crash. Would you know what to do? Knowledge of what to do after the auto accident can help in making the insurance claims process less complicated and smoother so you are back on the road faster.
If you are in an auto accident:
1. Try to stay calm, stop your vehicle and check for wounds. The life and health of you, your passengers and the other folks concerned in the accident is far more significant than the automobile itself.
2. If needed, call the police and tell them of the accident, your location, what number of people are concerned, whether there are injuries and the types of wounds.
3. You may wish to take reasonable steps to protect yourself, and your car, from further damage. Where possible and if legal, move the cars to the side of the road and turn on your hazards as quickly as it is safe. If you have flares, you may need to use them to warn oncoming traffic and to stop additional crashes.
4. Taking tons of notes is a good practice, like :
the date, time and location of the accident
• how the accident took place - sometimes a drawing is worth one thousand words and can help enhance what you've noted
• the type and location of damage to your auto
the type and location of damage to the other vehicles or property involved
• the names, addresses and contact information of all drivers and passengers involved in the accident
• driver's license numbers and all the information on the licenses
insurance identifications including the name of the insurance company and policy number
the names, addresses and contact information of witnesses
the names and badge numbers of police officers or other first reply personnel
(Being able to take notes is critical so keep a pen and pad in your glove compartment, just in case.)
5. You may want to ask the police officer when and where you can get a copy of the accident report. There's a great chance you'll need it when you submit your insurance claim to your insurer.
6. It's probably a good idea to call your insurance company right away and report the accident because the sooner they know about the problem the quicker they can start working to solveresolve your insurance claim. As well, they'll be able to explain the next steps, like where to have the vehicle towed if necessary and arrange for an adjuster to come out and appraise the damage before any repair work is done.
7. There are a couple of don'ts you might want to consider like don't discuss the financial limits of your auto insurance policy and avoid talking about the responsibility for the problem or circumstances of the accident with anyone other than the police or a representative of your insurance company.
Auto accidents take a significant toll on anyboy involved. But, if you stay calm, make safety your priority and follow the above tips, you will get through the situation of being in an accident and submitting an insurance claim.
