What to Do When You Are Involved in an Accident
Being involved in an accident can be a very stressful event. To help you protect both yourself and your interests, we have provided some basic hints:
- Call the police immediately, and an ambulance if necessary.
- Do not admit liability.
- Record details of the accident including date, time, location, a description of the accident, any injuries, and any charges laid.
- Record details concerning the other party and vehicle such as owner's name and address, phone number, and vehicle year, make and model.
- It is very important to obtain the insurance information of the other driver. This includes the name of the insurance company, the policy number, and the name of the broker or agent.
- Obtain a copy of the police report from the attending officer as this will include the accident report number for future reference.
These tips are general rules of thumb only, and may not fit all situations. For more information please contact us.
What do I do in case of a loss?
How you make your claim is as important as what you claim.
The right time to make a claim is immediately or as soon as you are able.
Alert our office or your insurer as soon as practically possible
If there is any danger or ongoing damage occurring, your first priority should be to insure your safety and limit the damage to your property. At that point, you should take care to act quickly and with the right information.
- Alert us or your insurer of an insured loss as soon as your situation permits
- Keep phone numbers available
- Alert the police of any theft or break-in
- Do not alter evidence of the loss, for example, by starting to clean up after a pipe bursts or altering the scene of a break-in. If you absolutely must alter anything, take detailed pictures of the damage first
Consider whether or not you should make a claim
First things first. Should you make a claim? There are some situations in which you shouldn't and we can try to help you decide.
- Is it covered? Remember that your policy has limits and exclusions that mean some losses are not covered. Property belonging to your employer, for example, is probably not covered. Damage from a fire that was set intentionally might not be covered, and theft of a valuable painting could be beyond your insurance limit. Is it covered? Ask us first.
- If the loss is less than the amount of your deductible, then you cannot make a claim.
- If your loss is covered and above the amount of your deductible, you might still not want to make a claim if your premiums will increase as a result. Again, ask us for advice.
Work with your broker and the claims adjuster
Once your claim has been made, the insurance company may appoint an adjuster to get a clear picture of the circumstances and extent of the loss. They may assist in securing repairs and can help with arrangements for accommodations. They might also decide to limit the amount of a payment or to not pay at all - depending on the situation. If you are unsure about the role of your adjuster and the information they are using, be sure to contact us, so we can help bring clarity to the situation.
At Jones & Associates Insurance we can help you with every step of the claims process.