After you contact your car insurance company to report an auto accident, the auto insurance company will open a claim for you. They will also assign your case to a claims adjuster.

About Working With A Liability Adjuster

The insurance claims or liability adjuster will contact you to schedule a date and time to examine your vehicle. The claims adjuster must select a date, time, and location to review the vehicle that is convenient for you.

When you arrive at the agreed upon location, the claims adjuster will take photos of your damaged auto. You can certainly take photos of the damaged vehicle as well. These will prove beneficial should you disagree with the claims adjuster’s report.

Contact your insurance company immediately if you do not agree with the adjuster’s report. Be prepared to provide evidence for the disagreement (i.e. repair bills, photos).

Working With Auto Repair Shops After a Car Accident

If the vehicle is determined to be repairable, you can take the vehicle to your repair shop to have it repaired. Remember to keep all repair receipts as you will need to submit these to your insurance company in order to be reimbursed for the costs of the repairs.

Check with your insurance agency to make sure that the repair shop is on their approved repair shop list. Getting your car repaired at a shop that is approved by your insurance company will ensure that the insurance company will honor warranties given at the repair shop.

Should the auto repair shop discover additional damage to your vehicle after they start to perform the repairs contact your insurance company. Ask if they want the claims adjuster to conduct another inspection of the vehicle before the repair shop fixes the newly discovered damages.

NOTE: If you have a rental car agreement on your car insurance policy, ask your insurance agency which car rental office you should visit to pick up your rental car. There should be no additional charge to you to use the rental car while your auto is in the shop undergoing repairs.

Autos Determined To Be A Total Loss Due to a Car Accident

If your auto is determined by the insurance claims adjuster to be a total loss, your insurance company will write you a check to cover the vehicle’s market value. The market value is based upon the car’s worth prior to the car accident.

The insurance company will work with your bank to pay off the market value of the vehicle if the auto is financed. Should you owe money on the car loan that is above the car’s market value, you will be responsible for this remaining amount.

Keep in mind that if you have gap Insurance, your insurance company will cover the difference between the market value of the vehicle and the amount of your auto loan. You will still be responsible for the deductible.

If you purchase a new vehicle, make sure that you provide the insurance company with the details (i.e. make, model, year) of the new vehicle as soon as possible. Always make sure that you have adequate liability insurance on your autos.