what to do after someone hits your car
Getting into whatever kind of car accident is ever a scary feel, but when some other driver hits your car, whether you were there at the fourth dimension or non, it can be extra frustrating. If another driver hits you in traffic, dents your bumper while your car is parked, or sideswipes you and speeds away, you'll need to know what to do to make certain you're safe and how yous can become any compensation y'all deserve from their insurance.
In general, most of the steps you should take after a motorcar blow are the same no matter who was at mistake: Brand sure y'all're safe, telephone call the police, don't leave the scene and certificate everything so you can file a claim with your motorcar insurance company. But when another vehicle hits yours, and the other commuter was at fault, the specific actions you lot need to take can vary depending on the situation.
Primal Takeaways
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If someone hits your car, you lot should stay on the scene and collect the other party's insurance information so you can file a third-political party claim to receive compensation for the damage
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With collision coverage, your car is covered when information technology is hitting past some other vehicle or object, regardless of who was at fault
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If your auto is hit by a driver that speeds off on the scene, and so y'all tin can utilize your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to pay for your medical expenses and vehicle repairs
What to exercise if someone hits your motorcar while it's parked
Say y'all come outside to find that someone has hit your parked auto, leaving it damaged. Merely similar after some other type of accident, in that location's a certain set up of steps you lot should follow.
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I of the first things y'all should do is call 911, even if no one is injured. The responding officeholder, or officers, volition write up a police report documenting the accident, which may be necessary to brand an insurance claim on the impairment
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Y'all should also try to collect as much information as possible. If the driver who hit your parked car is at the scene, have down their insurance information, including their provider proper name and policy number. You lot should also record their license plate number, as well as the make and model of their motorcar
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If the other driver isn't at the scene, let's hope they did the correct matter and left a note. If they didn't, well, that would make it a hit-and-run, which is a scenario nosotros'll go over later on. Just assuming they left a note with their name, contact information and insurance policy number, snap a quick photograph of the note so you have an extra copy
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If you have a smartphone handy, yous should besides have photos of the impairment to your car also every bit the location of the incident. Ask around to see if at that place were any eyewitnesses and get their contact information too. If your car insurance company has a mobile app, y'all may exist able to report the accident correct from the scene, and upload your photos and other information directly into the app
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Now you'll demand to start the claims process. Contact your insurance, if you lot haven't already, and give them all the necessary information. Tell them yous're planning on filing a merits with the other party'due south insurance. Then notify the other party'due south insurance and tell them y'all're filing a claim against one of their policyholders. You tin ordinarily do this online or over the phone
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Stay on top of the process. You lot may exist asked to provide more documents or data. The other commuter's liability insurance should cover the damage they caused. If you've notified your insurer, they may also work with the other party's provider
What to exercise if someone hits your car while you're driving
If you're in an accident acquired by someone else while you lot're driving, follow the same steps you'd accept after whatsoever car blow:
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Pull over and get to safety. Turn on your hazards or light flares then other drivers know to terminate. Then evaluate the scene and check yourself and any passengers for injuries
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Call 911. Police officers can check everyone involved for injuries, and they'll likewise write upwards a police report that you lot'll demand when filing a claim
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Collect all the required information. That includes names, license plate numbers, insurance policy information, date and time of the blow and contact information for any witnesses
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Document the accident. Photograph the cars, location, license plates and any other details. Yous tin even draw a diagram of the accident while information technology'due south yet fresh in your listen
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File a claim. Now we get to the insurance office of things. Fifty-fifty if you believe the other person was at fault, you lot should still notify your insurance. Your provider will piece of work with the other political party's insurance visitor to decide who was at fault and what will be covered. If it's clear that the other driver was at fault, you should all the same tell your insurance provider that yous're planning on filing a third-party merits with the other party's machine insurance company. If your car was damaged and the other driver was at error, their liability insurance would pay for the damages or injuries they acquired. Simply like filing a claim with your own auto insurance company, filing a 3rd-party claim with another driver'south car insurance tin normally happen either online or over the phone. Be sure to accept all the necessary information handy when you file a claim— you'll need all that info yous collected at the scene
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Follow-up. Stay in touch with both insurance providers as you lot move through the process. Depending on the extent of the damage to your vehicle, you may as well choose to file a claim through your own insurance if you have collision coverage, which covers damage from an accident regardless of who was at mistake. If yous've filed a third-party merits with the other commuter'south insurance company, you should eventually receive a payment made out to y'all straight
What if the other driver doesn't have insurance?
If another driver hits you and they don't have whatever machine insurance, or the machine insurance they take can't cover the full extent of the damages, the damage they acquired may be covered by your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, or UM/UIM. Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage exists for just this scenario — it covers you lot if yous're in an accident caused by someone who doesn't accept insurance, or whose insurance can't comprehend all the harm.
As we mentioned above, collision coverage will also cover damage to your vehicle after an accident, regardless of who was at fault, just collision coverage usually requires you to pay an out-of-pocket deductible before it covers the residue of the costs.
What to do if someone hits your car and leaves or hits your machine and doesn't leave a notation
If someone hits yous while you're driving and speeds off, or hits your parked car and doesn't leave a name or a note, that's what's considered a striking-and-run. When you're involved in a hit-and-run, you should still follow many of the same steps as you would in whatsoever car accident, like calling 911, recording any details well-nigh the other commuter that you know and taking photos of the harm.
If your car was parked when it was hitting, yous tin can enquire people nearby if they witnessed the accident, and accept downward their information. In that location may also be businesses nearby that have security footage of the blow, which could be helpful.
If your car was damaged in the hit and run, don't panic. The damage may notwithstanding be covered by your own insurance, fifty-fifty if you never successfully identify the other commuter. Depending on the land yous live in, harm from a hit and run may be covered by your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage or by your collision coverage.
Standoff coverage - Pays to repair or replace your car when it's hit by another vehicle or object, regardless of who was at fault. Collision coverage comes with a deductible, unremarkably of $500 or $i,000, which you must pay outset in order to receive coverage.
Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage - Covers your medical expenses and vehicle repairs when you're in an blow with someone who doesn't have motorcar insurance, or doesn't take enough to embrace the full extent of the damage they acquired.
And if yous were injured in a striking-and-run, your personal injury protection, or PIP, may cover medical bills too as other expenses related to an injury, like lost wages or childcare.
Does your car insurance go upward if someone hits y'all?
An at-mistake blow can cause your automobile insurance rates to go up significantly, but they can also increase fifty-fifty when y'all file a merits for accidents y'all don't cause.
According to 2017 research by the Consumer Federation of America (CFA), [ one ] getting into a not-at-mistake accident acquired by another driver can increase your premium by hundreds of dollars. The enquiry found that some major companies raised premiums by an average of ten% or more than for non-at-mistake accidents, and in some cities, drivers saw average rate increases of more than $250 afterwards a not-at-fault accident.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do y'all do if someone hits your motorcar while it's parked?
If someone hits your parked auto and damages it, you should call the police so they can investigate and write an blow report. You should too notify your insurer and give them as much info as possible. If whoever hit your car didn't leave a annotation, you lot may exist able to detect witnesses or go security footage from nearby businesses. If yous take collision coverage, y'all can file a claim to cover your vehicle repairs.
Should I telephone call my insurance if an accident wasn't my mistake?
Y'all should still phone call your insurance company and study an accident fifty-fifty if it wasn't your fault. If y'all become striking by another driver, y'all should stay on the scene and get the other party's information so their insurance tin can cover your injuries and vehicle repairs. If y'all're hit by a driver who doesn't have insurance, or doesn't have enough to encompass the costs of the damage, and then uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage can embrace the costs.
What can you lot do if someone hits your auto without damage?
If someone hits your machine only doesn't damage it, you should still consider reporting it to your car insurance visitor. The damage may show up later, in which case you'll want to file a merits. The other driver'south insurance should pay for harm to your car that becomes credible later, as long as it was acquired by the accident.
References
Last updated on
July 27, 2021 |
Sources
Source: https://www.policygenius.com/auto-insurance/what-to-do-if-someone-hits-your-car/
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