Door Scratched in Parking Lot – Should I File a Car Insurance Claim?

Reader’s Question:

My car got scratched by another car door. I would like to know what I need to do to have it fixed.

Michael

Miami FL

If you actually know who did the scratch on your car, you need to contact the police to file a report. They will in turn contact that person to try to assess the guilt. The next thing to do is to file it in court or with your insurance company and let them subrogate the claim against the guilty party.

If on the other hand you do not know who did the scratch and if you are not at fault, you need to coordinate with the at-fault party’s insurance company and file your claim and you won’t pay your deductible. If you have physical damage (comprehensive and collision coverage), you can file a claim with your insurance company. If you opt to file with your insurance company, you must pay the deductible and your insurance company will be the one to do the work in recovering damages which includes the deductible from the at-fault party’s insurance company. This is called subrogation. This is the amount your insurance company actually paid out plus your deductible amount. Most policies have a subrogation clause that allows your insurance company to get hold of reimbursement from the at-fault party’s insurance company for the charges of repairing your car.

Reporting Auto Accidents – Should You?

Reader’s Question:

If I get into an accident here in California, who am I supposed to call?

Karl

Sacramento, CA

The plan of action after any accident really depends on what kind of trouble you’ve gotten yourself into. It depends on how serious it was. Basically you have to file a bunch of reports to three places.

First, you should make contact with your auto insurance company. Promptly reporting the accident is important in times like these. You might be required to submit what’s called a Notice of Loss. If you are unable to do this promptly, this might be used as a reason to deny you of auto insurance coverage. So, if I were you, I wouldn’t take that chance. The reason is that it is necessary for your auto insurance company to collect as much information as they can, as soon as they can. You might be asked to sign some kind of authorization for them to be able to record the accident.

Next comes the police report especially when one of the two drivers or any of their passengers have been injured. You will also be required to file a police report when there is significant damage on any or both of the vehicles and it exceeds a certain amount set by the state. Basically, what you will be asked to do by the police will depend on the extent of the damage and injury. Call the authorities right away, so they can tell you how to proceed.

Finally, you must contact the California DMV or the Department of Motor Vehicles. If the total cost of the damage including injuries to people goes over $500, you will be asked to file an SR-1, 5 to 10 days after the accident happened.

How To File Car Insurance Claim For Stolen Car In New Jersey

Reader’s Question:

I am new here in New Jersey and unfortunately my car was stolen and I was really devastated that I don’t know what to do. What do usually the people here do when their car is stolen?

Martha

Elizabeth, NJ

It is most advisable here in New Jersey that whenever their car is stolen they should immediately inform their car insurers of all of their losses and also, you should report it to the police. It is most necessary to report it to the police for you will need the police report to make sure your car insurers will not deny your claim. Stolen cars are not the only thing you should report as a loss for vandalized or damaged by a hit and run is also considered a loss.

When a car is damaged here in New Jersey, the owner of the car must make the wrecked car available for the insurers to inspect. You should not have your car repaired yet before the inspection. Not all the damages of your car can be paid by your insurers like for example if the car seat is broken due to the rain that dropped into it from the broken windshield. You should also cooperate to your insurer’s investigator for this could help your claim accepted. If you have filed a claim to your car insurance, your insurance company has to complete all the conditions affirmed in your policy as well as doing your duties and requirements.

Car Insurance Claim in New Jersey For Stolen Car?

Reader’s Question:

I am new here in New Jersey and unfortunately my car was stolen and I was really devastated that I don’t know what to do. What do usually the people here in New Jersey do when their car is stolen?

Martha

Elizabeth, NJ

It is most advisable here in New Jersey that whenever their car is stolen they should immediately inform their car insurers of all of their losses and also, you should report it to the police. It is most necessary to report it to the police for you will need the police report to make sure your car insurers will not deny your claim. Stolen cars are not the only thing you should report as a loss for vandalized or damaged by a hit and run is also considered a loss.

When a car is damaged here in New Jersey, the owner of the car must make the wrecked car available for the insurers to inspect. You should not have your car repaired yet before the inspection. Not all the damages of your car can be paid by your insurers like for example if the car seat is broken due to the rain that dropped into it from the broken windshield. You should also cooperate to your insurer’s investigator for this could help your claim accepted. If you have filed a claim to your car insurance, your insurance company has to complete all the conditions affirmed in your policy as well as doing your duties and requirements.

Reporting Auto Accidents California – Who Do You Call?

Reader’s Question:

If I get into an accident here in California, who am I supposed to call?

Karl

Sacramento, CA

The plan of action after any accident really depends on what kind of trouble you’ve gotten yourself into. It depends on how serious it was. Basically you have to file a bunch of reports to three places.

First, you should make contact with your auto insurance company. Promptly reporting the accident is important in times like these. You might be required to submit what’s called a Notice of Loss. If you are unable to do this promptly, this might be used as a reason to deny you of auto insurance coverage. So, if I were you, I wouldn’t take that chance. The reason is that it is necessary for your auto insurance company to collect as much information as they can, as soon as they can. You might be asked to sign some kind of authorization for them to be able to record the accident.

Next comes the police report especially when one of the two drivers or any of their passengers have been injured. You will also be required to file a police report when there is significant damage on any or both of the vehicles and it exceeds a certain amount set by the state. Basically, what you will be asked to do by the police will depend on the extent of the damage and injury. Call the authorities right away, so they can tell you how to proceed.

Finally, you must contact the California DMV or the Department of Motor Vehicles. If the total cost of the damage including injuries to people goes over $500, you will be asked to file an SR-1, 5 to 10 days after the accident happened.