How To Claim Car Insurance After Accident In India?

Road traffic accidents are the leading cause of car insurance claim. The scenario often involves one road vehicle colliding with the other, or a road user resulting in injury, property damage, or death. Accidents are different and can lead to several instances. They are a situation of trauma and the fear about the after-effects of an accident can lead to the driving record and insurance. It is hard for the policyholders to think clearly and respond accordingly. Amplification of stress often results from injuries or the death of a member. In such cases, it is important to learn the quick actions that can lead to some advantage. First and foremost, it is important to calm down and call the police. A solicitor is the best person to advise in case of car insurance claims. Let us go through the stepwise process of insurance claims from car accidents.

Claim Car Insurance After An Accident

Car insurance settlement claims usually begin with the documentation process. Documents of the policyholder are required to validate and accept insurance claims. The insurance claim document along with some other necessary paperwork mandates the initiation of the process.

The general documents required include:

• copy of the insurance policy
• copy of the driver's license
• fir of the police station
• the registration certificate of the car
• medical report in case of physical injuries
• estimation in terms of the amount of the repairs
• the original record of other expenses made on the vehicle so far

How To Claim Car Insurance

1. Contact Insurance Company

It is difficult to say, but if the accident has damaged the vehicle only, and the policyholder is in a stable condition, proceed with the paperwork. The first step would be to inform the insurance company about the accident. The timeline for informing the insurance company is within 7 working days. Therefore, a quick action on the same is necessary. The claim settlement may not proceed if informed after 7 working days.

2. Fir In The Police Station

Filing a report with the police station is a mandatory step, especially in a claim settlement process of a road accident or vehicle damage from transportation. Minor dents and scratches leading to insurance can avoid the FIR with the police. However physical injury or third-party accidents mandate the step. In some cases, a case also needs to be filed to the motor accident claims tribunal having jurisdiction over the area of the policyholder. The tribunal comes into the picture in the case where a third party is involved in an accident.

3. Photographs As Evidence

In some cases, policyholders prefer a reimbursement claim. To initiate a reimbursement, claim the scenes of the event with the photograph act as evidence. The policyholder/helper can take a few pictures of the accident which involves the damage caused to the car or physical injuries.

4. Submit Documents To The Insurance Provider

After the car insurance claim has been raised with the insurance provider, the policyholder can request a surveyor for inspection of the mishap. Requests for a surveyor can be raised online through the website of the provider. In cases where the insurance claim settlement is done cashless a representative is often provided by the insurer to ensure that there are no further damages on the vehicle, which is usually done within 1 to 2 days of contacting the insurance company.

5. Car Repair

For the claim settlement process, the car must be submitted to a garage, and ensure repairs are done. Often the surveyor from the insurance company provides a list of garages. However, in the case of a cashless claim, the burden of repair is not borne by the policyholder. The policyholder will be entitled to pay the deductibles and the rest of the amount is usually covered by the insurer. In case of a reimbursement claim, all the repairs are borne by the policyholder along with original medical reports, photographs, receipts, bills submitted to the insurance company.

Note To The Policy Holder

Insurance claims involving the interference of policy can be complicated. The policyholder should keep the following in mind:

• The claim should be raised within 24 hours of the mishap. In case of delay, the provider may repudiate the claim.
• Claims will also be rejected due to a lapsed policy, which can be avoided if you check car insurance status at regular intervals and renew your policy prior to its expiration date.
• If possible, note down the model number, color, and registration number of the other vehicle involved in the accident.
• In the case of third-party involvement, abstain from getting into a fight. It may lead to unnecessary confusion.
• Once the police step into the matter, avoid making a direct statement to the police or the insurance company unless you are clear about the next process.
• The vehicle needs to be submitted to a garage immediately for repair.
• Allow the surveyor to inspect the vehicle.
• The network coverage of the garage offered by the surveyor can be a good choice for those who settle for a cashless facility. The workshop will be directly paid for by the insurer charging the policyholder only the deductibles.

To Summarise

Claim settlement related to car accidents is tedious. It is important to read the policy documents carefully and understand the inclusions and exclusions. In case of confusion, seek help from a lawyer. If the policyholder has a lawyer in hand, ensure to involve the lawyer from the very first step of the claim itself.