If you’ve been involved in a car accident, there are quite a few things that you have to be aware of. How do you proceed if the insurance company says that your car is a total loss? What happens if you definitively disagree with the valuation of the insurer? These are all questions that you need to be able to answer in order to ensure that everything is handled properly. Let’s have a look at a few commonly asked questions.
Which insurance company is going to pay for the damages?
This is the first question that you need to be aware of. Is it your insurer or is it the insurer of the person who has hit you? Now, there is one very specific rule which is enacted by the Rules of Fault Determination and it needs to be taken into proper account. This is the so-called “no fault” rule and it is particularly convenient. This means that your insurer is going to pay for the damages, regardless of whether or not you are at fault. This is something particularly beneficial but there are, of course, certain exceptions that you need to consider – if you’ve been driving under the influence or you have broken the law the rule is not going to apply.
Collision Coverage
This is the supplemental coverage provided by your insurance policy which is going to cover any as well as all damages that your vehicle sustains in a car accident. It could be particularly expensive because it pays for the repair of your car regardless of who’s at fault. This is the main reason for which it’s not definitively worth it unless you are driving an expensive brand new vehicle. This is something that you might want to take into account when it comes to it.
What about fault?
Fault is still assigned, even though it’s not going to change the fact and the responsibility for the insurance company to pay up the damages. However, this is going to have a significant impact on your premiums, if you have been found to be the at-fault driver. Therefore, the insurance company is still going to conduct its own investigation and it is going to assign fault accordingly.
The amount that the insurance company is going to pay up is particularly dependent on the insurance policy that you have in force. Certain contracts allow you complete recovery while others don’t. This is something that you need to discuss with the insurer. However, make sure that you hire a personal injury lawyer in order to ensure that they handle the insurance company is far from being easy. It is important to work with a law service that has excellent results in similar cases. You might want to get references or schedule an appointment with the lawyers before you opt to work with them. The initial consultation is usually free.