How To File a Car Accident Claim in Raleigh, NC

You should contact your own insurance company within 24 hours of an accident to report it.

You should consult a Raleigh car accident lawyer before providing a recorded statement to an insurance adjuster.

Your insurer’s website may provide an interactive form to file your claim. There may be an app or an 800 number to phone and file a claim. Generally speaking, you should:

1. Provide accident information. When you file a car accident claim, the insurance company will need information you gathered at the accident scene, including:
   • Name, address, phone number, and insurance policy numbers for each driver
   • Location, date, and time of accident
   • Weather conditions
   • Photos of the damaged vehicles
   • Copy of the police report, if available.
2. Review your policy. With the insurance representative on the phone and with your policy documents in hand, make sure you understand your insurance:
   • Coverage, the maximum amount your insurance policy provides for bodily injury and/or property damage, as well as the coverage provided by the liability insurance of others involved.
   • Deductible, the amount you must pay toward repairs to your vehicle before receiving an insurance payment.
   • OEM parts policy. It’s better to have “original equipment manufacturer” parts used to repair your car instead of less expensive “after-market” parts, but some insurers write policies to exclude the use of OEM parts.
   • Deadlines, such as the time limit for filing a claim, submitting bills, resolving claim disputes, or submitting additional information. Ask when you can expect the insurance company to contact you.
3. Pay medical bills.  If you have health insurance, you should submit your medical bills for the costs of treating your car accident injuries to your own health insurance company, regardless of who caused the car accident. If you have serious injuries and are pursuing a car accident injury claim against the other at-fault driver, you will need to wait until you have completed medical treatment before settling the injury claim. The at-fault driver’s auto insurer will not issue a check until your claim is fully settled, which may take a number of months. An experienced car accident lawyer will advise you against settling a car accident case too quickly. If you do, you may be struck with doctor and hospital bills for treatment you didn’t anticipate. An attorney can advise you about reimbursing your health insurance carrier from the auto insurance payout.
4. Ask about a rental car. Your policy may provide transportation expense coverage to reimburse you for the cost of renting a car from a rental car company. If your car is wrecked and you will need a rental car, confirm your policy’s coverage limits and how you’ll be reimbursed before renting a car.
5. Get repair estimates. Your insurer may tell you to get as many as three repair estimates. The repair shop will submit their estimates to the insurance company.
6. Have your car repaired. If your claim is approved, your insurer will issue a payment (minus your deductible) to you or to the repair shop. When repairing a crashed vehicle, you have the right to choose the repair shop and to have original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts used to repair your car instead of less expensive after-market parts. If your car is damaged beyond repair, your insurer will issue a check for the value of the vehicle, minus your deductible, to you.

If the other driver was at fault for the accident, you will need to report the car crash to the other driver’s insurance company. You should still report it to your insurance company as well, in case you need to file a claim with your own car insurance because the at-fault driver was uninsured or their insurer denies liability.

If the at-fault driver’s insurer denies their policyholder’s liability, you should consult a reputable car accident attorney about the steps you can take and whether you are entitled to seek compensation.