Filing for a car insurance claim after an accident is one of the first things that you should if you are injured in a car accident. You should file the claim with either the person responsible for your accident or with your insurance company. By filing a claim, you will receive compensation for pain and suffering, lost wages and medical expenses among other types of damages.

We will explain to you the insurance claim process, different types of insurance claims and how to calculate the value of your claim.

The Car Insurance Claim Process

You are required to report to the car insurance company about your car accident within 24 hours. If the accident wasn’t your fault, you should report the incident to the insurance provider of the person at fault. Keep in mind that you will have to provide information about your accident as well as the severity of your injuries.

The car insurance company will conduct their own investigation into your claim. This is why it is important to have pictures of the scene of the accident,contact information of the witnesses and any other information you might have about the accident. The insurance company will also require you to go for an independent medical examination to a doctor that they have chosen.

The insurance company will then calculate the value of your claim and issue you with a settlement check once you accept their offer. If you are unhappy with the settlement offer the insurer gives you or they deny your claim, you can appeal to them. Keep in mind that you may have to undergo more medical examinations and provide even more evidence regarding your claim. It’s advisable to hire a car accident lawyer at this point.

Why Your Claim was Denied and the Process of Appeal

Your claim may be denied for a number of reasons including:

  1. You waited too long to go for your medical examination
  2. You did not file your complaint on time
  3. You refused to go for a medical examination

Regardless of what the reasons might be, the insurance company will notify you that your claim has been denied. The appeal process for insurance differs from one company to another. The policy that you bought should give you details as to how you should proceed with the appeals process. We cannot emphasize how important it is to involve a car accident lawyer if your appeal is denied because they can help guide you through the process.

Types of Insurance Claims

There are two types of insurance claims:

Third party claims

Instead of filing an insurance claim with your insurer, you file it with the insurance provider of the person who is at fault.

First party claims

This is whereby you file a claim with your insurance provider.

The type of claim you file will depend on three things:

  1. The extent of your insurance coverage
  2. The kind of accident you were involved in
  3. The person responsible for your accident

If you were responsible for the accident, you should file a first party claim with your insurer.

How to Calculate the Value of Your Claim

It’s easy to calculate lost wages, damage to property and medical expenses but calculating pain and suffering is not easy. Pain and suffering falls under special damages.

To calculate special damages, the insurance provider will calculate all your medical expenses and multiply the total amount by 1.5 or 10 depending on how severe your injuries were. Once the special damages have been calculated, the insurer will then add the total amount of lost wages and pay out this amount to you as your settlement. If you feel dissatisfied with the amount, you can always talk with a Providence car accident attorney to negotiate the amount for you.

We Can Evaluate Your Claim Free of Charge

At Kevin P Landry Law Offices, we have a team of Providence car accident lawyers that can evaluate your claim for free. We can also answer any questions you may have about your claim. Contact us at 401-751-0101 to book your first initial consultation.