Uh Oh — What To Do If You've Been In An Accident

Your insurance policy requires that you notify your insurance company to make a claim report. If you’re an insured, you need to notify your insurance company right away. Even if you’re a claimant and will go through the other person’s insurance, you’re still supposed to notify your own insurance company.

Once a claim report has been made, you may leave your vehicle at the auto body damage repair facility of your choice and notify the insurance company claim representative or adjuster as to where your damaged vehicle may be inspected. Once a claim representative or adjuster has had an opportunity to inspect your vehicle, you may authorize repairs to begin.

You have an obligation to mitigate damages, an obligation to make sure no additional damage happens after an accident. If you have a punctured radiator and you drive the car and blow up the engine, the insurance company won’t pay for the engine. If you have damaged suspension and you wear out a tire because it’s out of alignment, they won’t pay for the new tire. Get your car to your auto body shop as soon as possible so a professional can tell you whether it’s safe to drive the car or not.

When choosing a facility to repair your vehicle, start by getting referrals from satisfied customers. The shop owner/manager should be willing to take you around to see the equipment and procedures being used. Also, ask for evidence of employee training and certification. Notice the attitude and commitment of the shop owner/manager towards restoring your vehicle to its pre-accident condition.

Select the Albuquerque autobody repair shop of your choice that considers you, not the insurance company, as its customer. Ask the manager to have your vehicle towed to the facility, then contact your insurance company to advise them of the vehicle’s location.

If you are an insured or a claimant, you need to get an estimate of auto body repair costs. It is best for you if your body shop is the one to explain and point out all the damage and all procedures that will be necessary. Tell the insurance company where the car is going to be fixed. The body shop writes the estimate, the insurance adjuster comes to the body shop to look at the car, and it all gets handled at once. That’s how we like to do it.

A lot of times the insurance company wants to look at the car at your house or at their drive-in center to determine the costs of auto body repairs. The problem is that you don’t have an advocate at the drive-in and the average insurance estimate is frequently a minimum of 30% too low. Keep in mind that you are the vehicle owner. The law says it’s your car – you pick the body shop. Don’t let your insurance company take away your freedom of choice! Insurance company body shops work for the insurance company, not for you. It is your right as the vehicle owner to obtain a car body repair estimate wherever you choose. You are only required to notify your insurance company of the vehicle’s location.

If you have already gone to a drive-in claims facility, make sure you take a copy of the insurance adjuster’s auto body repair estimate when you take your vehicle to the repair shop. The body shop will have the adjuster come back out, but why double your efforts?

Tommy says, “There’s no law, no provision in your policy that says you have to take the car to the insurance drive-in. Your policy says you have to make it available to them. I tell my customers to say, ‘Fine. I’m turning this claim in to you. You can look at my car at Tommy’s Auto Body. I’m taking it in there on Wednesday.”

There is also no law that says you have to get three estimates. You, as the vehicle owner, may do so if you desire. The nice thing about getting three estimates is you get to see different body shops and make a choice. If you already have a body shop you trust, don’t waste your time getting more estimates.

If your car is legally non-drivable or not safe to drive, and if you are entitled to a rental car on your insurance, then you should leave the car at the body shop and order a rental car.

If you are going through your own insurance company, you are limited by what you agreed to in your policy. Some first party policies allow nothing for rental, some $15-50 per day. Your policy also limits the number of days you are entitled to have a rental vehicle. When you go through the other driver’s insurance, or through your own uninsured motorists policy, there are no limits. You are entitled to a similar vehicle for as long as it takes to repair yours. You are also entitled to the cash for the cost of a rental if you do not rent a vehicle.

NOTE: Mercedes, Volvo, and Saab have traditionally been the cars that hold up best in accidents. Consumer Reports and the attention of the media about crash results have forced all manufacturers to improve safety.