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Car Insurance

What to do after a car accident that’s not your fault

After you’ve been in a car accident that wasn’t your fault, it can be difficult to know exactly what to do next in order to make a successful insurance claim. Once you’ve made sure that nobody has been seriously hurt, it’s important to take the following steps:

Gather necessary information

The driver who caused the accident is responsible for reporting it to their car insurance company, but many drivers are reluctant to do this. It is important that you get in touch with their insurer as well and collect the following information:

– The other driver’s address and name
– The other driver’s insurance policy and the name of their company
– Contact information and statements from witnesses
– Photographs of the scene of the accident (before the cars are moved)
– Any dashcam footage of the accident
– Any other evidence that may support your claim

Notify the right people

When you contact the other driver’s insurer to let them know that you have been involved in a crash with them, make sure that you give them full details of the incident without explicitly placing blame; simply give them the facts. Even if you don’t believe that you caused the incident, it’s a good idea to get in touch with your own insurance company anyway. This can be useful if the other driver denies any responsibility for the accident and you need to make a claim. Before you send your vehicle to a garage for repairs, make sure that you have written authorisation from your insurance company first.

Choose your battles

If the other driver’s insurance company claims that it has no evidence that its policyholder was at fault after your accident, you will need a lawyer, especially if you have been seriously hurt. A lawyer can help you navigate a large insurance claim, but they will take a portion of the settlement awarded to you. If your claim is small, you can take the driver at fault to small claims court.

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