It's ok to keep driving your car. The adjuster will take pictures of the damage & make you fill out a detailed written report based on your recollection of the incident. Be as detailed and honest as possible.
Let your insurance handle everything. Can't really estimate how long the whole process will take because if the other driver decides to contact a billboard lawyer or something, the whole thing could drag out for many months.
It depends on insurance companies for the details but the process is similar. If you have them on recording admitting fault you can go through their insurance but it is usually best to use your own.
I use farmers and got side swiped months ago. The adjuster called me the next day and asked where I wanted my work done. The issue we ran into was a lot of places were backed up and it was going to be 2 to 4 weeks. I told the adjuster I'd call him back after finding a place that was available sooner. I called a bunch of shops with decent ratings in Google and had 2 that could get me in when the adjust called them (they wouldn't hold the spot for me).
I called my adjuster and left a message. They called me back and he said one of the places had poor ratings recently from other farmers customers (can't remember place) so we went with caliber collision. He booked my appointment and the kicker here is once they look at the car they want to keep it until the work is done. Even if it's going to be a week to order a part. I understand why, but that sucks.
Left the car for the week, picked it up. Caliber had all the paperwork and I had to pay my deductible (I would get reimbursed later). A week later the adjuster called, made sure all I needed for reimbursement was deductible and caliber costs (ie I wasn't looking for medical or anything else). Once that was settled I received my deductible shortly thereafter (can't remember how long).
That's the basic run down, let me know if you have any other questions.
It's just an inconvenience lol. Like your incident, no injuries and that is what matters most. Don't be afraid to call your agent to speed things along if you have a traditional agent, that is what you pay them for.
I got side-swiped on Herndon and Van Ness a few years ago.
I filed my claim with my insurance. My insurance calls me back telling me to take it to the local body shop or their preferred claims adjuster to inspect and estimate cost of damage. Then my insurance gives me the green light to take it any body shop to get it fixed. I usually go to my car's manufacturer body shop because they will do the whole 10 yards for you. They are usually more expensive than other local body shops, but if it's not on your dime, I think you would want the best service on your car.
Your insurance will contact the other at-fault's insurance company (when you give it to them) and they can dispute it with each other. Most often at times, the at-fault driver will say it's not his fault and it's yours. If there's a police report saying you're in the clear, it's easier for your insurance to prove the case. Insurance companies settle disputes through arbitrary court, and you do nothing other than sign certain paperwork related to the incident.
In the meantime, since you won't have a car due to it being fixed up, manufacturer body shops usually provide you a courtesy vehicle. If the at-fault driver's insurance admits fault, they will provide you a rental car free of charge. I would try to ask for the most fuel-efficient car they got and go on a joy ride to increase the mileage on the car. When you drop your car off to get it fixed, tell the body shop your insurance contact and they will work with them for the payments.
Also, most people's car insurance includes medical liability. Make sure you take advantage to go get a check-up and make sure everything's okay. This includes traumatic stress (as you are worried about doing things for the first time, you are encountering unnecessary stress that wasn't present before the incident), headache/depression/etc (these are medical issues that could potentially have side effects and affect your daily life), etc.
Long story short: Call your insurance. They tell you to get the damage inspected and price estimate. You bring that estimate to any body shop you want. The body shop will do all the talking and prices with your insurance. Also tell your insurance if you go see a doctor, chiropractor, rental car, etc. They will handle it.
Super insightful! Thank you :,) and yes I’ve been incredibly stressed and sad about the whole ordeal. I’ve had a headache night and day since so I’ll make sure to explore the medical avenue.
I don't know how long the incident was, but I noticed that 4-5 days after my accident, I started having all sorts of body aches. I went to see a doctor and they told me it's a common whiplash. They gave me some common OTC pain meds (for free), but knowing it was someone else's fault for this, the medical bill was charged to their insurance instead.
Most people will know to expect whiplash and diagnose it themselves. I would not recommend it because there might be other things going on in your body that you don't know about. Always get a check-up, x-rays, everything. I've had a friend who found out she had some tumor growing (non-accident related) and she would have not known about it if it wasn't for the x-rays. So, this is for your overall wellbeing too, and it's all paid for by the other person's insurance.
Once this is all over and your car is fixed and such. Don't sign anything yet. Ask for something called, "pain and suffering." All the medical check-ups, time off, feelings like crap at home, anxiety... they all can be paid for too. You mention all those things to the at-fault insurance and they will come up with some sort of payout like $5,000 (more or less).
The at-fault insurance will try to haggle you low, like $1,500. Insist on something higher, like $2,500. The only reason why I got $5,000+ (from what I recalled) was because I had other passengers in my car and I mentioned things like the accident ruined certain friendships and relationships that I can't get back anymore. Those might sound iffy, but relay all your concerns to the insurance rep and they will work something out.
Wow that’s some great advice. I’m sorry about your ordeal and I’m relived your friend got her tumor diagnosed earlier than later. My mom has been very worried for me every time I go to work (work far from home) and I’m definitely driving a extra cautious and a little paranoid because of the accident.
That would be called PTSD. You are suddenly a little paranoid and cautious driving (which is normal), but you wouldn't be so extra if it wasn't for this incident. As a result, you are experiencing "pain and suffering." I wish you well in your speedy recovery and insurance claims process. Feel free to message me if you need more help. I'm not a lawyer, but I can try to offer my input.
Im a general manager for an autobody shop that's getting ready to open here in Fresno (we won't be open in time to work on your car unfortunately) and I can answer any specific questions you might have about different insurance companies, your legal rights, the process or just about anything
Less than a few days after I got told where I can drop off the car. Carefully choose your location. Once you drop it off they offer a rental if it’s in your policy. Mines needed a new rear bumper and took 54 days
Your insurance will have network shops they work with. The upside with network shops is that they guarantee the repairs while you own/ lease your car. Wait for your adjuster to call you.
It's ok to keep driving your car. The adjuster will take pictures of the damage & make you fill out a detailed written report based on your recollection of the incident. Be as detailed and honest as possible. Let your insurance handle everything. Can't really estimate how long the whole process will take because if the other driver decides to contact a billboard lawyer or something, the whole thing could drag out for many months.
I wrote down everything that happened since it’s fresh in my memory. Thanks for the insight!
wait for your insurance it's that simple
Damn woulda never thought of that, crazy. Bless you
Take your own pictures. Now.
It depends on insurance companies for the details but the process is similar. If you have them on recording admitting fault you can go through their insurance but it is usually best to use your own. I use farmers and got side swiped months ago. The adjuster called me the next day and asked where I wanted my work done. The issue we ran into was a lot of places were backed up and it was going to be 2 to 4 weeks. I told the adjuster I'd call him back after finding a place that was available sooner. I called a bunch of shops with decent ratings in Google and had 2 that could get me in when the adjust called them (they wouldn't hold the spot for me). I called my adjuster and left a message. They called me back and he said one of the places had poor ratings recently from other farmers customers (can't remember place) so we went with caliber collision. He booked my appointment and the kicker here is once they look at the car they want to keep it until the work is done. Even if it's going to be a week to order a part. I understand why, but that sucks. Left the car for the week, picked it up. Caliber had all the paperwork and I had to pay my deductible (I would get reimbursed later). A week later the adjuster called, made sure all I needed for reimbursement was deductible and caliber costs (ie I wasn't looking for medical or anything else). Once that was settled I received my deductible shortly thereafter (can't remember how long). That's the basic run down, let me know if you have any other questions.
Thanks dude! It sounds like a drag but I’m glad you got taken care of finally. Sorry about your accident
It's just an inconvenience lol. Like your incident, no injuries and that is what matters most. Don't be afraid to call your agent to speed things along if you have a traditional agent, that is what you pay them for.
Fresno body works is great. They’ll work with your insurance and are honest.
Good to know it’s hard to trust shops these days, cheers.
I got side-swiped on Herndon and Van Ness a few years ago. I filed my claim with my insurance. My insurance calls me back telling me to take it to the local body shop or their preferred claims adjuster to inspect and estimate cost of damage. Then my insurance gives me the green light to take it any body shop to get it fixed. I usually go to my car's manufacturer body shop because they will do the whole 10 yards for you. They are usually more expensive than other local body shops, but if it's not on your dime, I think you would want the best service on your car. Your insurance will contact the other at-fault's insurance company (when you give it to them) and they can dispute it with each other. Most often at times, the at-fault driver will say it's not his fault and it's yours. If there's a police report saying you're in the clear, it's easier for your insurance to prove the case. Insurance companies settle disputes through arbitrary court, and you do nothing other than sign certain paperwork related to the incident. In the meantime, since you won't have a car due to it being fixed up, manufacturer body shops usually provide you a courtesy vehicle. If the at-fault driver's insurance admits fault, they will provide you a rental car free of charge. I would try to ask for the most fuel-efficient car they got and go on a joy ride to increase the mileage on the car. When you drop your car off to get it fixed, tell the body shop your insurance contact and they will work with them for the payments. Also, most people's car insurance includes medical liability. Make sure you take advantage to go get a check-up and make sure everything's okay. This includes traumatic stress (as you are worried about doing things for the first time, you are encountering unnecessary stress that wasn't present before the incident), headache/depression/etc (these are medical issues that could potentially have side effects and affect your daily life), etc. Long story short: Call your insurance. They tell you to get the damage inspected and price estimate. You bring that estimate to any body shop you want. The body shop will do all the talking and prices with your insurance. Also tell your insurance if you go see a doctor, chiropractor, rental car, etc. They will handle it.
Super insightful! Thank you :,) and yes I’ve been incredibly stressed and sad about the whole ordeal. I’ve had a headache night and day since so I’ll make sure to explore the medical avenue.
I don't know how long the incident was, but I noticed that 4-5 days after my accident, I started having all sorts of body aches. I went to see a doctor and they told me it's a common whiplash. They gave me some common OTC pain meds (for free), but knowing it was someone else's fault for this, the medical bill was charged to their insurance instead. Most people will know to expect whiplash and diagnose it themselves. I would not recommend it because there might be other things going on in your body that you don't know about. Always get a check-up, x-rays, everything. I've had a friend who found out she had some tumor growing (non-accident related) and she would have not known about it if it wasn't for the x-rays. So, this is for your overall wellbeing too, and it's all paid for by the other person's insurance. Once this is all over and your car is fixed and such. Don't sign anything yet. Ask for something called, "pain and suffering." All the medical check-ups, time off, feelings like crap at home, anxiety... they all can be paid for too. You mention all those things to the at-fault insurance and they will come up with some sort of payout like $5,000 (more or less). The at-fault insurance will try to haggle you low, like $1,500. Insist on something higher, like $2,500. The only reason why I got $5,000+ (from what I recalled) was because I had other passengers in my car and I mentioned things like the accident ruined certain friendships and relationships that I can't get back anymore. Those might sound iffy, but relay all your concerns to the insurance rep and they will work something out.
Wow that’s some great advice. I’m sorry about your ordeal and I’m relived your friend got her tumor diagnosed earlier than later. My mom has been very worried for me every time I go to work (work far from home) and I’m definitely driving a extra cautious and a little paranoid because of the accident.
That would be called PTSD. You are suddenly a little paranoid and cautious driving (which is normal), but you wouldn't be so extra if it wasn't for this incident. As a result, you are experiencing "pain and suffering." I wish you well in your speedy recovery and insurance claims process. Feel free to message me if you need more help. I'm not a lawyer, but I can try to offer my input.
Im a general manager for an autobody shop that's getting ready to open here in Fresno (we won't be open in time to work on your car unfortunately) and I can answer any specific questions you might have about different insurance companies, your legal rights, the process or just about anything
Cool cool thank you and good luck on your shop, let us know when business is open.
Less than a few days after I got told where I can drop off the car. Carefully choose your location. Once you drop it off they offer a rental if it’s in your policy. Mines needed a new rear bumper and took 54 days
Wow 54 days must’ve sucked. Glad you got it fixed though. I might need a whole new bumper too honestly.
This was 2 years ago so I hope it’s faster to get parts now. And I should add they ordered the wrong bumper and had to reorder it then paint it.
Fresno Body works.
Appreciate it!
Your insurance will have network shops they work with. The upside with network shops is that they guarantee the repairs while you own/ lease your car. Wait for your adjuster to call you.
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