View Full Version : How does car insurance claim works ?
shanita.carman
Jul 21, 2010, 11:14 PM
I was hit on the side of my car about a week ago and my insurance does not cover it but the person who hit me does. How does this hole thing work? I tell them what happened ( its for sure the persons fault) they talk to the body shop and see pictures from the body shop of the damage and then the body shop gives them the estimate. Now the part I don't get is do they write a check to me or do they write it to the body shop? Would I get the check mailed to me or does it go straight to the body shop. I have never had to deal with the Insurance claims thing and want to know how it works Thanks...
Clough
Jul 21, 2010, 11:32 PM
I was hit on the side of my car about a week ago and my insurance does not cover it but the person who hit me does. How does this hole thing work? I tell them what happened ( its for sure the persons fault) they talk to the body shop and see pictures from the body shop of the damage and then the body shop gives them the estimate. Now the part i don't get is do they write a check to me or do they write it to the body shop? Would i get the check mailed to me or does it go straight to the body shop. I have never had to deal with the Insurance claims thing and want to know how it works Thanks ...
Hi, shanita.carman!
I'm presuming that the other persons' insurance is definitely covering all of the expense of repairing your car. Is that correct, please?
If indeed, the other persons' insurance is covering everything, then from my experience with these kinds of things, is that the insurance company is going to want to issue a check to the repair shop once the work has been completed. During the times that I've been the one who was hit, I was the one who needed to submit the estimate to the insurance company. I also needed to get more than one estimate.
When I've waited too long to get the repair done, then the insurance company ended up issuing a check to me for the amount of the repair, even though I might not have had the repair done at all.
I'm sure that laws concerning this will vary, depending on the laws of the jurisdiction under which the insurance company is supposed to operate.
Hopefully, others will also come along to address your concerns.
Thanks!
ScottGem
Jul 22, 2010, 05:41 AM
Most insurance companies have recommended body shops. It's a good idea to use one of these shops for two reasons. First, because they generally check these shops for quality and second because they will deal directly with the shop for payment.
The first thing that happens is the carrier has a claims adjuster examine the car and give an estimate of the repair cost. If you choose to have your own body shop do the work, they will issue you a check for that amount and you accept that check as payment in full. And you and the carrier are done.
If you use one of their shops, then you take the estimate to the shop. If the shop finds more damage, generally they will work with the carrier to get a greater cost authorized.