You Got into a Fender Bender, Now What?
Well, if anyone is injured, the first thing you need to do is call 911 for emergency assistance.
If there are no injuries, call the police to report the accident. Then exchange all of your contact information, license plate numbers and insurance information with all the parties involved in the collision.
You will also want to see if you can get a few witnesses to tell police what they saw. Once you’ve found them, make sure to get their contact information as well.
Additionally, you can ask law enforcement on the scene for a copy of the police report.
CALL YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY NEXT. Their phone number is generally located on your car insurance card which should be with the vehicle and also on your person.
Bankrate.com also offers this advice:
“If the other party is at fault and you do not have collision coverage on your vehicle, you will have to file a claim against the other party’s carrier. If the other party doesn’t have insurance, you will have to negotiate with the other party directly or go to court.”
If the accident isn’t your fault, you should file claims with both your own carrier and the other party’s carrier. There may be costs such as time taken off work and rental car fees that your carrier will not cover but the other insurance company will.
If the accident is your fault, you would file a claim with your insurance company only. Nebraska is a tort state which means the at-fault driver will likely see an increase in future auto insurance premiums. This is because your insurance company will now see you as a higher risk.
An adjustor then comes out or you take your vehicle to an adjustor and you get an estimate of the cost of damages. The insurance company then issues you a check for the price of repairs minus your collision deductible.
Great Plains Auto Body is on most insurance companies’ Direct Repair Program, which means you can have your vehicle towed to one of GPAB’s shops and they will have an estimator assess the damages on your vehicle. Bankrate says the advantage to this is that “the shop won’t have to wait to start repairs and the check can be transmitted right to the shop.”
If you get into a fender bender, ask your insurance company if Great Plains Auto Body is on their DRP list. Save yourself time and hassle and take your car to Great Plains for repairs, 402.334.7100.
If you get into a fender bender, ask your insurance company if Great Plains Auto Body is on their DRP list. Save yourself time and hassle and take your car to Great Plains for repairs: 402.334.7100.
