Dealing With Insurance After A Rear End Accident

Like other car accidents, you will need to contact your insurance company after your rear-end collision. Whether or not your state has at-fault car insurance or no-fault car insurance, the process begins by contacting your insurance company and filing an accident claim.

If the other driver’s insurance company does contact you after your rear-end collision, don’t talk to them. Even if their questions sound simple or straightforward, don’t trust them. Often, they’re simply fishing for information they can use to reduce or deny your injury claim.

Filing a rear-end insurance claim with insurance

In order to receive financial compensation for your rear-end collision, you will need to contact your insurance company and file a claim. The insurance company will either approve or deny your accident claim. If they approve your claim (request for compensation), their decision will likely include a settlement offer. This is the amount of money they are willing to pay to resolve your accident claim.

Many times, settlement offers are far less than the actual amount of all your accident-related expenses added together. This is what’s informally known as a lowball settlement offer. Often, insurance companies make lowball offers after a rear-end accident. That’s because they’re hoping you’ll simply accept their offer and go away. Fortunately, you can (and should) ask for more money. You can read more about this below.

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There’s no single average number that applies to your case. Instead, you should ask, “How much is my rear-end accident settlement worth?” That’s because every settlement offer is highly dependent on the specifics of your case.

The bottom line is you should not have to pay for any accident-related expenses due to your accident. Another driver caused your rear-end accident. You didn’t do anything wrong. Insurance companies should pay for all your expenses, now and in the future, related to your accident.

This might sound simple. But deciding which expenses should be included in such calculations can be a great source of debate. Insurance companies often only include short-term expenses immediately after a rear-end collision, which can dramatically reduce how much money you receive. Your settlement offer should take into account all current and future anticipated expenses.

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Soon after your rear-end accident, someone from the insurance company responsible for compensating you will likely contact you with a settlement offer. This is an offer to pay you a one-time amount of money to settle your case once and for all.

Insurance companies are infamous for making lowball settlement offers far below the actual amount of your accident claim. They’re hoping you’ll simply accept their offer. Don’t do it. If their offer does not cover all your accident-related expenses, you should demand more money, negotiate a better settlement offer or file a lawsuit seeking damages. Either way, an experienced attorney can help you every step of the way.

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What is a fair offer for a minor accident?

Rear-end collisions are often considered minor car accidents. Insurance companies know this is the popular perception. That’s why many insurance companies often make low settlement offers to injury victims and their families.

Such lowball offers might be thousands of dollars less than the total financial impact of a rear-end accident. Even in cases involving so-called “minor” rear-end accidents, expenses can add up fast once you take into account the cost of all medical care, including future anticipated medical treatments.

So what might seem like a “fair” offer at first could turn out to be a lowball settlement. There’s nothing “minor” about your rear-end collision. If you have an expense or bill due to your rear-end collision, you should receive money for that expense.

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What you do after a rear-end accident caused by an uninsured driver varies depending on your state. If you live in a no-fault state, you should still be able to get no-fault benefits. In addition, if you have uninsured motorist protection, you can file an uninsured motorist claim with your own insurance company. In some states, this coverage is required; in others, you have to decline it in writing if you don’t want it. Depending on the circumstances, there may be other sources of compensation as well.

The bottom line is that you need to contact an attorney. Experienced lawyers know how to handle such complex legal cases and can assist you and advise you on what to do next.

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You might be tempted to contact the at-fault driver’s insurance company and demand that they pay you for your rear-end accident. Don’t deal directly with them. Have your lawyer deal with them on your behalf.

Insurance companies can be notoriously difficult to deal with after a rear-end accident. Often, they’ll insist that your rear-end claim is frivolous and that you weren’t actually hurt in your accident. You know the truth. You know your rear-end collision was serious and you deserve to be financially compensated.

Also, if you contact the at-fault driver’s insurance company, anything you say could be used as additional evidence to deny your injury claim. This is why you should have your lawyer deal with insurance companies on your behalf if they won’t pay your insurance claim.

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Does getting rear-ended affect my insurance?

Depending on the circumstances, yes. Insurance premiums are based on risk; even if the accident wasn’t your fault, if the insurance company has reason to believe you are now a higher risk, your rates may increase. But your attorney can help to protect your rights in this situation and pursue recourse if the insurance company violates the law.

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