What Is a Car Insurance Claim?
Accidents happen, even to the safest of drivers. If you’re lucky enough to have never filed an auto insurance claim before, it can be a bit overwhelming. But at The Hartford, we’re here 24/7 to help you file a claim. Car insurance claims need to be filed, whether the accident was your fault, a hit and run or an accident with an uninsured motorist. When you report a claim, your insurance company will review your documentation, such as pictures from the scene of the accident or a police report. Then, if it’s a covered loss on your policy, you will receive payment. By filing a claim, your insurance premium may go up, depending on the severity.
Do You Always Need To File a Claim?
Just because you’ve been in an accident doesn’t necessarily mean you need to immediately file a claim. In fact, you may choose not to file a claim if the repairs are less than your insurance deductible. In that case, you may want to pay out of pocket instead of notifying your insurance company.
How Does a Claim Affect Your Insurance?
There are several factors to calculate insurance rates, and car accidents are one of them. Depending on the type of claim, your insurance premium may increase after reporting an incident, especially if it was severe or resulted in a high payout.
Filing a Car Insurance Claim With The Hartford Is Simple With These Easy Steps
If you find yourself asking, “What are the steps of the insurance claims process?” then you’ve come to the right place. If you need to make a car insurance claim, it’s nice to know that with The Hartford, you have someone working for you to make the process as easy and stress-free as possible. Customers consistently give us high ratings for their claims experience.*
1. Report an Auto Insurance Claim
ahead of time can save you time and hassle. No matter what, you can always reach The Hartford by phone or online. Our representatives are available 24/7 to help you file a claim. Once you’ve reported your claim, they’ll start working to resolve it as quickly and smoothly as possible.
There are several ways to contact The Hartford and file a car insurance claim:
2. Describe and Document the Car Accident
After you report your car accident, you will have a professional claims representative assigned to help you throughout the process. Your insurance adjuster will help document details of the incident and may ask you about injuries, witnesses and property damage or damage to the vehicle. They will confirm your contact information so we can reach you directly by phone when necessary. Having a personal claims rep will ensure the process is as simple as possible, and they may even request that you take and submit photos using our guided online tool to help show your car’s damage.
3. Capture and Submit Photos
You may be asked to take and share your own photos of your vehicle using our guided online tool. These photos help start the process of documenting the accident and the damages done to your car.
4. Ask The Right Question About Your Car Insurance Coverage
A key part of the auto insurance claims process is fully understanding your insurance information and knowing what to expect. This includes things like knowing how long you have to submit a claim, what your deductible is, how the claim might impact your premium, if your coverage includes rental reimbursement and more details about your policy.
For example, even if you have
full coverage car insurance, you may have just enough to meet state requirements as opposed to opting into more coverage. It's also important to understand your
collision insurance, which helps cover the costs to replace or repair your car if you’re in an accident with another vehicle or involving an object, like a fence or a tree. This is different than comprehensive coverage which covers incidents involving theft, vandalism, hitting an animal, an object falling on your car and natural disasters.
5. Tracking Your Car Insurance Claim
We are here to help and want to make the claims process easy for you. With AARP
® Auto Insurance Program from The Hartford, if you ever have questions or want to know what to expect next, you can contact your claims representative. Likewise, you can check on the status and
track your auto claim online anytime.
