Expert: Bennie719 - 2/14/2008

Question
QUESTION: Our car and home insurance is with one company.  Our car was hit in the right passenger door by the left front of the other car who was trying to move out from being parked. Our door was damaged and the other cars headlights was damaged. The other guy said that we should pay for his damages and we told him that he was in the wrong and we will not pay, so we both agreed to file a police report. My questions are : 1. Whose insurance will pay for which car ?  2. Is it worth for us to file a claim with our insurance knowing it will up our premiums because I am sure the damage to our car will exceed $1000 to repair. 3. Will there be a lawsuit filed to find out who is in the wrong ? Who will initiate the filing or this is inevitable since a police report was already filed.

ANSWER: Hi Cris,
You need to immediately report this accident to your insurance company.
Most states have a law that requires you to file proof of insurance with the state anytime your involved in an accident when the damages exceed $500, or there were any injuries.  This report will be filed automatically by your insurance company when you report the accident.

Your insurance company also requires an accident report from you anytime that you are involved in an accident.
Failure to report the accident to them in a timely manner could result in their later denying the claim in it's entirety due to
'late notification'.
The two insurance companies involved will review the police report,
the actual damages and the statements of each party to arrive at a determination of fault.  There should be no type of lawsuit involved and if you are found to be not at fault, the mere fact that you were in a non-fault accident should have no affect on your insurance premium.
I hope this has been of help.  Please write again if you feel that I can be of more assistance.
Your feedback by rating my answer will be appreciated.
Sincerely,
Bennie
San Francisco Bay Area

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Doesn't the police report automatically inform my insurance company that I was involved in an accident?  Do I need to call them personally to let them know I was involved in an accident?

Answer
Hi Cris,
The police never contact your insurance company to report that you have been involved in an accident.
An insurance policy is a contract between you and the insurance company and the legal wording of that contract requires you to make a timely report of any accident to the insurance company.
Most insurance companies consider a 'timely manner' to be 10 days unless you have a good excuse for any delay.
As I stated earlier, most states require that your insurance company file proof of insurance with the motor vehicle department on your behalf following an accident when the damages exceed certain dollar amounts (usually $500-$750), which your company will automatically do when you report the accident.
Bennie