Car accident that happened 1 month ago (URGENT- Please help)

by Mike

It was raining on the day of the incident. It happened in the morning. I was driving through the aisles of the parking lot to look for parking spots.

I then pulled up to an intersection in the parking lot and came to a complete stop.

I saw car B approaching fast(she was speeding) from the right side, swerved her car towards me but before I could react, Car B grazed the side of her car into my car.

Owners exchanged information – car’s number plate, phone number, and contact information, but no insurance information was exchanged.

I had a minor dent on front right of my car and she had some scratches on her back of her car. This was one month ago and only today there was a police report done at the parking lot -it is a private property.

She called the police to the office and looked for me and we all went to the parking lot to assist in the report. I claim that I'm not at fault but she also claims that she's not at fault.

The police handed me a copy of the police report and told me to submit it to Secretary of State. The police report does not have a report - just information on cars, where the damage happened, personal info, etc.

On the back side of the report is where we put our account of the accident- which I need to fill out. She has the same copy of the report.

My question is:

1.Do I have to inform my insurance company and will my premium go up? (It's been a month now and also she might make a claim from my insurance company) Is it okay if I don't inform them?

2.What if she doesn't contact my insurance company, will my insurance premium go up by the virtue of the police report being done?

3. Please advice on what I should do now after I was given a police report?



Answer:

Hi Mike,

Our Answers:

1. Do I have to inform the insurance company? Yes if you want coverage. You have a duty to report claims. For more info visit:
http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com/Duty-to-Report-Losses.html

Will your insurance premium go up? It depends on the facts and who ends up being at fault.

The premium v. Claim debate is not settled as different insurance companies do different things but for more information about rates and claims visit:

http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com/when-not-to-file-an-auto-insurance.html

2. If the insurance company does not find out, the premium will not go up. However, since she believes she is not at fault, she will probably want you to pay for her damage.

In which case, you want your insurance involved (to defend your liability).

Insurance companies can find out about the accident if she calls or if the insurance agents looks for police reports against you (not that often).

3. It depends in what you want. Do you want your car fixed? Is the damage small enough that you do not want to claim it? If you want your car fixed, then you are going to have to move forward and file the report and file a claim against her. She will probably do the same against you.

Good Luck,

http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com