Have you had an accident, someone has driven into your car or your vehicle has been damaged in the car park? After the initial shock, the question arises as to what you need to do to report the accident correctly and assert your claims. However, reporting and subsequently settling the claim is not that difficult for those affected by an accident.
Accident victims in your situation simply get the best support from fairforce.one.
Report the accident to the insurance company
The question of when you have to notify the insurance company that you have a motor vehicle claim arises after almost every accident. The logic is simple: Whenever an insurance company is to pay for accident damage, the insurance company must first be aware of the damage. This means that the damage and the resulting claims for benefits must be right must be reported. Only if compensation is guaranteed without the involvement of an insurance company is it not necessary to file a claim. Unfortunately, these "private payment guarantees" occasionally encountered in practice are usually extremely unreliable and fraught with problems. We therefore strongly advise against them.
Who has to report an accident to the insurance company? Both parties, i.e. the person who caused the accident and the injured party, must report the accident to their respective insurance companies. The person who caused the accident must notify their own motor vehicle liability insurance company that the injured party will approach them with claims for benefits.
For his part, the injured party will register his claims for damages arising from the accident, such as repair costs, compensation for pain and suffering, loss of earnings, etc., with the motor vehicle liability insurance company of the party responsible for the accident.
ATTENTION: The opposing insurance company will only pay these claims if it recognises the fault of its own policyholder.
What must be included in the accident report to the opposing insurance company to ensure that claims are recognised and paid? Above all, a comprehensible description of the course of the accident is important. Only if the fault of the person who caused the accident is clearly recognisable from this description will the opposing car insurance company recognise its obligation to pay benefits. Unfortunately, in practice, thousands of unfortunate descriptions of the course of the accident are made every day, which then deprive those affected of the insurance benefits to which they are actually entitled. Our urgent recommendation: Discuss the accident description with an independent specialist before it is forwarded to the insurance company. The quality of the accident description is crucial to whether or not you receive the compensation to which you are entitled.
How do you ensure a good and truthful accident report?
Most of the ingredients for a correct accident report and damage report are created directly at the scene of the accident. In principle, you should remain calm after an accident, secure the accident site and provide first aid to injured persons if necessary. The police do not have to be called in every case.
In the case of so-called minor damage, i.e. small scratches and minor accident damage that will certainly cost less than €1,000 to repair, it is not necessary for the police to record the accident. The police only need to be called if the damage is more extensive or if there are injuries.
Checklist: Do I have to call the police?
- One party drives a hire car or rental vehicle = call the police, always!
- People are injured = call the police, always!
- One of the parties involved commits a hit-and-run offence = call the police!
- Uncertainty or dispute about the question of guilt = call the police!
- The other party refuses to provide their contact and insurance details = call the police!
- Suspected stolen, unregistered, uninsured vehicle, expired MOT, driver without licence, etc... = call the police!
- Suspected drunk or drugged driving = call the police!
- Foreign parties involved in the accident (means that a foreign insurance company must also be called upon to pay benefits) = call the police!
It is also advisable to call the officers if it is unclear how the accident happened and who was at fault, if the other party refuses to provide personal details for the settlement of the claim or if they can no longer be found after a parking bump.
If the police are called, the officers record the statements of those involved in the accident, secure evidence, take photos of braking and collision traces and create an accident report on this basis. This is particularly important if it is unclear how the accident happened or who was at fault.
IMPORTANT: Do not sign any documents at the scene of the accident - nichtmal for the police. In the special situation of an accident, an adrenaline rush is regularly present, which has often led to unfavourable statements that are difficult to dispel afterwards.
What data do I need from the other party involved in the accident?
But regardless of whether you call the police or not, always make sure to exchange personal data and insurance information with the other party at the scene of the accident. The legal situation here is clear: the parties may only leave the scene of the accident once the necessary data has been exchanged.
This information is required:
- Name and address of the other party involved in the accident
- Name of the other party's insurance company
- Insurance number (if available)
- Labelling the opposing vehicle
Pro tip: Take photos!
There are not too many photos! Take photos:
- Position of the vehicles from all four directions
- all damage to the vehicles involved
- Road signs and road markings in the accident area
- Skid marks (length and direction allow conclusions to be drawn about the speeds up to the accident)
- Splinter traces (the direction of the splinters provides information about the direction of movement of the vehicles)
- licence plates involved
- Identity cards of the parties involved
- Insurance data
Initial consultation via fairforce.one free of charge
Have you been involved in an accident and are unsure what to do next? fairforce.one supports you with a non-binding and free initial consultation. Our traffic law experts will check the facts of the case, call you back and discuss your options with you over the phone. This means you can get top advice quickly and easily - regardless of whether you are the injured party or the person responsible for the accident.
What to do if the other party in the accident does not provide any information?
If the other party refuses to provide you with information about their insurance, you can also find this out yourself. All you need is the licence plate number of the other party's car and the place and date of the accident. We will use this data to find out the responsible insurance company for you.
Car insurance claim notification - deadline
Regardless of whether the police have been called or not, the accident must be reported to your own insurance company as soon as possible. If the question of fault is clear, the insurance company of the person responsible for the accident is responsible for settling the claim. Nevertheless, you should also inform your own insurance company that an accident has occurred.
If you are partially at fault or responsible for the accident, you must report the accident to your own insurance company.
Good to know: If you have not heard from the other party's insurance company after 10 days, you should notify them of the accident yourself.
But what is the deadline for reporting a claim to the car insurance company? This varies greatly and depends on your insurance company. The best thing to do is to look at your documents. As a guideline, a period of one week can be given. In the case of personal injury or accidents resulting in death, a period of 48 hours generally applies.
The deadline for reporting an accident as the injured party is somewhat more generous at 14 days. But don't forget to report it. Although this is a so-called obligation that you do not have to fulfil, if you are too late, the insurance company can reduce the benefits.
The same applies here: Avoid disadvantages due to unfortunate wording. Play it safe and leave the damage report to the professionals at fairforce.one
Accident victims in your situation simply get the best support from fairforce.one.
Depending on the cause of the accident, customers receive an average of €4802 Additional payment
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Reporting an accident as the injured party - how it works
After an accident, the question often arises: As the injured party, do I have to report the accident to my insurance company? In a nutshell: Yes, you should. Even if you are not at fault for the accident, it is advisable to inform your insurance company within the deadlines. This is because if you are subsequently found to be partially at fault, you will not suffer any disadvantages if you report the accident too late.
If you have partially or fully comprehensive insurance in addition to motor vehicle liability insurance, it may also make sense to notify us. Especially if you subsequently receive a partial debt. However, do not claim the benefits of your insurance until your partial debt has been established. Otherwise, you may be upgraded in the comprehensive insurance, although the other party would normally have to pay for the damage.
If you have private accident insurance, this must also be informed. It is best to do this even if you do not feel any direct consequences. These can also occur later. In the case of commuting accidents - travelling directly to and from work - the relevant statutory accident insurance company must also be informed.
What you need to report damage after an accident
- Your licence plate number
- Your insurance number & personal data (name, address, date of birth, etc.)
- Place and time of the accident
- Details on the course of the accident & accident events
- Reporting the damage - what is broken, who is injured?
- Personal data of the other party involved in the accident & potential witnesses
Who should I contact to report an accident?
Many insurance companies record an accident report by telephone, others offer online forms. If this is too much effort for you, fairforce.one offers you an uncomplicated and fast accident settlement process. With just a few clicks, you can report the accident to us and then receive advice from our traffic law experts over the phone. If everything fits, you can leave the settlement with your insurance company to us. We also take care of hire cars, experts, lawyers and garages. Not only for car accidents, but also for other vehicles. You can also use fairforce.one to report a motorbike accident to the insurance company, as well as van, bicycle and other accidents.
You must report a claim for these motor vehicle accidents
"Someone drove into me, do I have to report it to my insurance company?"
Have you asked yourself the same question after an accident? We explain when you have to report an accident and when you can do without it. Because not every accident is automatically an insured event. In principle, you should report all major accidents to your insurance company - even if you were not at fault. However, if you caused the accident or are partially at fault, the accident must be reported to the motor vehicle liability insurance company.
In principle, the reporting obligation applies to:
- self-inflicted accidents in which third parties were injured
- self-inflicted accidents with damage that is to be covered by comprehensive insurance
You should also make sure that the other party in the accident reports the incident to their insurance company, even if the accident was not their fault. You do not have to wait for this, but can take action yourself. You should do this at the latest if you have not heard from the other party's insurance company 10 days after the accident.
Accident victims in your situation simply get the best support from fairforce.one.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to report an accident without damage to the insurance company?
If there was no damage in the accident, this does not have to be reported to the insurance company. There is only an obligation if other road users have been injured or there is property damage. However, it may still make sense to inform the insurance company in order to secure any claims that may arise later.
When must the accident report be submitted to the insurance company?
As a rule, an accident must be reported to the insurance company within one week. In the case of accidents involving personal injury, the deadline is usually only 48 hours.
Who has to report the damage to the insurance company?
The person responsible for the accident must report the accident to their insurance company and commission the settlement. However, as the injured party, you can also use the other party's details to report the accident to the other party's insurance company and file a claim.
Do I have to report the accident to my insurance company if I am not at fault?
This is not mandatory, but it is advisable. If you are later found to be partially at fault, you will have met the deadline and reported the accident properly. You should therefore always report accident damage, even if the question of fault is actually clear.
