A compensation claim is a written request in which you ask an insurance company to compensate your loss. How long the procedure lasts and how successful it ultimately is depend on how properly it is drawn up and how well it is documented with supporting evidence.<\/p>\n
In addition to the amount of material damage, whether as an assessed loss or as an amount based on the cost of repair, the claim can also include items to which injured parties are entitled in certain situations:<\/p>\n
The amount is not set as a lump sum estimate. It is established by listing the damage, defining the operations needed for repair and for replacement of parts, and defining the standard times for the work involved in putting them right. All of this goes into the vehicle damage record and, from there, the assessment of the amount of the loss is completed through a professionally prepared damage report<\/a>. An assessment of the amount of the loss attached to the claim is the strongest argument for obtaining fair compensation.<\/p>\n If the damage occurred to a vehicle of an older year of manufacture, or the vehicle is severely wrecked regardless of its age, the value of the vehicle<\/a> is established, after which it is compared with the calculation of the amount of the loss, and that comparison determines whether the loss is treated as partial or total.<\/p>\n The claim is most often submitted by the injured party, the owner of the vehicle entered in the registration document. If somebody else uses the vehicle, for example under an authorisation from the owner, a check is made as to whether that person is authorised and for which actions in the compensation procedure, and in particular whether they are authorised to receive payment of the established loss.<\/p>\n For legal entities the claim is signed by an authorised person, together with a stamp if the company uses one.<\/p>\n There are two routes and they are easily confused:<\/p>\n The route you choose affects the amount, the deadlines and whether you will lose your no claims bonus and other benefits. Read the terms before you decide.<\/p>\n A weak claim states an amount. A good claim shows how that amount was arrived at, through a damage assessment carried out by an impartial loss appraiser. That means:<\/p>\n A claim like that is hard to reject or contest out of hand.<\/p>\n The assertion that the damage did not occur in the given event is particularly serious, because the event itself is being contested and doubt is cast on the honesty and the intentions of the claimant. In that case an analysis of damage compatibility is carried out, as part of an expert report on the traffic accident<\/a>, which establishes whether the damage could have occurred in the way described.<\/p>\n The injured party, and the other participants in the reported event as well, are of course obliged to describe the course of events truthfully and to state only the damage that arose in that loss event.<\/p>\n The deadlines for reporting a claim and for dealing with it are laid down by regulation and by the insurance terms, and they differ according to the type of policy. Check your own terms rather than relying on somebody else experience, because provisions change.<\/p>\n Regardless of deadlines, a simple rule applies: submit everything in writing and keep proof that it was handed over. Keep photographs, correspondence, estimates and reports until the case is finally resolved. Nobody can confirm verbal agreements and telephone conversations later on.<\/p>\n A repair carried out before the inspection makes the procedure harder, but not impossible. In that case the decisive elements are photographs of the damage before the repair, workshop invoices with a specification of the parts fitted and a record of the parts replaced. If you still have the old parts, keep them.<\/p>\n That is why the recommendation is not to repair the vehicle before the damage has been properly listed and photographed by an appraiser. A few days of waiting is often worth more than the difference in the amount.<\/p>\n What goes with an objection is not a persuasive letter but evidence. An independent report that explains the methodology and shows the difference in the calculation is the strongest attachment. If the dispute continues, that same report can also be used in court proceedings as evidence.<\/p>\n Rejection or reduction is not the end of the procedure. You have the option of lodging an objection, and evidence goes with that objection. An independent report that explains the methodology and shows the difference in the calculation is exactly that kind of evidence.<\/p>\n We described the whole process in detail in the article on the European accident statement<\/a> and in the article on claiming damages from insurance<\/a>.<\/p>\nWho submits the claim<\/h2>\n
Direct claims and claims under third party liability cover<\/h2>\n
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What a well reasoned claim looks like<\/h2>\n
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The most common reasons for rejection<\/h2>\n
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Deadlines and keeping evidence<\/h2>\n
What if the vehicle has already been repaired<\/h2>\n
An objection and what goes with it<\/h2>\n
When a claim is rejected or reduced<\/h2>\n