Before you even begin to think about writing the settlement letter, make sure that you follow the advice that we have elsewhere on the site and keep all of the receipts and records of the accident that you have.  This includes any hospital bills that you have from injuries related to the accident, police reports, rental car receipts, body shop receipts, records showing missing time at work, and anything else that proves you had to spend money as a result of the crash.  These will be incredibly useful in building the case in your letter.

Next, make sure that you know the statute of limitations in your state to bring charges.  This varies from state to state, so look at your local laws for help.  You may have anywhere from one to three years or longer to file a lawsuit against the insurance company to recover the damages that you suffered.  If you don’t file a suit within this time, even if you are in settlement talks, you lose all your rights to collect any money from the case.

Finally, once you have all your information gathered and know that you have enough time to negotiate the case, you can sit down and write the actual insurance settlement letter.  The structure of the letter should be as follows.

First, start any letter to an insurance adjuster out with the facts surrounding your case.  State that you were hit by a negligent driver under their policy and give the date, time, and any other relevant details to the crash.  State if you went to seek medical attention right away, if police were on the scene, and any other factors leading up to the accident.  Attach a copy of the police report if possible.

Next, provide an account of the injuries and damages that you sustained as a result of the accident.  Provide details of the damages to your car and what was required to fix it.  Also include any personal injuries that you sustained and the extent of treatment that you had to undergo to fix them.  Attach hospital records and receipts from the mechanic or body shop to the letter.

Now that you have built up your case, you’re ready to present your settlement proposal.   In this section you want to assign a specific dollar amount to all the damages that you’ve sustained as a result of the crash.    Itemize the damages as best as possible and support them with receipts.  So if you had to spend $100 on a rental car for a few days while your car was in the shop, include the receipt.  This will make your case stronger and it won’t seem like you’re just pulling numbers out of thin air.

Finally, close out your auto accident settlement letter with a demand for compensation for your injuries.  Add up all the expenses that you proved with receipts and add another amount on top of that for pain and suffering and lost time and quality of life.  This amount can be tricky to come up with, so if you aren’t sure what you want to ask for or how to go about calculating it, see a lawyer.

Writing a letter to an insurance company can sound like a daunting affair, but in all reality it isn’t.  Most of the work that goes into writing the letter isn’t the writing itself.  It is collecting and itemizing all of the damages that you sustained in the accident.  Once this is done, writing the letter is a snap.

What You Should Do as Soon As Possible

As soon as possible, make sure that you contact your insurance company and inform them of the crash.  Also make sure to record any details of the crash that you can.  This includes both writing down details and taking pictures as the scene of the accident if you are able to.  If you feel injured, make sure that you head to a hospital or doctors office right away to get checked out and keep the receipt.  Also make sure to keep a copy of the police report from the accident.  Also make sure you write down the the contact information of any witnesses to the accident, especially if they can prove there was no driver alert at the wheel of the other car.  Finally, whatever you do, never ever admit any liability in the accident whatever you do.  If you admit guilt, you’ll more than likely be given fault for the accident. Not only will this preclude any settlements that you can claim, it will also prevent you from being able to save money on car insurance in the future. The more you do at the scene of the accident, the easier it will be to get the compensation from the car accident you deserve.

Property Damage in a Car Accident Claim

If you were driving, its most likely that you have sustained at least some degree of property damage to your car.  To ensure that all the damages to your car are properly paid for and repaired, you need to take the following steps:

1. Keep all receipts related to towing and storage
2. Get two estimates of the cost of the damages to your car
3. If it’s possible, take your car to a certified dealer from the insurance company you are dealing with
4. Talk to the insurance company about obtaining a rental car
5. When the damages are repaired, keep the receipt and send it to your insurance company.

Dealing with Cases of Bodily Injury

For cases dealing with bodily injury claims, make sure you keep all your records relating to any hospital or doctor’s visits related to the accident.  Also make sure that you sign a medical release to the insurance company can view your medical records to review them for their purposes.  If you’ve sustained any kind of serious injury, you should strongly consider hiring a lawyer.  The lawyer will better be able to represent your case, make sure you submit paperwork correctly, and make sure that you are properly rewarded for the time that you spent injured.

Filing a car accident claim is not incredibly difficult on the surface, but you must be sure to get it right.  Any oversights or mistakes that you make, especially in larger cases, can be pounced on by the insurance company to undermine your case.  Make sure that you get your claim right!

At The Scene of the Accident

When you are at the scene of the accident and after you have made sure that everyone involved is safe and not seriously injured, make sure to take a few pictures of the accident. They don’t have to be perfect and the camera on your phone will most likely to more than enough. This will help document the damages to your property and also if your car is in particularly bad shape, can be used at a trial as evidence if the need should arise.  Every piece of evidence you collect will many any insurance settlement you try to reach later much easier.   Call both the police and the insurance company.

When the police arrive make sure to get a copy of the accident report and keep it in a safe place. It should show who is at fault for the accident. If you feel that you may be injured in any way, shape, or form, make sure that you inform the officers and immediately get treatment for it. You may be able to ride in an ambulance or you may need to drive yourself to a doctor’s office or emergency room.

After the Accident

If you did sustain bodily injuries, it is just as important to keep records of all the medical treatments that you receive afterward as it was at the scene of the accident. Keep track of both the time you spent in the doctor’s office and the time you spent traveling to and from the office. If you missed work as a result of your injury, also make sure to keep track of your lost pay stubs as well.

If your car needs repaired, the easiest option is to take it to a dealer certified by the insurance company, if they have them. The parts that they repair will be certified. If this isn’t an option, take the car to your mechanic, you should be able to choose, and then have the car inspected again by a different mechanic after the repairs are made. This will ensure that none of the parts are repaired improperly and if they fall apart a few days after the accident, you won’t be liable for the repair costs.

Recap: The Six Tips to Filing a Car Accident Injury Claim

1. Take pictures of the scene of the accident
2. Make sure the police and your insurance company are informed
3. Immediately seek treatment
4. Keep records of all documentation dealing with the crash
5. Take your car to a certified repair shop
6. Have your car double checked at another shop once it is repaired

#1 – Don’t Immediately Get Medical Attention

In the insurance industry, it is considered that an auto accident injury is sustained when you go to seek treatment at a professional medical facility.  This is usually the emergency room, but can also be a chiropractor or massage therapist.  Many people seek attention directly after the accident, but you shouldn’t.  By waiting a few days you give the insurance company a loophole where they can say the injury was suffered in the days following the accident.  This will put the burden of proof on you to prove that the injury was sustained at the crash and not later.

#2 – Don’t Take Pictures of the Crash

If you don’t take pictures of the crash, you can’t threaten to use them in court if an insurance settlement falls through.  You also don’t have a record of the property damage to your car.  This puts you in a much weaker bargaining position where you can truly test how tough you are against those big, bad boys over at the insurance company.

#3 – Neglect to Write Down the Details of Accident and Persons Involved

This tip will really test what kind of a person you are.  Make sure that you don’t write down any of the details associated with the crash.  This ensures that every time you are questioned by the insurance company during their investigation into your injury claim you have to remember every detail of the crash, no matter how long its been since the accident.  The real test is making sure that all your details remain exactly the same sot that the company can’t cast any reasonable doubt on your story.  Not for the faint of heart to be sure.

#4 – Admit Guilt

What better way to put yourself at a disadvantage at the bargaining table than by admitting guilt?  Make sure you are adamant about it and admit that it was your fault to the police officer, bystanders, and other passengers and drivers involved in the crash.  It will definitely give you several interesting conversations with the insurance company when you try to recover some damages.  Not only that, once the police report the accident as your fault, your insurance premiums will skyrocket.  For womens car insurance this is a great way to close the gap with men, who regularly pay a much steeper price in insurance.

#5 – Throw Away the Police Report and Other Papers Related to the Auto Accident Claim

Paper documentation is for the weak of heart.  Throwing away the papers that are relevant to your accident may allow the insurance company to say there’s no way that you can prove that you are owed the amount of money you say you are.  But this just gives you a chance to play the ace that you’ve literally been keeping up your sleeve and say “I got your proof right here” and flash the guns.

#6 – Stay Silent to Your Insurance Company

Sure, you could tell your insurance company that you’ve been in a crash so that they assign someone to investigate it, but that would just defeat the purpose of taking on the insurance company yourself.  Besides, they’ll be happy to hear about it from the other driver’s insurance.

#7 – Don’t Hire a Lawyer for Big Cases

This seems almost like its implied if you’ve followed our advice so far, but this is where many people falter.  If you’ve been actively trying to screw up your auto accident claims, don’t let some fancy, smooth-talking lawyer convince you that you need his help to get a fair settlement to your claim because he has experience in negotiating with them.  You’re doing just fine on your own, thank you.

If you followed our advice, you no doubt are about to have many sleepless nights wondering how you are going to pay for the medical or property damages related to your auto accident.  It may seem like you will never get the auto accident settlement you want.  But what you’re losing in sleep you’re gaining many times over in excitement!