Auto Insurance Claim Procedure

Motor vehicle insurance is compulsory in India under the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988. Motor vehicle insurance is the insurance cover of third party risk arising from the use of the motor vehicle and also to cover the risk of damage caused to the vehicle. Indians do not care about life insurance plan or health insurance plan but they care more about motor vehicle insurance whether they are driving scooter, bike, car or truck. It is mandatory, otherwise, if someone is injured without an insured vehicle, it will be treated as a crime.

Nowadays, everyone has their own vehicle, the roads are crowded with vehicles, the risk is high, so auto insurance companies are growing day by day, and claims have also increased. But many times, policyholders don’t know exactly what they can do to get their Automobile Insurance Claim Procedure.

Here we explain the procedure to claim on your car insurance policy. This will help you a lot.

How to claim on your auto insurance claim

We will understand this procedure in a step-by-step scenario so it will be very easy for us.

Claims for own damages: If your car was in an accident, you should follow these steps to claim damages:

• Inform the insurance service provider – First of all, you must inform the insurer as soon as possible and you must send a duly completed claim form together with the required documents to the insurance company before sending the car to the workshop for any repairs. The forms are available on the websites of the insurance service providers. Most insurers follow strict guidelines and they are mentioned in the policy documentation.
• FIR hostel – In some cases, the First Information Report (FIR) is required, so please present the FIR at the nearest police station for added security. Although it may not be required for claims settlement, it is advisable to file a FIR. It depends on the condition.
• assess the damage – Once you inform the insurance service provider, they will appoint an adjuster who will assess the damage to your vehicle. He will prepare a report and pass it on to the insurance company. He too will receive a copy and can then take his car to the nearest network garage for repair. Note: If the damage is serious, the inspector will arrive at the accident site as soon as possible to carry out the inspection.
• Settlement of claims – As soon as the insurance company receives the survey report, it will analyze the claim request and send an approval to the workshop. The shop must provide an estimated cost to repair the vehicle and the timeframe for it. The insurer will contact the network workshop to get an overview of the extent of the damage and how the repair work is being carried out.

Once the work is complete, you will need to take the duly signed invoices and documents from the garage and send them to the inspector. The surveyor will send it to the insurance company.

If all the documents are complete, the insurance provider will reimburse your bills. Please note that there will be some mandatory deductible and variable deductible components, as outlined in the policy document. Once your claim has been settled and your car is safe, you will be able to drive again.

Car insurance claim process for a third party claim:-If you are responsible for an accident in which a third party is injured or property damaged, this is what you should do:

• Inform the insurance service provider – First of all, you should inform your service provider as soon as possible. Also remember not to make any financial commitments to third parties.
• FIR hostel – Present the FIR at the nearest police station and keep a copy of the FIR as well for future reference.
• Share policy document – You must compulsorily share a copy of your automobile insurance policy with the third party, so that you can file a claim on it.
• Claim in Motor Court – Under the Motor Vehicle Act 1988, third party liability claims are filed with the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT). The claim can be raised by the third party before the court closest to her or his domicile.

After receiving all the documents, the insurance service provider will verify the documents and assess the accident and if they find it satisfactory, they will assign a lawyer for you.

If the court orders you to pay damages to the third party thereafter, the insurance service company will directly pay what is owed to the third party.

It is advisable to see if the situation can be resolved amicably out of court.

Theft Claims: If you discover that your car has been stolen, follow the procedure below.

• FIR hostel – Present the FIR at the nearest police station and keep a copy of the FIR as well for future reference.
• Inform the insurance service provider – You must inform your service provider as soon as possible with a copy of FIR

• Once you receive the final report from the police station, make a copy and send it to your insurance company. The insurance company will assign you an investigator. The investigator will make the report and send it to the insurance company. Once this is done, present the RC book of your stolen car to the insurance company.

• Present the duplicate car keys and also the letter of subrogation. You will also need to submit an indemnity notarized on a stamp paper as well.

• Once all the procedures have been completed, the insurance company will pay the claim.

It is very important for us to know the procedures of the automobile insurance claim procedure; otherwise, many people pay out of pocket due to the lack of this information. Today all the insurance service provider has a very good customer support network and their teams are also trained and cooperative, so you should contact your insurer whenever you need.

I wish you do not need these procedures. I wish you have a Safe Drive, someone is waiting for you.