What Happens When You Do Not Report An Auto Accident To The Insurance Service?

Injury Lawyer Motor Vehicle Accidents

You might be tempted to pretend a minor car accident didn’t happen by not reporting it to your insurance company. After all, the risk of the premiums of your car insurance going up are very real if an accident is reported. So, you might think, why bother increasing my expenses for something that doesn’t look like to be a big deal?

If this is your thought process, you’re not the only one. Many people are tempted not to inform the insurance company about an accident if nobody was injured or if they suspect the damage to the vehicle will be less than the deductible cost of the. When considering these, if often seems not worth informing the company and increase in premiums. However, there are other aspects to consider.

The Insurance Contract

Every car insurance policy has fine print. Many people don’t bother reading the fine print or barely skim it. It’s common for most insurance companies require you to report every accident to the company. The clause means that if you choose not to report the accident, you could actually put your right to coverage jeopardized.

For example, you’re in what appears to be a minor accident with little vehicle damage and both drivers appear to be uninjured. Both drivers might agree to work out a settlement between just the two of you. Despite this, later on, the other driver changes their mind when they discover that they have neck pain or other car accident injuries. They decide to file a personal injury lawsuit against you.

If this happens, the insurance company might refuse to defend you in the lawsuit, since you violated the clause and did not meet the obligations of the policy to report the accident to the insurance company. If the company decides not to represent you, you may be personally liable for the other driver’s damages. That is when you need a Personal Injury Lawyer in Oakville.

Cost of Not Reporting Accident

You have to take steps to save yourself money by choosing to keep the premium down by choosing higher deductibles instead. If this is the case, you may be more tempted to avoid paying the high deductible which can be $1500 or $2000. But if you do, the cost of not reporting an accident to an insurance company will be much higher.

A minor car accident can easily result in costs over $2000. If you decide not to report the accident, you will pay the full cost of the repair, which might not be much more than the deductible, and your premium won’t go up. This might seem like a good idea at the time since the cost of an increased premium quickly adds up over the years, plus you’d be already paying for money out of pocket from the high deductible.

But just because you were in an accident, this doesn’t always mean your premium will go up. Or if it does go up, it may only be by a small amount. Some, but not all, insurance companies won’t increase your premium after the first accident if you’ve been accident free for a number of years. So, it’s always a good idea to fully understand your policy and discuss in detail the type of coverage you want with your insurance agent.

The risk of the accident costing you more money if you don’t report it are too high since you could be held responsible for the costs of your vehicle, the other driver’s vehicle, any injuries you’ve sustained and the injuries of the other driver.

324 thoughts to “What Happens When You Do Not Report An Auto Accident To The Insurance Service?”

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