When you have an accident and your car is a write off, is the insurance company allowed to deduct the deductible off the settlement. I had heard that they were not allowed to do this. When I questioned the insurance company, they said the law has changed. Is this true?
If your vehicle is written off you are responsible for whatever deductible applies to the particular coverage that will cover the loss.
For instance, if you are involved in an accident that is deemed to be your fault as laid out by Fault Determination Charts, then you will be responsible for your Collision deductible. If your car is written off due to vandalism or theft of the entire vehicle, you will be responsible for your Comprehensive deductible. If you are found to be not at fault as laid out by Fault Determination Charts, you will be responsible for your Direct Compensation / Property Damage deductible (which most policies have at $0). In some cases, where the fault is shared by two or more people involved in the accident, you will be responsible for a portion of your deductible depending on which coverages will respond to the claim. The example being if you are found to be 50% at fault and 50% not at fault, you pay half of your Collision deductible and half of your Direct Compensation / Property Damage deductible.
The wording of the Ontario Automobile Policy used to allow for the deductible to be waived if the entire vehicle was stolen (and not recovered) or if damage was due to fire. The wording was changed a number of years ago.
I have been renting for the pass 4 years after my major at fault accident, unable to get insurance because i have bad record. I guess my question are, Does renting a car build insurance record? How many years before they erase your accident record? Any insurance who take client with the bad record?
Renting a vehicle does not show up on your driving record. When we look at a drivers history, we look for the number of convictions (tickets) that they have had in the past three years, as well as their insurance history and any claims that go along with that. If you have been renting vehicles, you have not been listed on an insurance policy and unless you were involved in an accident during that time, there would be no way for a broker to confirm your history.
An accident will affect your insurance premiums for anywhere up to ten years, depending on the company. Each year after the accident, your record will improve and your rates should come down. The number of years since your last accident, together with any convictions and/or license suspensions will help us to determine your rates.
In Ontario, anyone who owns a registered and licensed vehicle, and has a valid drivers license is able to obtain insurance, providing they can afford to pay the premium. The fact that they have a bad record does not preclude them from getting insurance. However, the cost might be too high for them to be able to afford insurance. I would be happy to discuss auto insurance with you and obtain a quote if and when you are looking to insure a vehicle.
I was in an accident, I hit a deer! My insurance company advised me to go through the collision center they deal with! The problems I am having with this is, is that the collision center manager is not informing me of what the damage is and that my involvement is not necessary, he said he will take care of it throught the insurance company. My insurance claimer is only available between 9am- 5pm but I work those hours, so, therefore I have no communication regarding this matter! Can I get a second opinion? Should I be more involved? What happens if the repairs are not to my liking? Can I choose to have a different insurance claimer that is available later in the evening? Can I request O.E. parts only? Do they have to tell me if remanufactured parts are going to be used, and can I stop it?
First of all, the most important question we should be asking is -Are you and everyone else in the car okay? After we establish that you are, we can start worrying about your vehicle.
I think that you should have as much involvement in the settling of your claim as you can. We are talking about your car, and it is important that you are satisfied with whatever solution(s) are reached. I believe that the insurance claimer you are referring to is a Claims Adjuster. They are the trained professionals that deal with these types of situations. An adjuster will work with an appraiser and between them, they will look at your vehicle, appraise what damage there is and implement the necessary steps to either fix the damage or provide you with a settlement based on the fair market value of your car. Without knowing who you are insured with I cannot make a comment on the office hours of your adjuster, but they will typically have access to email or the ability to make after hours appointments so that people in your situation are able to discuss their claims procedures. If you are not happy with your adjuster it may be possible to have your company assign a new one. You would need to speak to a claims manager to pursue that avenue. Your independent insurance broker should be able to provide you with contact information.
Many insurance companies have preferred shops that they recommend. Often, if you use the services of these shops, there will be an extended warranty on the parts and the labour. With any claim situation, you can choose the shop that does the work. If you do not use a recommended shop, you may not receive a guarantee from your insurance company.
I am not 100% sure what you mean when you refer to O.E. parts. If your vehicle is less than 2 years old and has Ontario Policy Change Form #43 or #43(a) ~ Waiver of Depreciation ~ your car should be fixed using new parts from the manufacturer. If your vehicle is older than that, quality aftermarket parts are typically used. Most insurance companies will make sure that their preferred shops are using quality parts. Depending on the age of your car (if it is quite old) there might be no other option but to use refurbished parts, but this is usually a last case scenario and should never compromise the safety of the vehicle. Also, if your vehicle is quite old, it may be very difficult for the shop to match the paint. After repairs, physically, your vehicle should be safe and suffer no negative effects to the performance. However, it may not be possible to make it look brand new or even exactly the way it did prior to your accident.
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