“Do you want added insurance with your rental?” The rental car company asks. You hesitate. Your personal auto insurance will cover you, right?
Wrong. If you’re in an accident while driving a rental car, your personal insurance may not cover the damages. That’s why it’s important to have rental car insurance —to protect yourself financially in the event of an accident. However, the unfortunate reality is that insurance is not enough to ensure that you are covered in an accident, even if someone else caused the crash. That is because insurance companies are focused almost entirely on protecting revenues by pursuing low settlements or avoiding paying out at all.
This is why working with a personal injury attorney from the moment you are first involved in a crash is one of the best decisions you can make and one of the easiest steps to take when working with a referral network like 1-800-Injured. Once you have a dedicated attorney fighting to get you the money you deserve, you can stay focused on your recovery without taking on the added stress and emotional burden of trying to navigate such a complicated and often contentious process.
Contact 1-800-Injured Today For a Free Consultation With a Rental Car Accident Attorney
1-800-Injured is an attorney and medical referral service. We work with a network of the nation’s car accident lawyers and can connect you with an experienced rental car accident attorney who will fight for the compensation you deserve, and we do so at no cost to you.
During your free consultation, you will have the opportunity to ask questions and get to know your attorney so that you can make the decision about whether or not to hire them. And because they only work on a contingency fee basis, you will not owe anything unless your attorney wins your case.
Get started today by contacting 1-800-Injured to speak with a rental car accident attorney as soon as possible, and read more below to learn a bit more about how rental car accidents are handled through the insurance claims process.
What To Do If You Are In an Accident While Driving a Rental Car
If you are involved in an accident while driving a rental car, the first step is to call 911 to ensure that EMTs are on the scene to examine your injuries and a police officer is present to complete an accident report. Let the EMTs examine you thoroughly, even if you think you are not injured. Adrenaline is an effective pain masker that can cause many accident victims to state with certainty that they are not injured, only to wake up the next morning realizing that they are sore all over.
Next, you should get the contact information of any witnesses to the accident. Eyewitnesses have a different perspective of the accident and its events than yours, which can help solidify your case and prove that the other driver was at fault.
Once you have gotten contact information and made your initial statements to the attending officer, it is important that you do not discuss the accident with anyone other than the police or your attorney, as anything you say could be used against you later as the insurance adjuster attempts to settle your case for a fraction of what it is actually worth.
After you have taken care of the immediate aftermath of the accident, the next step is to contact your rental car company and file a claim. You will need to provide them with all of the information about the accident, including the police report. It is important to know that most rental car companies will require you to purchase their insurance to file a claim, so be sure to ask about that when you rent the car.
Once you have filed a claim with the rental car company, they will likely contact their insurance company to begin the claims process. The insurance company will then assign an adjuster to your case. It is important to know that insurance adjusters are not on your side, and their main goal is to save the insurance company money by getting you to accept a low settlement.
This is why it is so important to have an experienced car accident lawyer on your side because they will be able to negotiate with the insurance companies on your behalf to get you the compensation you deserve.
What Should You Do If the Other Driver Was at Fault?
If the other driver was at fault for the accident, you should still contact your rental car company and file a claim. The rental car company will likely contact the other driver’s insurance company to begin the claims process. However, it is important to know that even if the other driver was at fault, their insurance company would still try to lowball you on your settlement.
Your attorney will be able to counter their settlement offer with ample evidence and a strong case for why you are owed the amount that you have suffered in damages. This will initiate a negotiation process that could take anywhere from a matter of days to weeks, months, or longer.
What Should You Do If You Were Injured in the Accident?
If you were injured in the accident, it is important to seek medical attention as soon as possible. This will ensure that you get the treatment you need and create a record of your injuries that can be used as evidence in your case. Be sure to keep all of your medical records and bills, as well as any documentation of lost wages if your injuries have prevented you from working.
All of this evidence will be used by your attorney to build a strong case for the compensation you deserve. If you were in an accident while driving a rental car, contact 1-800-Injured today to be connected with an experienced car accident lawyer who can help you through the claims process and get you the compensation you deserve.