How To Handle A First Party Claim?

If your own car insurance policy must be used to cover the costs of an accident for which another driver was responsible, then you should plan on submitting a first party claim.

Situations that would require the submission of such a claim

You carry a policy with an uninsured motorist option. A driver that has failed to buy insurance hits your car’s rear section. That set of circumstances would force you to submit a first party claim.

You carry a policy with an underinsured motorist option. You happen to get hit by a driver that has purchased a policy with very low limits. In other words, the defendant’s insurance company has no ability to cover the full cost of the accident. Fortunately, the amount on your underinsured motorist option should be enough for full coverage. Consequently, you need to submit a first party claim.

A policyholder that has found it necessary to submit a first party claim should make a point of cooperating with the insurance company.

That means making an effort to be reasonable. On the other hand, the policyholder/claimant should not have to surrender his or her rights to privacy.

An important aspect of the policyholder’s cooperation would relate to the time between the accident and the submission of a first party claim. Such claims ought to be submitted as soon as possible.

The same policyholder should allow the release of medical records. All of the released records should relate to the accident-linked injury, and not to any other medical problem that the claimant might have. Another aspect of cooperation concerns the policyholder’s salary. That should be shared with the insurance company.

Sometimes, the insurance company asks policyholders with a first party claim to undergo an independent medical examination (IME). Cooperation entails a willingness to attend an IME. Cooperation does not equate with an automatic acceptance of the results of an IME. The claimant has the right to contest those results.

Possible problems

The adjuster might allege that you, the policyholder was partly at-fault. In that case, it would help to retain an Injury Lawyer in Sarnia. Unless the allegation seemed verifiable, you ought to plan on filing a lawsuit.

A second problem has been mentioned in an earlier paragraph. That problem might arise following an IME. The doctor that gave the examination might have supplied the insurance company with an observation that could support the company’s allegations.

On the other hand, the doctor’s observations could appear to be unverifiable. In that situation, it would be best to retain an attorney. Lawyers understand how to highlight the absence of veracity in a decidedly baseless allegation. Smart claimants do not hesitate to make use of lawyers’ experience and skills.