Unfortunately, we’ve seen a lot of rear-end vehicle crashes lately. Draw your own conclusions as to why that might be but certainly, at the top of the list, you have to ask: “Are drivers paying close attention to what they are doing when on the highways!”
More often than you would think. we get calls from customers asking: “I just got hit from behind by someone! What should I do?” That’s not surprising because insurance is first of all, complicated for most of us but especially questions do arise when you are not at fault and you expect the other party to be completely responsible for damages and any possible injuries you might face. Even one of our staff had a rear-end collision over the holidays from someone who accelerated by anticipation instead of actually seeing the car in front (our staffer) move forward. Hopefully, this will help if you are in one of these situations in the future.

• TAKE PICTURES! TAKE PICTURES! TAKE PICTURES! Did we get the message across? With most everyone carrying mobile phones. it’s simple to take a picture of the damage – both to your vehicle and the other vehicle AT THE SCENE – not later! EVEN if either party states NO DAMAGE, always TAKE THE PICTURE! We have seen cases when both parties left the scene and later, the at fault party decided they found some damage that they didn’t notice at the scene or vice versa. Your picture can save you from a ‘he said – she said’ event!
• Should I get insurance information from the other party? YES! It is important that you exchange car insurance information with the person who rear ended you. This is the case even if you don’t notice any immediate damage to your vehicle. Don’t allow the other person in the accident to convince you that you don’t need to file a report with the insurance company, even if they offer to pay cash for your damage. The reason you must exchange car insurance information is that there is always the possibility that you could have an injury that doesn’t present itself right away. In addition, there may be more damage to your vehicle than is immediately noticeable and you don’t want to have to foot the bill for that.
• Do I need to call the police if I am rear ended in my car? The laws vary in each state, but in most cases there are allowances for not calling the police. The general rule is that you don’t have to call the police if there are no injuries and there appears to be no damage over a specified amount of money (deductible). The problem is there is no guarantee that the damage that has occurred won’t be higher than what you imagine. You might think that a damaged bumper and scratched paint is a $300 problem when, in truth, it could very well be a $1200 problem depending on the type of car and the availability of parts and paint. And truthfully, I can’t remember when we have had any claim under $1000 in recent times. Your insurance company always wants you to call the police after an accident. This helps to corroborate that the accident was not your fault and also provides an additional witness at the scene. If the cost of the damage is higher than initially thought, not having a police report could slow down the claims process, as the adjuster will need to investigate and ensure that no further damage occurred after the accident. Furthermore, the adjuster could determine that you aren’t eligible for a payout at all.
• Do I need to get witness statements to prove the other car rear ended me? The truth is that in most cases a car being rear ended is a cut-and-dry case for the police. Your car is hit from behind and there is no denying what has happened. Even if the other driver claims that you stopped short and caused the accident, you will be found not at fault.
• What if the at-fault driver refuses to share their insurance information? If the at-fault driver doesn’t want to provide their insurance information and insists on paying outright for the accident, then you must call the police and let them handle it for you. While it isn’t illegal to simply accept payment for an accident, once you do this, you have no recourse if there are other problems in the future. If you do call the police for a minor accident, you can expect that there is going to be a wait time, especially if the accident occurs during high traffic times where many accidents occur.
• What if the at fault driver is angered at my thorough actions and leaves? You should simply write down their license plate number, the make and model of the car, and any descriptive information that you can remember, and provide it to the police. If the other driver leaves and the police cannot find them based on the information that you have provided, then your insurance company may pay for the damages to your vehicle if you carry the right kind of insurance. In this case, collision coverage would be necessary to pay for damages to your car.