Car Insurance-Checklist for Initial Examination PDF Print E-mail
Written by Graham McKenzie   
Tuesday, 13 April 2010 10:31
Car insurance is very important. When a vehicle is stolen or broken into, insurance plays a large role in reimbursement for lost property. Insurance also allows the victim to make a claim to their insurer and the insurer handles the costs of repairs and/or replacement of the damage to the vehicle; of course, there is generally a modest deductible depending upon the insurance plan one has.
by GrahamMcKenzie


Car insurance is very important. When a vehicle is stolen or broken into, insurance plays a large role in reimbursement for lost property. Insurance also allows the victim to make a claim to their insurer and the insurer handles the costs of repairs and/or replacement of the damage to the vehicle; of course, there is generally a modest deductible depending upon the insurance plan one has.

Basically the required information for a claim filed is gathered by the Insurance Company after analysing the coverage rules and your actual policy information. The agent, while filing a claim, will prepare a checklist for the initial examination which will be done in order to validate a claim and to calculate the percentage of amount that the Insurance Company has to pay legally.

The Status of your current Insurance, whether it is active and has up to date payment history is of prime importance along with the fact that it should not have been lapsed by then, is essential in case if you wish to claim the coverage .

Your policy has certain coverage amounts and there are items that are not covered, the insurance agent will go over your policy contract and determine if the claim you are filing is in fact covered by the policy. If you have only liability insurance or third party cover then you will not be able to collect on damages such as car theft.

You cannot claim the coverage amount if the exclusion criteria of the policy such as fire or flood is a part of the claim but you can claim coverage during a break in burglary or vandalism, in case if your expensive car accessories such as stereo or golf clubs are stolen, if it is covered or listed in the actual policy contract.

While the insurance company is liable for valid claims, it is dependent upon the policy holder to uphold the policy requirements. If the holder failed to take the proper actions on their end, the insurance company will deny the claim. This will leave the victim of the crime responsible for the damages that occurred.

Besides looking for policy issues the insurance agent is trained to look over the checklist for suspicious items entered and report them to the assessor. If you are driving a very old car and it is stolen with a trunk load of expensive merchandise the insurance agent may look at this as a possible fraudulent claim. There are many things can red flag the insurance companies to a claim that might be completely false or have parts of the claim that are misleading. The insurance agent will turn the claim over to the assessor once the checklist is complete and all notes they have taken during the initial process is included with the examination to the assessor.

DISCLAIMER: This article is provided as information only and is not to be taken as financial advice.

Graham McKenzie is the content syndication coordinator for Carinsurancesa.co.za. South Arica?s leading Car Insurance portal, which provides cover for all Car Insurance types.