What are the two types of insurance claims?

This is when your own car is damaged due to an accident. You will want to claim for own damage if the accident was your fault with the condition that you have a comprehensive policy. If the accident was not caused by you, then there is no need for you to claim Own Damage since you would be able to claim from the other party’s third party cover. Unfortunately, if you do not have a comprehensive cover, you would not be able to claim from any insurance. Which means that you will have to bear the cost of repair yourself.

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Accidents and Injuries: Filing a Claim with Your Own Insurance Company
Accidents and Injuries: Filing a Claim with Someone Else’s Insurance Company
Other Types of Insurance Claims
Know Your Rights During the Insurance Claims Process

The claim from: Own comprehensive cover Condition: Accident was your fault Pros: Speedy process

Cons: You lose your NCD, additional charges will apply (betterment, excess) (Click here to understand these terms)

Just as there are many types of insurance, there are many types of insurance claims. Some insurance claims must be filed with your own insurance company while others are filed with someone else's insurer. Additionally, you can file a claim for property damage, physical injuries, the death of a loved one, health care benefits, and if someone sues you for premises liability, to name a few. Read on to learn more about different types of insurance claims.

Accidents and Injuries: Filing a Claim with Your Own Insurance Company

Claims for accidents and injuries are among the most common types of insurance claims out there. And within this category, auto and home insurance claims are the most popular. Filing a claim for benefits under your own insurance policy is known as a first-party claim, and these must usually be filed very soon after the accident occurs.

Car Insurance Claims

If you’re involved in a car accident, you’ll probably need to file a claim with your insurance company, whether the accident resulted in property damage, physical injuries, or both. Even if the other driver was at fault, you should file a claim with your insurance company in case the other driver’s insurance company refuses to pay, or if the other driver was uninsured or flees the scene. Types of insurance claims under an auto policy can include property damage, physical injuries, uninsured motorist coverage, collision coverage, and liability.

Homeowners Insurance Claims

Under a homeowners insurance policy, you would file a claim with your insurance company if your property sustains damage that’s covered by your policy, such as wind damage during a storm, or a pipe bursting in your kitchen. You must also notify your insurance company if someone else is injured while on your property. If you’re sued by that person, your insurance company has a duty to defend you under the liability portion of your policy, as long as the claim is potentially covered by your policy.

Renters Insurance Claims

Claims under a renters insurance policy function similarly to homeowner’s insurance claims, except that you would usually only file a claim if your personal property is damaged or if someone sues you for injuries they sustain while on your property.

Accidents and Injuries: Filing a Claim with Someone Else’s Insurance Company

You may also find that you need to file a claim with someone else’s insurance company. This type of insurance claim is called a third-party claim and is more common among car and home insurance policies.

Third Party Car Insurance Claims

If, as the driver of the car, you were involved in a car accident that was someone else’s fault, you may need to file a claim with the other driver’s insurance company if the other driver fails to do so. You would also file this type of third-party claim if you were injured as a passenger of one of the vehicles, or as a bystander.

Third Party Home Insurance Claims

Like auto insurance claims, you would also need to file a third-party claim if you’re injured while visiting someone else’s home. Homeowners and renters policies generally cover injuries sustained by visitors if the homeowner or renter was negligent in maintaining the property or warning the visitor of a dangerous condition.

Other Types of Insurance Claims

Although the process is similar among many different types of insurance claims, there are some important differences to keep in mind.

Life Insurance

Unlike other types of insurance claims, you don't file a life insurance claim as an insured, but rather after the death of the insured. To file a life insurance claim, you'll need to submit certified copies of the insured's death certificate along with appropriate claims forms. States often have specific timelines for when a life insurance claim must be paid out (for example, within 30-60 days).

Health and Dental Insurance

For most types of insurance, you have to submit your own claim in order to receive benefits. But with health and dental insurance, your provider will usually submit a claim directly to the insurance company. The provider then bills you for anything not paid for by your insurer. If you do have to submit your own claim, contact the insurance company for the required forms and submit those along with an itemized bill from your provider.

Flood Insurance

Most flood insurance policies are provided by the National Flood Insurance Program. However, since this insurance is purchased through private insurance companies, you would file a claim with your private insurance company, along with a Proof of Loss form.

Of course, there are many other types of insurance claims, including those for earthquakes, title issues, boating accidents, pet injuries and illnesses, and crop issues. Check with your policy or the insurer for steps required to file an insurance claim correctly.

Know Your Rights During the Insurance Claims Process

Regardless of the type of insurance claim you submit, insurance companies have an obligation to act in good faith and process your claim in a timely manner. If you're having difficulty getting your insurance company to abide by the terms of your policy or state insurance laws, contact a local insurance attorney who can defend your rights during the claims process.

An insurance claim is a formal request by a policyholder to an insurance company for coverage or compensation for a covered loss or policy event. The insurance company validates the claim (or denies the claim). If it is approved, the insurance company will issue payment to the insured or an approved interested party on behalf of the insured.

Insurance claims cover everything from death benefits on life insurance policies to routine and comprehensive medical exams. In some cases, a third-party is able to file claims on behalf of the insured person. However, in the majority of cases, only the person(s) listed on the policy is entitled to claim payments.

An insurance claim is a formal request by a policyholder to an insurance company for coverage or compensation for a covered loss or policy event.
The insurance company validates the claim and, once approved, issues payment to the insured or an approved interested party on behalf of the insured.
For property-casualty insurance, such as for your car or home, filing a claim can cause rate hikes to your future premiums.

A paid insurance claim serves to indemnify a policyholder against financial loss. An individual or group pays premiums as consideration for the completion of an insurance contract between the insured party and an insurance carrier. The most common insurance claims involve costs for medical goods and services, physical damage, loss of life, liability for the ownership of dwellings (homeowners, landlords, and renters), and liability resulting from the operation of automobiles.

For property and causality insurance policies, regardless of the scope of an accident or who was at fault, the number of insurance claims you file has a direct impact on the rate you pay to gain coverage (typically through installment payments called insurance premiums). The greater the number of claims that are filed by a policyholder, the greater the likelihood of a rate hike. In some cases, it's possible if you file too many claims that the insurance company may decide to deny you coverage.

If the claim is being filed based on the damage to property that you caused, your rates will almost surely rise. On the other hand, if you aren't at fault, your rates may or may not increase. For example, getting hit from behind when your car is parked or having siding blow off your house during a storm are both events that are clearly not the result of the policyholder.

However, mitigating circumstances, such as the number of previous claims you have filed, the number of speeding tickets you have received, the frequency of natural disasters in your area (earthquakes, hurricanes, floods), and even a low credit rating can all cause your rates to go up, even if the latest claim was made for damage you didn't cause.

When it comes to insurance rate increases, not all claims are created equal. Dog bites, slip-and-fall personal injury claims, water damage, and mold can all act as signals of future liability for an insurer. These items tend to have a negative impact on your rates and on your insurer's willingness to continue providing coverage. Surprisingly, speeding tickets may not cause a rate hike at all. At least for your first speeding ticket, many companies will not increase your prices. The same goes for a minor automobile accident or a small claim against your homeowner's insurance policy.

Costs for surgical procedures or inpatient hospital stays remain prohibitively expensive. Individual or group health policies indemnify patients against financial burdens that may otherwise cause crippling financial damage. Health insurance claims filed with carriers by providers on behalf of policyholders require little effort from patients; the majority of medical are adjudicated electronically.

Policyholders must file paper claims when medical providers do not participate in electronic transmittals but charges result from rendered covered services. Ultimately, an insurance claim protects an individual from the prospect of large financial burdens resulting from an accident or illness.

A house is typically one of the largest assets an individual will purchase in their lifetime. A claim filed for damage from covered perils is initially routed via the Internet to a representative of an insurer, commonly referred to as an agent or claims adjuster.

Unlike health insurance claims, the onus is on the policyholder to report damage to a deeded property they own. An adjuster, depending on the type of claim, inspects and assesses damage to property for payment to the insured. Upon verification of the damage, the adjuster initiates the process of compensating or reimbursing the insured.

Life insurance claims require the submission of a claim form, a death certificate, and oftentimes the original policy. The process, especially for large face value policies, may require in-depth examination by the carrier to ensure that the death of the insured did not fall under a contract exclusion, such as suicide (usually excluded for the first few years after policy inception) or death resulting from a criminal act.

Generally, the process takes approximately 30 to 60 days without extenuating circumstances, affording beneficiaries the financial wherewithal to replace the income of the deceased or simply cover the burden of final expenses.

Filing an insurance claim may raise future insurance premiums.

There are no hard-and-fast rules around rate hikes. What one company forgives, another won't forget. Because any claim at all may pose a risk to your rates, understanding your policy is the first step toward protecting your wallet. If you know your first accident is forgiven or a previously filed claim won't count against you after a certain number of years, the decision of whether or not to file a claim can be made with advance knowledge of the impact it will or won't have on your rates.

Talking to your agent about the insurance company's policies long before you need to file a claim is also important. Some agents are obligated to report you to the company if you even discuss a potential claim and choose not to file. For this reason, you also don't want to wait until you need to file a claim to inquire about your insurer's policy regarding consultation with your agent.

Regardless of your situation, minimizing the number of claims you file is the key to protecting your insurance rates from a substantial increase. A good rule to follow is to only file a claim in the event of catastrophic loss. If your car gets a dent on the bumper or a few shingles blow off of the roof of your house, you may be better off if you take care of the expense on your own.

If your car is totaled in an accident or the entire roof of your house caves in, filing a claim becomes a more economically feasible exercise. Just keep in mind that even though you have coverage and have paid your premiums on time for years, your insurance company can still decline to renew your coverage when your policy expires.

If you hold an insurance policy and have experienced damages covered by it, you can initiate a claim by contacting your insurer. This can be done by phone, and increasingly online. Once the claim has been started, the insurer will collect relevant information from you and may ask for evidence (such as photos) or supporting documentation. The insurer may also send an adjuster to interview you and evaluate the merits of your claim.

Sometimes, filing a claim can result in higher insurance premiums going forward. Although this is not always the case as some insurers will forgive the first accident, for example. Rate hikes following a claim are mainly due because the insurer will see you as a greater risk than before, and adjust the cost upwards accordingly. If you can prove that a claim was made where you were not at fault, you may be able to reverse such an increase. If you file too many claims over a very short period of time, the insurance company may not renew your policy regardless of fault.

If the damage you experience is less than your deductible, it may not make sense to file a claim with your insurance company. For instance, if you have $200 in estimated damage, but a $1,000 deductible, it wouldn't make sense. If, however, you feel that the other party is entirely at fault and want their insurance to pay for your damage, you may want to initiate a claim nonetheless. It is a good idea to always talk with your insurance agent before filing a claim.