What You Should Know About the Collision Repair Process

The unfortunate truth about driving is that the vast majority of drivers will be in some sort of accident at some point in their driving life. There are so many cars on the road and so many factors that can contribute to accidents that they are bound to happen. If you have never been in an auto accident before, you may be unsure of how the collision repair process works. Get to know some of the facts about the collision repair process, and then, you can be prepared if you are ever in an accident. 

Get the Police Report Case Number

When you are still on the scene of the accident, one of the most important things you can do is to get the police report case number for your accident. The police will come to the scene of the accident, take photos, assess what happened, take witness statements, and the like. All of this information will go into the police report. 

Be sure if the officer does not readily give you a copy of the case number that you ask for it. This will be something you need to relay to your insurance company so that you can get your claim started and processed as soon as possible after the accident. 

Contact Your Insurance Company

Speaking of your insurance company, once the chaos of the accident is over and you are safe and sound, you will want to contact your insurance company and inform them of the accident. Be sure to tell them as much as possible that you remember about the accident. Give them the police report case number. They can then open your claim and contact the police and other party involved in the accident. This will jumpstart the process of getting your vehicle back on the road again. 

Get Your Car to a Collision Repair Center Right Away

If you are still able to safely drive your car after the accident, your first stop with it should be a collision repair center or shop to get a damage assessment (as well as a cost estimate for repairs). And if you can't drive it, have it towed to one. Your insurance company may have a specific body shop they want you to go to, so be sure you ask them when you speak with your agent.  This will again, speed up the process of getting repairs done but will also give you an idea of how much you will be paying out of pocket (if anything) to repair your vehicle. 

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