Steps to Take After Your Car is Hit While Parked

Car accident with two people

It’s something no one wants to see—you come out to your car parked on the street or in a parking lot, only to find it smashed up. Adding insult to injury, there’s no note on the car. Here are some helpful facts about car accidents involving a hit and run of your parked car.

  • It’s not just impolite; It’s illegal not to leave a note

Even where there is only property damage, drivers involved in an accident who leave the scene without attempting to locate the owner of the car or, failing to do so, leaving their personal information in a note on a conspicuous location on the vehicle, are committing a crime.

  • Call the police immediately

After discovering your damaged vehicle, you need to call the police right away for two reasons: both to report the crime of leaving the scene of an accident committed by the person who hit your car, and to report the accident itself. While the severity of the accident may not be great, it can be very helpful to have a police report to turn over to your insurer, so that there is additional evidence that the damage was caused by someone else, and is not a fraudulent claim.

  • Call your car insurance company and report the accident

As soon as you can, report the accident to your insurance company. There are strict time limits for when you must report an accident. Generally, the rule is that you’re required to report an accident “as soon as is practicable,” but the sooner your insurance company can start investigating your claim, the better.

  • Contact an attorney to handle the headache of pursuing a hit-and-run claim

It can be especially challenging to get your insurance company to pay out these sorts of unidentified motorist claims. There are especially high concerns about fraud which might make it harder than normal to get your claim covered. Plus, if your insurance might not cover all your damages, your attorney may have alternate strategies to ensure your losses are covered.

If you’ve experienced a hit-and-run accident in the Hudson Valley, contact the experienced Kingston car accident and personal injury attorneys at Basch & Keegan for a free consultation, at (845) 403-7813.

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