If you or somebody you care about sustains property damage in an accident caused by another driver, then you need a vehicle to get around from place to place. However, can you afford a rental? Will the insurance carrier pay for your rental? Here, we want to discuss who pays for rental cars after a vehicle accident occurs.
If there’s one thing that is common amongst vehicle accidents that occur throughout the state of Colorado, it’s that most of these incidents involve property damage. Even a relatively minor vehicle accident can lead to unseen property damage to the body of the vehicle.
Most individuals rely on their vehicles to get them from place to place. This is particularly true if individuals involved in accidents do not have a second vehicle at home. When an accident occurs, a rental vehicle may be the only way that a person can continue to go about their daily lives, including getting to and from work, until their vehicle is repaired. Sometimes, it can take weeks or even months for a vehicle to get repaired or replaced after an accident occurs.
Rental cars are often the only way that a person can continue to go about their daily lives in a normal manner. However, rental cars are not free.
There may be various ways to get a rental car covered in the aftermath of an accident. First, we strongly encourage anyone reading this article to examine their insurance policy to see whether or not they have rental car coverage. This is something that you purchase, not something that is required under Colorado law. That said, rental car coverage is not terribly expensive, and it is well worth it in the event you get into an accident that requires your vehicle to be out of commission for any length of time.
If you get into an accident and your vehicle has to be repaired, your own rental car coverage will provide you for a rental for the length that your policy states. Often, this is a certain dollar amount daily for a set amount of days. If you have purchased rental car coverage as part of your policy, you will be able to use this rental coverage regardless of who caused the accident, whether it was you or another driver involved.
If the other driver did cause the accident, your insurance carrier will seek reimbursement from the at-fault driver’s insurance as part of the total settlement. If you do not have rental car coverage as part of your policy and the other driver caused the accident, you can request that the other driver’s insurance pay for your rental while the case is ongoing. However, if there is any dispute over fault, which there often is, the other insurance carrier may not grant this request. You may need to pay for a rental out of your own pocket and include this as part of the settlement, which means you will get reimbursed if the other driver was indeed at fault.
It is important to work with an attorney if there is any dispute about fault or how much compensation you should be paid. A skilled car accident lawyer in Denver will thoroughly examine every aspect of the claim, and they will help ensure that you receive a rental quickly and that it is covered by the other driver’s insurance.
