How do I claim for damage to my vehicle?

You have 2 options:

• Recover against the driver at fault’s comprehensive car insurance policy
• Recover under your own comprehensive car insurance policy

Recovering against the driver at fault’s insurance policy

Ask the driver at fault to make a claim on their comprehensive insurance policy and provide them with a couple of quotes. Once lodged, the insurance company will liaise with you to try to agree on a payment amount. They may want to inspect your vehicle or use their own repair company to fix the damage. Remember you have the right to use your own suppliers.

Recovering under your own comprehensive car insurance policy

Consider this option if the driver at fault has no comprehensive insurance and no means of paying the damage bill. A couple of things to think about when claiming on your policy:

• Future premiums may be impacted
• No claim bonus status may be impacted
• Excess may be payable

To make a claim, contact your insurance company who will ask you to complete the Claim Form.  They will help manage the process for you.

If neither party is insured

If neither party is comprehensively insured you will need to obtain multiple quotes for your vehicle’s repair. You should provide these to the at-fault driver, asking them to agree to pay the reasonable repair amount, in a reasonable timeframe.

If the at-fault party won’t pay for the vehicle’s repair, you will need to commence court action to obtain court orders compelling them to do so. For most claims, where the damage is $20,000 or less, the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) will be the appropriate court in which to commence the action. QCAT is very user friendly: parties are encouraged to act for themselves, with helpful ‘how to guides’ available on the QCAT website. All necessary forms are also available on the website.