What to do after hitting a deer and new insurance – Do I have to report it?

Auto Insurance
1

Sorry, but I’ve never been in an accident before and I’m totally lost with all this insurance stuff.

So here’s the situation: I hit a deer on Saturday while driving home from work, going 30 mph. The damage to my car seemed minor at first – just the grill and a leak in the radiator. The mechanic says the radiator and compressor are both damaged, and they can’t fix those until the body damage is taken care of since the deer hit my left headlight and pushed it into the radiator. They also mentioned potential frame damage, but we’re still not sure about that.

A client at my job does body work, so I plan to tow the car to him so he can look at it and tell me if it’s worth repairing since it’s all going to be out of pocket.

Here’s the thing: I didn’t realize I only had liability insurance on my car, not comprehensive or collision coverage. I signed up for a much better, full coverage policy yesterday and paid it in full. The new policy covers towing and rental cars.

My main question is, if I call my new insurance provider for a tow and rental a few days after I signed up, will that make my rates go up? Do I have to report the deer damage to the new provider, even though I’m paying for everything out of pocket and not planning to file a claim? The first thing they ask when I call for a tow is whether the car is disabled due to an accident, and since hitting a deer is technically an accident, would that affect my low rates with the new policy?

2

You can’t get towing or rental covered by your new insurance because they didn’t insure you at the time of the accident, and you didn’t have that coverage then.

3

You can’t add towing today for the deer strike that happened before. You can only use the coverage you had at the time of the accident.

4

You won’t be covered by the new policy. Trying to file a claim under it would be considered insurance fraud. You didn’t have the coverage when the accident happened, so by signing up after the fact, you’re not covered. If you try to file a claim now, it will likely trigger an investigation since the policy is so new, and they will probably deny your claim and cancel your coverage.

Your new carrier can also find out your old policy didn’t have the coverage needed for this kind of loss.

5

@Lex
But I wasn’t going to file a claim, or would requesting a tow count as filing a claim? Do I have to file a claim regardless? I just want to get the car towed so I can figure out if I need a new car. Do I need to report the deer hit to the new provider?

6

@Tallis
Towing is typically covered when something like an accident happens, but if you call and say you need a tow for the deer strike a few days ago, it probably won’t work. Your best bet is to just hire a tow company and leave your new insurance out of it.

7

@Lex
So, do I have to report the deer hit to the new insurance? I read that you’re supposed to call the police and file a report when you hit a deer. I didn’t know that, and I just drove home since the deer got up and ran off and the damage didn’t look too bad. Should I call the police and file a report now?

8

@Tallis
No need to report it to them. You weren’t covered by them at the time, so they won’t care.

9

@Tallis
You’re making this more complicated than it is. You don’t need to report anything to anyone.

Just call a private tow company. Tell them where you want the car towed and pay cash.

10

Ezri said:
@Tallis
You’re making this more complicated than it is. You don’t need to report anything to anyone.

Just call a private tow company. Tell them where you want the car towed and pay cash.

You’re right. I just never had to deal with this stuff before and had some questions. Thanks for clearing that up.

11

@Tallis
The tow will be out of pocket, and you don’t need to tell your new provider about the deer hit.