Auto Insurance Claims: what will be covered?, preferred shops, appriasal

Question
hi i just got into an accident..i was at no-fault in the accident..the person who hit me is an aquaintance of mine...i filed a police report but didnt yet inform our insurance companies..(i have gieco) we have 2 options either file the claim or settle our selves..i was wondering will my rates go up if i was a t no fault...how easy is it to file a claim with the other drivers insurance (will they make me go through my own company) will they reimburse me for towing costs and rental car? also was wondering if the damaga is 2-3k if i can just  "fix it up myself" and keep the rest of the money?

Answer
If you are correct in that the accident was NOT your fault then you should have no problem(s) with either your company or the other (at-fault) party's company.

Your rates/premium should NOT go up if you're in a not-at-fault accident.

Assuming you have COLLISION coverage with your own company (GEICO) then you will have options on how to proceed.

You can report the claim to your company and let them handle the claim.. that would probably be the quickest way to proceed but you will have to cover/pay your deductible for the time being...

By "for the time being" I mean that once GEICO pays the claim they will make a claim over against the other party's company/carrier in an effort to recover their payment AND your deductible (this process is called subrogation)... this could take anywhere from a few weeks to several months.. once they make a recovery they will refund you your deducticle amount.

I suggest that you contact the other party's company and see if they are willing to "admit liability" and take care of the claim.  If so they should cover your repairs, towing and rental...

They will want to inspect the car and prepare an appriasal which will form the basis for any payment to you.  They may want to refer you to one of THEIR repair shops (preferred shops) but you can decline and have the vehicle repaired at a shop of your choice OR for that matter not repaired at all OR as you propose repair the vehicle yourself.  They will simply use THEIR inspection/appraisal as the basis for any payment to you as they will take the position that that is what they could have had the repairs done for.. this only becomes an issue when your own shop's estimate is higher than their's.

Keep in mind that an unrepaired or partially repaired vehicle affects the value (book value) of the car going forward..

If liability is clear then the other company should want to deal directly and fairly with you.... they should not try and refer you to your own company for whatever reason(s)... that would probably violate your State's Fair Claim Practives Act..

If you have an agent get them involved in the claim process as they can assist you in several ways..

If the at-fault carrier will accept liability up-front (quickly) then you need not report the matter to your carrier (GEICO)... However if there is going to be any delay or questions then you are always better off reporting the loss to your own company (even if you end up getting paid by the other company) as your policy (contract of insurance) requires you to timely report any and all losses and by not doing so you can jeopardize your coverage.

Hope and trust that the above fully answers your question(s).

Feel free to get back to me with any other questions/issues relative to this matter.

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Thanks