What You Can Expect During the Auto Claim Process

You always have the choice to retain an attorney during the claim process. That said, Travelers is eager to work with you. If you choose to hire an attorney, the Travelers Claim professional will not be able to work with you directly.

Here is some information about Travelers Claim professionals and the benefits of working with Travelers directly:

• Streamlined communication and many efficient processes.
• Expertise in handling claims, ensuring knowledgeable and efficient service.
• Transparent information provided consistently.
• Ability to text, email or call your Claim professional for any questions you may have.
• Periodic check-ins from your Claim professional to understand how you are doing and follow along with your recovery progress.
• Electronic payment options.

Several things are taken into consideration when evaluating the value of an injury claim. These may include:

• Medical expenses: Costs for medical treatment, including hospital stays, surgeries, medications, physical therapy and any future medical care related to the injury.
• Lost income: Compensation for income lost due to the inability to work as a result of the injury, as well as potential future lost earnings if the injury impacts someone’s ability to work long-term.
• Other expenses: Out of pocket expenses (other than for medical bills) that you wouldn’t normally have paid if you weren’t injured. Examples include hiring someone to clean your house because you are physically unable to, the cost of tickets to a concert missed due to the accident or transportation costs for related doctor's appointments. 
• General damages: Compensation for physical pain and suffering, emotional distress and lifestyle impact.

There are also several items that are not factored into the value of a claim, such as:  

• Attorneys’ fees and expenses, e.g. medical or other types of experts.
• Unrelated injuries or medical treatment.

Each claim is unique and is based on a determination of fault as well as the value of the damages claimed.

Fault indicates who is responsible for causing the accident and may impact how the value of an injury claim is calculated. More than one party can be responsible for the accident, including the person injured. Other words you may hear used to describe this concept are “liability” or “negligence”.

A legal principle called “comparative negligence” assigns a percentage of fault to each person, which then determines how much compensation the injured person can recover. For example, if one person is 80% at fault and the injured person is 20% at fault, the person who is 80% at fault is responsible to compensate the injured person for 80% of the claim.

Different states have different rules:

• In some states, you can still receive compensation even if you were mostly at fault.
• In other states, you can only receive compensation if the other person was at least 50% at fault.

Your Claim professional will go over with you how “comparative negligence” may apply to your claim.

Every claim is unique, with different details about the accident and your injury. Your Travelers Claim professional will be able to provide information specific to your claim and the expected timing.

Several factors can affect how long the claim process takes, including:

• The duration of your medical treatment.
• The response time from medical providers and other responsible parties.
• Involvement of attorneys.

Working closely with your Claim professional can help speed up the process.