If you have auto insurance and end up involved in a car accident, you might be able to file a claim with your own insurance company for the damages. If so, you could receive compensation for your damages. However, there are several different things that could affect your auto insurance claim. Here are four of the main things to know about.

1. Your coverage types & responsibility in the accident

When you are at fault for the accident, the types of coverages you have will affect your claim. For example, you should get collision coverage if you want the accident to be covered and receive compensation for your car to be repaired. If you hit a deer, you would need comprehensive coverage in order to receive compensation for your repairs.

If you were not the person at fault for the accident, your coverage would not matter, as the other person's insurance would be responsible to pay for it. The problem arises, though, if the other person does not have coverage. In this case, you could receive compensation from your own insurance company if you had uninsured motorist coverage insurance.

2. The damages

The amount of damages will also affect the claim you make. This is especially true if you will be filing a claim with your uninsured motorist coverage. Some uninsured motorist coverage policies do not provide a lot of compensation; depending on your state, there might be different coverage limits. However, they do typically provide enough to cover basic repairs after an accident occurs with an uninsured driver.

3. Your deductible

The amount of your deductible can also affect the claim you make if you are using your own collision coverage to cover the damages. If you caused the accident and have to file a claim on your own policy, you would have to pay for your deductible before the insurance claim would cover the remaining balance of the repairs. If the repairs are not a great deal of money, your insurance company might not have to pay anything for the claim. If the damages are extremely high, though, you would only pay the deductible while the insurance company covers the rest of the damages from the accident.

Having auto insurance is important for anyone who drives or owns a car. If you do not have insurance or if you would like to find a more affordable auto insurance plan, contact an auto insurance agency such as Kesner Insurance Agency Inc.