The other driver's insurer
How do I file a claim against the other driver's insurance?
The short answer: you open the claim directly with the other driver's insurer, using their insurer's name and policy number from the scene exchange or the police report — you do not need the other driver's permission. You will get a third-party claim number and an adjuster, they will investigate fault and inspect your car, and payment follows their liability decision. No deductible applies. Expect a more arm's-length process than with your own insurer: you are claiming on their policy, but you are not their customer.
What a third-party claim is
A third-party claim is a claim you make on someone else's insurance policy — here, the liability coverage of the driver who hit you. That coverage exists to pay for the loss its driver caused to other people and their property. Your claim for repairs, diminished value, rental costs, and related losses sits inside it.
One consequence is worth knowing at the start: you are not this insurer's customer. Their duty runs to their own policyholder, and their adjuster's job includes testing your claim, not just paying it. That does not make the process hostile, but it changes the service you can expect — explanations may be shorter, timelines slower, and every position worth getting in writing. How the two claim types differ in full is covered in What is a first-party vs third-party auto insurance claim?
The walk-through, in order
- Get their insurer's name and policy number. This comes from the information exchanged at the scene, or from the police report if one was made, which usually records each driver's carrier and policy number. Without the carrier's name you have nowhere to file, so chase this first.
- Open the claim with that insurer. Insurers take new third-party claims through a claims phone line or an online intake form. You will identify yourself as the other party in an accident involving their policyholder, and give the date, location, and the vehicles involved.
- Expect their standard questions. Typically: your account of how the crash happened, your vehicle's damage, whether anyone was injured, whether a police report exists, and where the car is now so it can be inspected. Answer with facts. You do not need conclusions about fault on this call, and the recorded-statement caution below applies from the first conversation.
- Get the third-party claim number and the adjuster's name. Before the call ends, write down the claim number, the assigned adjuster's name and direct contact details, and how they want documents sent. Every later call, letter, and email should carry that claim number.
- Their liability investigation and your vehicle inspection. The insurer investigates fault — interviewing their own driver, reviewing the report and any photos, and forming a position — and arranges to inspect your car's damage, at a shop, at your home, or through submitted photos, depending on their practice. Cooperate with the inspection; their estimate cannot be answered until it exists.
- Their fault decision. The investigation ends in a liability position: they accept fault in full, propose a split, or deny it. Ask for that decision, and the evidence behind it, in writing. How fault is assessed, and what to do with a split you dispute, is covered in How do I prove fault when filing a car accident claim?
The recorded-statement caution
You generally do not owe their insurer a recorded statement. The other driver's insurer may ask for one early, before you have the report or your own notes in front of you. Unlike your own insurer — whose policy conditions typically require your cooperation — you have no contract with theirs. It is usually safer to give the basic facts needed to open the claim, then provide your full account in writing, at your pace, in your own words, once you have your documents together.
Written accounts have a second advantage: they are exact. A written statement cannot be mis-summarized in call notes, and your copy and their copy are the same document. Keep everything you send, with dates.
How the money works
No deductible applies to a third-party claim. A deductible is a feature of claiming under your own policy. Payment from the other driver's liability coverage is not reduced by one, and if a deductible appears in a third-party payment, ask for its basis in writing.
Payment follows their liability decision. The insurer pays once it accepts that its driver is liable — in full, or in proportion under a shared-fault split — and once the amount is agreed or established by the repair evidence. That sequence is why third-party repairs sometimes start slower than repairs under your own collision coverage: your own insurer can authorize work while fault is still argued, and pursue the other side afterward. If you need the car back quickly, compare both routes before choosing; the overall sequence of a claim is laid out in What is the auto insurance claim process after a car accident?
When it stalls
Third-party claims stall in predictable places: their driver will not return calls to their own insurer, the fault position never quite gets issued, or the inspection keeps being rescheduled. A stall is a situation with its own playbook — what leverage you have, when to bring in your own insurer, and when a regulator complaint moves things — and it is the direct sequel to this page: The other driver's insurance is stalling — what are my options?
Frequently asked questions
Do I need the other driver's permission to file a claim against their insurance?
No. If you have their insurer's name and policy number, you can open a claim directly with that insurer, and the other driver's permission or cooperation is not required to start it. If the driver will not share the information, it is usually recorded on the police report from the scene exchange.
What if the other driver will not share their insurance information?
Check the police report, which usually records each driver's insurer and policy number. Your own insurer may also be able to help identify the other carrier in some cases. If the driver turns out to have no insurance at all, the path changes to an uninsured motorist claim under your own policy, if you carry that coverage.
Do I pay a deductible on a third-party claim?
No. A deductible belongs to claims under your own policy. A third-party claim is paid under the other driver's liability coverage, so no deductible applies to it. If a deductible is taken out of a third-party payment, ask the insurer for the basis for that in writing.
How long does the other insurer's investigation take?
It varies with the claim. A straightforward claim with clear fault is often decided in weeks, while a disputed claim, or one where their own driver will not cooperate, can take much longer. There is no single timeline that fits every case, which is why getting the claim number, the adjuster's name, and their fault position in writing matters. The typical sequence is laid out in the auto insurance claim process guide.
Auto repair and insurance rules vary by state and by policy. Check your own policy documents and your state's insurance department, or talk to a licensed professional, before acting on a claim.
A third-party claim, at a glance
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Identify their insurer | Get the carrier name and policy number from the scene exchange or the police report. |
| Open the claim | File through that insurer's claims phone line or online intake. No permission needed. |
| Claim number and adjuster | Record both before the first call ends. Every document you send carries the claim number. |
| Liability investigation | Their insurer interviews its driver, reviews the evidence, and inspects your car. |
| Fault decision | Full acceptance, a proposed split, or a denial. Get it, and the evidence behind it, in writing. |
| Payment | Follows the liability decision. No deductible applies to a third-party claim. |