If your car was totaled in a serious accident, you probably have a lot on your plate. It can quickly become overwhelming if you have to balance phone calls with your insurance company and medical bills while you search for a replacement vehicle. You’re already at maximum capacity when you receive a bill from the towing company that removed and stored your totaled car. So, who pays for towing and storage after an accident?

Unbeknownst to you, it has been sitting in storage this whole time and racking up costs. Do you have to pay these hefty storage and towing fees when your car didn’t cause the accident? In this blog, we discuss who pays for storage and towing fees after an Indianapolis car accident.

Fault States and No-Fault States

Responsibility for towing fees will change depending on where the accident happened. If it happened in a no-fault state, everyone is responsible for their own property damage and medical bills regardless of who caused the accident. 

In fault states such as Indiana, however, the driver who is most at fault (51% or more) for causing the accident will be held responsible for the other’s damages. It’s important to remember that the amount of fault you have in an accident may affect the amount of damages you can recover. 

As Indiana is a fault state, the driver most responsible for causing the accident will pay for towing and storage fees. If the accident happened in a state such as Kentucky, for example, everyone would pay for their own towing and storage costs.

Whether you live in a fault state or a no-fault state, you should check your insurance policy to make sure it covers towing and storage fees. It’s common for some plans to only carry this protection if you have roadside assistance. Worrying about who pays for towing and storage fees after a car accident may be the last thing on your mind while you are recovering from serious injuries, but by simply requesting your vehicle be towed to a trusted mechanic instead of a salvage yard, you are ensuring you won’t be stuck with a huge bill down the road. 

Insurance Company Tactics

If you are able, it is critical that you take as many pictures as you can of the accident and your vehicle before it is towed. If you think the other driver was at fault for the accident, you’re going to need to show proof to the insurance company and there is no better proof than photographs.

Insurance companies are well-known for doing almost anything to avoid paying out for a fair personal injury settlement. They will go through your medical history, cell phone data, and anything else they can in order to lowball an offer You’re posting to Facebook about having friends over for the big game on Saturday? An insurance company will use this as an excuse to argue that if you’re well enough to have company over, you must not need physical therapy. Was your pre-existing back injury made significantly worse by the accident? Well, you were already injured, so an insurance company will argue that they shouldn’t have to pay for an old injury. 

Contact An Indiana Car Accident Lawyer Today

You need an aggressive personal injury lawyer to fight for your rights. The insurance adjuster does not represent your best interests. Let the Indianapolis personal injury lawyers at Poynter & Bucheri Law Office protect you and your family from insurance companies seeking to undervalue and deny your valid insurance claim.

Call our law firm at 1-800-265-9881 or (317) 780-8000 to request your free consultation with an Indianapolis car accident attorney. Your free case review includes an explanation of your legal rights, a discussion of your options, and our legal opinion of your claim based on our years of experience handling car accident claims in Indianapolis.