Making a claim

 

If you need to make a claim on your policy, there are certain steps you are required to take and responsibilities that you have so we can manage your claim and make a stressful time as easy as we can for you.

How to lodge your claim 
Lodge your claim via your Carpeesh App, or 

On this website at Report a Claim or

Call us on 1300 101 311

We can help you 24 hours a day, every day.

Here are details below for each step when an Incident occurs, lodging and assessing of your claim and settling your claim.

When you lodge a claim with us 

• You must co-operate with us fully, even if we have already paid your claim.

• We will ask you to provide a copy of your driving history and your claim history 

• We will require you to take your vehicle to a Carpeesh selected repairer 
       for them to inspect the damage.

• We will assess any damage and quotes for repair. • We will review liability for the incident.

• We will accept your claim if it fits within the terms and conditions of your policy.

• If we decline your claim, we will provide a clear explanation of why your claim isn’t covered.

• We will let you know the outcome of our assessment.

• You will need to pay any excesses that apply.

Claim responsibilities

• You must co-operate with us fully, even if we have already paid your claim.

This includes:

• providing proof of you driving licence history and any previous claim history

• giving us any information, written statements, evidence and help we may need to defend, prosecute, or investigate your claim or recover from someone else we consider responsible for the incident,

• providing proof that you owned the property being claimed for, if requested. For example, receipts, invoices, photographs, valuations, warranties, or logbooks,

• immediately sending us any communications you receive about the incident. This includes telling us about any email, letter of demand, claim, pending court proceedings or offers of settlement, 
• assisting and attending interviews with our representatives. For example, solicitors, investigators, or loss assessors,

• attending court to give evidence,

• asserting rights against any person nominated by us,

• telling us about any impending prosecutions or inquest,

• telling us if there is another insurance policy that may cover the loss or damage,

When an incident occurs

What you need to do:

• Check you and your passengers are safe and that your vehicle is in a safe position

• Contact the emergency services if you are in danger.

• Exchange contact and licence details with the other drivers.

• Make a note of the registration and vehicle type of other vehicles.

• Take photos of any damage to your vehicle and the other vehicles involved in the incident.

• Contact us as soon as you can. 

• Send us any documents or images we require.

You must:

• contact the police if a criminal act has caused loss or damage to your vehicle. For example, if someone has stolen, attempted to steal or maliciously damaged your vehicle. Keep a record of where you made the report, the police officer’s name, and the incident number.

• do everything you reasonably can to limit the loss or damage and prevent more loss or damage, and

• get the following details where reasonably practical:

○ the full name, phone number and residential address for each person involved in the incident,

○ the registration details of any other vehicle that was involved in the incident, and

○ photos of any damage to your vehicle and the other vehicles involved in the incident.

What we will do

We will: 
• assist with arranging towing or emergency repairs if you need help.

What you must not do

You must not:

• admit fault to any other party involved, agree to repair anyone else’s property, or negotiate, pay or settle a claim with anyone,

• leave your vehicle unattended if it is likely to cause further loss or damage, 

• drive or tow your vehicle after it is damaged, if it shows signs of major mechanical problems or becomes unsafe or unroadworthy – if you do, then we won’t cover you for any further damage to your vehicle,

• throw out damaged property unless we tell you to, or

• do any repairs or authorise anyone to do repairs (except emergency repairs as per the included benefit ‘Emergency repairs’. See pages ## 

Lodging and assessing your claim

What you need to do

You must:

• tell us about the incident and make a claim as soon as possible,

• if a police report has been completed, tell us the incident number, where you made the report and the officer’s name,

• take your vehicle to our repairer for an assessment if required,

• tell us about and send us a copy of any notice, letter, claim writ or summons against you relating to the incident as soon as possible after you receive it, and

• provide any additional information we request in a timely manner.

What we will do

We will:

• tell you what you need to do to help us process your claim,

• provide you with the names of any Carpeesh selected repairers in your area and tell you how to get your vehicle there

• review who is at fault and make any further enquiries to determine who is at fault if required, 

• assess the damage and any repair quotes, and

• accept your claim if it meets the terms and conditions of your policy or decline your claim and provide you with a clear explanation for our decision.

What you must not do

You must not:

• give false or misleading information.

If you are making a claim, you must not give us false or misleading information. If you make a false or fraudulent claim under your policy, we can reduce the amount we pay you, refuse to pay your claim, and may also cancel your policy as allowed by law. If any other person makes a false or fraudulent claim under your policy, we may reduce the amount we pay them or refuse to pay their claim.

Settling your claim

To determine the most appropriate way to settle your claim, we consider factors such as the terms and conditions of your policy, safety, timeliness, cost, and any legal obligations.

Your claim will be settled in one or more of the following ways:

Repair your vehicle 

Pay you the cost to repair your vehicle

Pay your claim as a total loss

Pay your third-party legal liability claim

1 Repairing your vehicle

To repair your vehicle, Carpeesh will choose to have repairs completed by a Carpeesh. 

The Carpeesh selected repairers are a network of repairers across Australia that deliver quick

service and quality work and have agreed to abide by our strict standards for service and quality.

When your vehicle is repaired using a Carpeesh selected repairer, we will guarantee the

repairs under the included benefit ‘Lifetime Repair Guarantee’

2 Paying you the cost to repair your vehicle

In some circumstances, Carpeesh may decide to pay you the cost to repair your vehicle. IN this case it will be assessed by us based on a fair and reasonable market rate, less the excesses and any adjustments we make based on ITCs which you may have been entitled to had you made the acquisition. We provide the information about how we assess the cost to repair your vehicle.

3 Paying your claim as a total loss

Your vehicle may be deemed to be a total loss if it has been stolen and not recovered, or if it is uneconomical or unsafe to repair. The decision to pay your claim as a total loss is dependent on the type of cover you have, and the sum insured on your Certificate of Insurance, we will:

• pay you the market value,

• pay you the agreed value shown on your Certificate of Insurance, or

• settle your claim under the included benefit ‘New vehicle replacement’  

Any total loss payment will be less any:

• unpaid premiums for the remainder of the period of insurance,

• excesses that apply to your claim, and

• adjustments we make based on your Input Tax Credit entitlements.

If you were paying by annual premium, we don’t refund any premium you’ve already paid us.

We do not refund any on road costs you have incurred, including your vehicle’s registration.

We pay any financier of your vehicle the outstanding debt you owe under any finance agreement or loan first, and any remaining balance will be paid to you. The terms and conditions of

your policy apply to a financier the same way they apply to you. Your vehicle becomes our property and we are entitled to its salvage value. Your policy ends when we tell you that we have decided to pay your claim as a total loss.

4 Settling your third-party legal liability claim

If you cause loss or damage to property or death or bodily injury to someone else that you may be liable for we will:

• obtain information surrounding the incident to understand what happened. For example, contact witnesses to get their statements,

• review the information to assess if you are entirely or partially responsible for the incident,

• require you to pay any excesses that apply to the claim before we settle, and

• settle the claim of the other person, either directly to them or their insurer if the claim is valid.

We will, as necessary to defend a legal liability claim:

• represent you or any person that is entitled to be covered under your policy at an inquest, official enquiry and in court proceedings about any incident covered by your policy,

• appoint a lawyer to advise or represent you, or

• take over the matter and defend or settle any claim in your name or the name of any person entitled to be covered under your policy. We will determine how to defend or settle your claim.

If we exhaust the $20,000,000 limit arising out of a single incident, your policy ends. If this occurs, we will notify you in writing.

Types of excesses

Your excess is the amount you pay towards the cost of each claim you make. Your Certificate of Insurance shows the type, and amount of excesses that apply to your policy. More than one excess may apply to a single claim.

Paying your excess

If you make a claim, we will let you know:

• which excesses apply and how much they are,

• when and how to pay any excesses, and

• who to pay any excesses to – we may ask you to pay an excess to us or a third party on our behalf. For example, a repairer or supplier when you pick up your vehicle. In some cases, we may deduct any excess from the amount we pay you.

Type of excess that may apply

  • Basic excess 
  • Applies to all claims
  • Additional excess
  • Must be paid on top of the basic excess if they apply to your claim
  • Age excess
  • Age excess – unlisted driver
  • Inexperienced driver excess
  • Listed driver excess

Types of excesses that may apply

Basic excess

Your basic excess applies to all claims. If you have a Comprehensive Car Insurance policy, you may be able to reduce your premium by choosing a higher voluntary basic excess. Contact us to find out whether you can do that.

Additional excess

An additional excess may apply in some situations or based on the type or specifications of your vehicle.

Age excess

An age excess applies if an incident happens and the driver of your vehicle is under 25 years old and a listed driver shown on your Certificate of Insurance. If the driver is under 25 years old and not listed on your Certificate of Insurance then you will need to pay the age excess – unlisted driver, which is double the relevant age excess. This excess is in addition to any other excesses that apply.

Changes to your circumstances

You must tell us as soon as possible if:

• You or any person who drives or is in control of your vehicle has had any loss of licence, cancellation, disqualification, suspension of licence, amended licence conditions or Good Driver Behaviour period imposed.

• You or any person who drives or is in control of your vehicle has been convicted of any criminal offence.

• You have had any insurance policy refused, cancelled, or voided.

• Any details on your certificate of insurance are no longer accurate and complete including where:

○ You have changed your vehicle

○ You move home or change the location of where you keep your vehicle

○ You changed the way in which you use your vehicle, whether it is for private,

business or ridesharing.

○ Your vehicle is deregistered or becomes unregistered.

○ You made any changes or modifications to your vehicle.

○ Another driver is now the primary driver of the vehicle or the listed drivers have changed.

○ The vehicle year or registration number is incorrect or has changed.