In autumn and winter, collisions with wild animals on the roads increase. The days are getting shorter, and drivers must be more attentive behind the wheel. But how should you react when you hit an animal on the road and it damages your vehicle? How do you get compensation from your insurance? We will answer you.
According to RTL, no less than 40,000 clashes with wild animals take place in France every year, or almost 110 a day. Furthermore, a quarter of these accidents occur with wild boar; a significant number, which encourages motorists to pay extra attention to the roads. Still according to the media, the material damage would be very important in this type of situation. In fact, more than 45% of cars would be beyond repair after a collision with the wild animal. Here’s why it’s important to choose the right car insurance to cover and compensate you for personal injury and property damage.
What are the first reflexes to take in this situation?
After hitting a wild boar or any other wild animal such as a deer or deer with your car, you are sure to be stunned, shocked, even disoriented. Thus, the first reflex in these cases is naturally to check whether all passengers in the vehicle are safe. If one of the passengers is injured, call the emergency services immediately (Samu, with 15). Then contact your insurance company for a substantial report and, depending on the extent of the damage, to consider immediate repair and towing. It is important to take a picture of what you can and to collect all the evidence of this accident in order to get compensation from your insurance. If the animal has run away and only hair remains on your body, photograph it. This will allow the insurance company to have proof of this collision. But that’s not all, because in order for your request for reimbursement to be accepted, in addition to your statement to your insurance company, you must also notify the national police, the gendarmerie. Please note that according to Article L113-2 of the Insurance Code, you only have five days to do so. An important deadline, if not crucial, to respect.
Good to know : if you hit a wild boar (or any other wild animal), you will not be charged with hit and run if you do not notify the police authorities. They will take care of removing the remains of the wild animal themselves, if necessary. But by alerting the police, you will allow other drivers traveling the same road to avoid another accident!
How to choose the best insurance?
If you have hit a wild animal with your vehicle, it would be wise to contact your insurance directly if you have any doubts about the guarantees of your car insurance. You should know that every material and physical damage is compensated if you have taken out all-risk car insurance. On the other hand, if you are insured against third parties, the damage to your vehicle will not be covered. Only personal injury will be covered.
If you hit a domestic animal, the same policy does not apply, as it is up to the owner of the animal to compensate you. Dogs, cats, horses or pigs are part of this category, but not only. More surprisingly, dromedaries, domestic breeds of camels, European reindeer, yak, zebu or even buffalo are also concerned.
In summary, try to be as careful as possible, mainly on roads at the edge of the forest or in the mountains. It is important to remember a few basic rules that can help avoid a collision with a boar. These include obeying speed limits, keeping your windscreen and headlights clean, slowing down in high-risk areas and using high beams when driving at night when not passing other vehicles.
This content was produced in collaboration with lecompareteurassurance.com. No member of the BFMTV editorial team participated in the production of this content.