Yes, both parties can file a claim after a car accident, and in many situations both should. Who files where depends on who caused the crash, what coverage each driver carries, and whether the state runs an at-fault or no-fault system. The useful question isn’t whether you’re allowed to file — it’s which claim fits your situation and what you lose by not filing.
When Only One Driver Files
Clear fault often means only one party bothers. If someone rear-ends you at a stoplight, you file against their liability insurance for repairs and any injuries. They have nothing to claim against you because you didn’t cause anything. They might open a claim with their own insurer to fix their car, but that’s their call based on their own coverage and deductible.
Sometimes the numbers don’t justify filing at all. If your repair estimate is $400 and your collision deductible is $500, there’s no point opening a first-party claim — you’d pay the whole cost anyway. Drivers also skip filing on genuinely minor damage to avoid a premium increase. That math can work, but injuries that feel minor at the scene sometimes turn serious days later, and once you’ve told your insurer you weren’t going to file, reopening the conversation gets harder.
When Both Drivers File
Both sides filing is more common than people expect. The clearest case is disputed fault: each driver says the other caused the crash, so both file third-party claims against the other’s liability insurance. Each insurer runs its own investigation, and the two can reach different conclusions about who owes what.
Even with clear fault, both drivers often file first-party claims with their own insurers. The not-at-fault driver may use collision coverage to get repairs started immediately rather than wait weeks for the other side’s liability insurer to accept responsibility and cut a check. The at-fault driver files their own collision claim because the other driver’s liability insurance won’t pay for the at-fault driver’s car — liability covers the other party, not the policyholder. Either driver might also tap personal injury protection (PIP) or medical payments (MedPay) coverage for medical bills.
When both drivers are hurt and both cars are damaged, claims from both sides are essentially unavoidable. No single claim handles everyone’s losses.
First-Party vs. Third-Party Claims
The direction of your claim matters because it determines which coverage applies. A first-party claim goes to your own insurer, under coverage you already pay for: collision for your vehicle damage regardless of fault, comprehensive for non-collision events, and PIP or MedPay for medical costs. PIP is broader than MedPay and can also cover lost wages.
A third-party claim goes to the other driver’s insurer and targets their liability coverage. Liability has two parts: bodily injury liability, which pays for the other party’s medical costs and lost income, and property damage liability, which covers the other party’s vehicle and property. Both pay only up to the limits the at-fault driver purchased. If your damages exceed those limits, you’re left covering the gap yourself or pursuing the driver personally, which is where underinsured motorist coverage comes in.
How No-Fault States Change the Answer
About a dozen states use a no-fault system, and it rearranges who files what. In those states, your first move after any accident is a first-party claim with your own insurer for medical expenses and lost wages through PIP, regardless of who caused the crash. You don’t go to the other driver’s insurance for those costs. Property damage still follows fault rules, so you’d still file a third-party claim against the at-fault driver for vehicle repairs.
The trade-off is restricted lawsuit rights. In no-fault states, you generally can’t sue the other driver unless your injuries cross a serious injury threshold — typically permanent disfigurement, loss of a body function, or medical costs over a state-defined dollar amount. Below the threshold, PIP is your only recovery path for medical bills and lost income.
In at-fault states, there’s no such restriction. You can file a third-party claim or lawsuit against the at-fault driver for any injury or property damage, no threshold required. At-fault states see more third-party claims between drivers; no-fault states push most medical claims through each driver’s own policy.
Shared Fault and Why Filing Still Matters
When both drivers share blame, the filing decision gets more important, not less. Nearly every state uses some version of comparative negligence, which reduces your payout by your fault percentage rather than zeroing it out. At 30% fault on $50,000 in damages, you’d recover $35,000.
The details depend on your state:
- Pure comparative negligence lets you recover something even if you were 99% at fault. Your award shrinks by your fault percentage. About a dozen states follow this approach.
- Modified comparative negligence lets you recover only if your fault stays below a cutoff of 50% or 51%, depending on the state. Cross that line and you get nothing. Over 30 states use this system.
- Pure contributory negligence bars any recovery if you’re even 1% at fault. Only Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. still use it.
Shared-fault situations are exactly when both drivers should file third-party claims. If both of you were partially responsible, both may be entitled to partial compensation from the other’s liability insurance. Not filing because you think you were partly to blame can mean leaving real money behind, especially in pure comparative negligence states where even a mostly-at-fault driver can still recover.
If the Other Driver Has No Insurance
If the driver who hit you has no insurance or not enough, a third-party claim is either impossible or won’t cover your losses. This is where uninsured motorist (UM) and underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage on your own policy matters. UM pays for your injuries, and sometimes property damage, when the at-fault driver carries no insurance at all, including hit-and-run cases. UIM kicks in when the at-fault driver’s liability limits are too low to cover your full damages.
Both are first-party claims — you file with your own insurer. Many states require insurers to offer UM coverage and some mandate it; if you declined it when you bought the policy, you won’t have this safety net. The uninsured driver on the other side has far fewer options. They can’t file first-party claims for their own vehicle damage, they face personal liability for your losses, and they may face state penalties for driving uninsured, including license suspension and fines.
Deadlines That Decide Whether You Can File
Two clocks start running after any accident, and missing either can wipe out your ability to recover.
The first is your insurance policy’s reporting deadline. Most policies require you to report within a few days, and some use language like “as soon as practicable.” Reporting late gives your insurer grounds to deny the claim entirely, even if you were clearly not at fault. When in doubt, notify your insurer within 24 hours. You can decide later whether to pursue a full claim.
The second is the statute of limitations for a lawsuit. If settlement talks fail and you need to sue the at-fault driver, most states give you two to three years for personal injury claims and sometimes longer for property damage. Miss it and the court will dismiss the case regardless of its merits. The exact timeframe depends on your state and can differ for injury versus property damage, so check early rather than assume you have time.
States also require drivers to file official accident reports with the DMV or police when injuries occur or property damage crosses a dollar threshold, typically $1,000 to $3,000. Failing to file a required report can bring fines or license suspension and may complicate your insurance claim later.
Will Filing Raise Your Rates
Worry about premium increases is a real reason drivers hesitate to file. After an at-fault accident, premiums rise by roughly $1,300 per year on average, though the actual number varies by insurer, state, and driving history. Even not-at-fault accidents can trigger smaller increases with some insurers, because any crash can shift how they price your risk.
Some insurers offer accident forgiveness that prevents an increase after your first at-fault accident. Terms vary — included free for some loyal customers, sold as an add-on by others, and not available in every state. Forgiveness usually covers one incident, so a second at-fault crash will still raise rates.
Skipping a legitimate claim to protect your premium is often the wrong call. If you have injuries, medical costs will almost certainly outrun any premium increase, and delayed filing creates problems if symptoms worsen later and you need to reopen the claim.