Filing an Allstate Claim in Yonkers: What Happens Next

General information, not legal advice. Insurance policies and state laws differ. Check your own policy, and for a legal question ask a licensed attorney or your state insurance department.

Allstate runs most claims online. If you have an Allstate policy, you file in My Account; if you don't, for instance because an Allstate driver hit you, you call Allstate's claims line, 1-800-255-7828. Allstate then tells you whether you can send photos for a virtual estimate or should have the car inspected at a shop. You decide where it gets repaired, at a Good Hands Repair Network shop or one you choose yourself, and Allstate pays either you or the shop.

This is an independent guide written from Allstate's public claim pages. Fast Life Collisions has no affiliation with Allstate.

How do you report a claim to Allstate?

Allstate's claims page says your policy requires you to notify Allstate right away if you have an incident. That applies even if you plan to claim through the other driver's insurer, which Allstate says is your option.

• Customers log in to My Account to file. Once filed, Allstate says you can track the claim, share photos and documents, and reach the claim team in MyClaim. The Allstate mobile app shows claim status too.
• Anyone else calls Allstate's claims line, 1-800-255-7828, to file. Customers and non-customers alike can then follow the claim in My Account.

Allstate's checklist includes contact, vehicle and insurance details for everyone involved, photos of the damage and the scene, the police report or its number, and dash cam video if you have it. Start with what you have; Allstate says you can add the rest later.

If Allstate finds you were not at fault, it says it will try to recover your deductible from the other driver's insurer. Getting your deductible back explains how that works.

How does Allstate look at the damage?

Allstate describes two options: an inspection at any shop in its Good Hands Repair Network, or, if you are offered it, a virtual inspection from photos. In New York, an insurer handling your claim may not recommend or suggest a repair shop unless you ask (Insurance Law § 2610(b)), and the choice of repair shop is yours.

After you file, Allstate tells you whether you can submit photos for an estimate. You send them on a phone, through a link Allstate texts or emails you, through MyClaim, or in the Allstate mobile app. You are guided through the damage, the outside of the car from different angles, the VIN and the odometer, plus extra shots of your own choosing. Bring the keys, because Allstate wants photos inside the car too. If you have no mobile device, Allstate says it will set up a different way to inspect the car.

Allstate then writes an estimate based on what it can see in the photos, and may ask for more. Hidden damage may appear only once a shop removes parts; Allstate says that when your body shop finds additional damage, it will work with the shop directly to cover it, subject to your coverage. The process for that extra amount, called a supplement, is in insurance vs. shop estimates.

Do you have to use the Good Hands Repair Network?

No. Allstate's network page says you are always free to choose your own repair shop.

What the Good Hands® Repair Network offers, according to Allstate:

• A nationwide workmanship guarantee, on Allstate claims, for in-network repairs for as long as you own the vehicle.
• Direct billing: you pay the deductible to the shop and Allstate pays the rest.
• Priority for Allstate customers, with the shop committing to a completion date and telling you if it changes.
• Text or email progress updates, if you opt in.
• An on-site rental, with applicable coverage.

MyClaim is where you pick a network shop or schedule repairs. The guarantee Allstate describes applies only to in-network repairs; at any other shop, ask for that shop's written warranty (see repair warranties).

Read your right to choose a body shop for the details, or our insurance claims page for how claims run with other insurers.

Is a rental car covered on an Allstate claim?

Allstate says to check your policy for rental reimbursement coverage, which it sometimes calls transportation expense coverage. According to Allstate, most of its rental coverages have a limit of 30 days, but that can vary with how you bought the policy. At a Good Hands Repair Network shop, Allstate describes picking up an on-site rental when you drop the car off, again only with applicable coverage. See rental car coverage after an accident.

How does Allstate pay?

Allstate's claims page puts it in one line: Allstate will either pay your claim directly to the repair shop or send you the money for the estimate.

When the money comes to you, you choose how in My Account or the Allstate app. Allstate lists a transfer to your debit card, Zelle, direct deposit, or a mailed check, which is what you get if you don't pick a method. You can change the method in MyClaim or through your adjuster.

If a shop outside the network asks you to sign a form directing your Allstate payment to it, read it first; what you sign at the body shop explains those forms.

What if Allstate says the car is totaled?

Allstate says it treats a car as a total loss when repairs would cost more than the car's current value, and pays you its actual cash value minus your deductible. It values the car by its age, condition, mileage and options, and the selling prices of similar cars in your area. Allstate may move the car to a storage facility at no cost to you while it assesses it, and its salvage partner, Copart, contacts you about the title. A rental can end before the payment arrives, so read your policy's rental terms.

To question the value, see total loss.

What deadlines apply to Allstate?

Allstate says each claim is different and that a representative will give you a rough timeline. New York sets the outside limits for every insurer it licenses, Allstate included.

What if you disagree with Allstate's estimate?

Allstate's claims FAQ says to contact your claim representative with your concerns. Put them in writing, with the shop's estimate and photos attached.

If the gap is still there, check your policy for an appraisal clause. Many auto policies have one, letting you and Allstate each name an appraiser, with an umpire to settle any difference. The appraisal clause covers how it works, and claim denied or lowballed covers other options.

You can also take a complaint about Allstate's handling to the state regulator.

Allstate claim dos and don'ts

The repair itself follows the same steps at any shop. The collision repair page explains them.