You are using a version of this browser that is no longer supported. Please update to a supported version When you click "Continue" you will be taken to a site owned by , not GEICO. GEICO has no control over their privacy practices and assumes no responsibility in connection with your use of their website. Any information that you provide directly to them is subject to the privacy policy posted on their website. Learn About The Complete Insurance Claims Process How GEICO Investigates a Claim Learn the steps we commonly follow to make sure we gather all the facts about an accident. How GEICO Handles Your Claim Learn about the GEICO Auto Claims Settlement process Get the Basics on Renting a Vehicle Need to rent a vehicle while yours is out of commission? Get basic facts about renting a vehicle. Learn about the Total Loss Process What is a total loss and what happens when your vehicle is declared a total loss? Find out about Payment Recovery

How does payment recovery work and how long does it take? Understanding Mechanical Breakdown Claims Do you know about GEICO's Mechanical Breakdown Insurance (MBI)? Get details about the coverage and how the MBI claims process works here. View My ClaimReport New ClaimReporting a Claim OnlineHow will this claim affect my policy?Emergency Road ServiceMechanical Breakdown CoverageAuto Repair XpressVehicle Safety/Recall InformationGEICO's Special Investigations UnitAuto Coverage ExplainedInsurance Terms — The death of a young actor in June spotlighted an increasingly common issue for car owners: Your car faces a recall for a safety defect, but there's no fix yet. The question: Do you drive a car with a known hazard until they figure it out, or let the car sit? Related: Is Your Car Part of the Takata Airbag Recall? "Star Trek" actor Anton Yelchin was in that situation with his 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee. While his death still is under investigation, he was killed in an apparent rollaway accident by a vehicle recalled in April for a confusing electronic shifter whose fix was estimated initially to be months away.

In fact, the same week as the death, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles began sending dealers a software repair for the shifter in the 800,000-plus recalled vehicles — Grand Cherokee SUVs and Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 sedans — and recently added about 13,000 Maserati sedans. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration head Mark Rosekind has said it is a priority to keep defective vehicles off the road. How Do Vertical Blinds Open And CloseHis agency has encouraged automakers to provide loaner cars to owners when their vehicles are under serious recalls and a repair is not yet available, such as many in the ongoing Takata airbag recall, but automakers' policies have varied. Curtains And Valances StoreAt the May announcement of the Takata recall expansion, Rosekind, who said he has a car waiting for the Takata repair, explained that the agency does not currently have the authority to order an automaker to provide loaners.How To Make Light Bulb Less Bright

Safety advocates have pushed for loaners and more — and faster action by regulators and automakers — on serious defects to meet owners' needs, while keeping unsafe vehicles off the road. The Center for Auto Safety called Yelchin's death "the latest example of industry and government incompetence in the face of vehicle safety defects." It noted that FCA was promising a fix "in the fourth quarter" for vehicles recalled in April and under NHTSA investigation since August 2015. It called for FCA to tell owners to park the cars until fixed, provide a detailed repair timeline, and offer loaners in the meantime or buy back the vehicles. "If there is imminent harm, you've got to move faster," said Clarence Ditlow, CAS executive director, in an interview. He believes regulators and automakers can make that happen. Noting FCA's acceleration of the shifter repair by months, he said, "They had a fix four days after Yelchin died. They could have had it four days before. Some automakers have provided alternative transport in the case of a major recall, but that's  rare, except for cars still under warranty, and then only for the time needed to do the actual repair.

In both cases, these automakers have done this on their own and were not required by regulations to provide the cars. But NHTSA also encourages owners to request one in situations where they are afraid to use their vehicle. There are millions of vehicles in circulation with flaws potentially dangerous to drivers or passengers, and there likely will be more owners caught in such situations. The Takata airbag recall is now the largest in history, with up to 40 million vehicles affected so far but up to 70 million total potentially needing a repair or replacement. The airbag inflators can explode with too much force, shooting shrapnel at occupants, and 10 people have been killed in the U.S. While there is a fix, building enough safe airbags for all the cars affected will at best take until 2019 under NHTSA's parts and repair plan. Only about 8.9 million inflators had been replaced by mid-June. Why do regulators let an automaker recall a car without a remedy in place? In fact, they require it.

Automakers must report a discovered defect to NHTSA within five business days or face recently increased civil fines of up to $105 million. That's to start: Criminal investigations into delays in serious cases cost much more — GM paid $900 million to settle an investigation into its ignition switch recall; Toyota paid $1.2 billion in its sudden acceleration recalls. Not to mention no automaker wants to be caught dragging its feet on safety. After reporting to NHTSA, the automakers then must notify owners within 60 days. And the rules specifically say that having no fix, or not knowing the cause, are not grounds to delay notification of owners. And even where a cause and fix are known, the automaker must work with suppliers to produce the parts needed to repair what can be millions of vehicles.Following any auto accident where the car appears to be repairable, there is a process that takes place. It begins with the insurance company’s estimate of the damages to the vehicle, and it concludes with

the completion of the repairs to the vehicle owner’s satisfaction.Initially, upon receiving a request for a claim, the insurance company will assign and adjuster to perform a thorough inspection of the vehicle and generate a repair estimate. Depending on the particular insurance carrier and the extent of the damages, generating a repair estimate may take anywhere from 2 to 5 days. Once this quote has been provided to the vehicle owner, it is then the vehicle owner’s responsibility to authorize the repairs. For the most part, minor repairs can be completed in a matter ofThe repair shop will begin by ordering any body or mechanical parts that need to be replaced, and begin the repairs at the same time. Some minor damages have been completely repaired in less than one week, while others may take twice as long. If a vehicle has been involved in a minor accident, the entire repair process could be completed in 5 toHowever, one could expect this process to take up to twice as

long, since there are many variables that can affect any ideal scenario.Major accident damages present another time-frame scenarioTo begin with, there are often unforeseen damages that can only be correctly evaluated when a vehicle is disassembled. can offer an experienced assessment and provide preliminary costs for these repairs within the same 2 to 5 day time frame, however this cost will most likely differ from the actual repair bill. For this reason, the vehicle owner is asked to secure several repair estimates and provide these to the adjuster. This part of the process can take anywhere from 5 to 10 days, depending on the effectiveness of the vehicle owner in obtaining the comparativeOnce the estimates are received by the adjuster, the actual place of repair can be selected and the car may need to be transportedMajor vehicle repairs that result from an accident can take up to two months and longer to perform and complete. If an accident occurred