Accident Claim Lawyers
InsuranceUpdated September 2026

Claim numbers

In plain English: a claim number is the reference an insurance company gives your claim when it's opened. Every letter, bill, email and phone call about that claim should carry it, so it lands on the right file.

Where to find it

You'll usually get it when you first report the accident, by phone, app or online form. It then appears on the insurer's acknowledgement letter or email, on correspondence from the adjuster and in any online claim portal. It is different from your policy number, which identifies your insurance contract rather than this particular accident. If you never got one, call the insurer and ask; don't assume a claim was opened just because you spoke to someone.

Why you might have several

One accident can easily produce three or four claim numbers, which confuses a lot of people.

  • Your own insurer may open one claim for your car and another for medical or no-fault benefits.
  • The other driver's insurer will give you a separate number for your claim against their customer.
  • Each injured person may get their own number, even in the same car.
  • In England and Wales, a road traffic injury claim through the Official Injury Claim portal gets its own reference.
  • If a court case starts, the court adds a case number too.

Using it well

  1. Write every number down in one place with the insurer's name, the adjuster's name, direct phone line and email, and what that claim covers.
  2. Give the right number to each provider. Your physiotherapist or hospital may bill no-fault or PIP insurers directly, and the wrong number delays payment.
  3. Put the claim number in the subject line of every email and at the top of every letter.
  4. Keep a simple log: date, who you spoke to, under which claim number, what was said.
Example

After a rear-end crash, you have a claim number from your own insurer for PIP, a second from them for vehicle damage, and a third from the at-fault driver's insurer for your injury claim. Your physio sends bills under the injury claim number by mistake, and they go unpaid for two months. A one-page contact sheet given to each provider would have avoided it.

Is it safe to share?

Your claim number isn't highly sensitive, and you'll need to give it to doctors, repair shops, rental companies and your lawyer. Be cautious with unexpected calls or texts quoting it and asking for bank details or personal information. Call the insurer back on a number you already know.

Next: what is a claim? · declarations page · car accident claim workbook.

Related terms

ExclusionAn exclusion is a clause in an insurance policy that removes certain people, vehicles, activities or losses from cover, even though they might otherwise seem to fall within it.First-Party ClaimA first-party claim is one you make under your own insurance policy, such as collision, medical payments, no-fault or uninsured motorist cover.Gap InsuranceGap insurance pays some or all of the difference between what your car insurer pays for a written-off car and what you still owe on the loan or lease, or in some versions, what you originally paid.Independent Medical ExaminationAn independent medical examination, or IME, is an assessment by a doctor chosen and paid by the insurer or the defence, not by you.

General information, not legal or medical advice. Rules differ between US states, the UK and Canadian provinces, so check the law where your accident happened. How we write and check · Legal disclaimer