Does My Insurance Cover Valet Damage?

The valet at my favorite restaurant backed my car into a light pole last night. Whose insurance information do I need to get, the driver's or the restaurant's?

Picture it: you’re pulling up to some fancy restaurant or hotel and you toss your keys to the nice, clean-looking valet who opened your car door for you and stroll away, confident that your vehicle is being handled by professionals who have done this thing hundreds or thousands of times before. After your hotel stay, nice meal, or visit to the mall, you return to your vehicle to find that it has been damaged! There is a ding in the fender, there is a scratch on the door, there is a crack in the windshield. There is a tear in your leather upholstery, or your side view mirror has been completely shaved off against a pole or tight corner. What now?

Well, naturally you will want to speak with the management of the business you were visiting, but what if they absolve themselves of responsibility, saying that they only contract the valet service out to another company, what then? If you go to talk to the employees at the little podium, and they give you something of a runaround, what then?

Gather Information

Get the name and PERSONAL insurance information of the valet who parked your car. Get his/her driver’s license number if you can. Then find out the name of the liability insurance company for the valet company. Get the company’s corporate address and phone number. Finally, get the information on the hotel/restaurant/mall from the manager. Explain to them that you do not plan on doing anything with the info except turning it over to your insurance company to let them sort everything out.

Call Your Insurance Company

Go ahead and file a report with them. They will gather all the pertinent information you have and launch an investigation. That means they will attempt to contact the insurance companies of the employee, the valet company and the hotel to determine who will pay for the damage to your car. They will then arrange for the repairs based on what arrangement was reached and notify you of what you need to do with your vehicle.

Only in a worst-case scenario would your insurer try to charge your account (possibly raising your premiums) for an accident of this type - and in that worst-case scenario, (where the driver has no insurance and the valet company and hotel/restaurant/mall are staunchly refusing to take responsibility), you may have cause to pursue other…action against the other two companies.