Do you get compensation if you encounter a wild animal?

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If you are one of those French people who prefer to take the road at night for their big departure on holiday, to avoid traffic jams, be careful. Some remote roads or even stretches of highway have wildlife nearby that can appear on the road at any time.

An accident can happen quickly, especially when a wild animal comes out of nowhere while you are driving at 80 km/h on a country road, or on a motorway at 130 km/h. During major holiday departures, drivers should be alert throughout the journey, and especially at night for those who prefer to travel at night to avoid traffic jams. But even if you are as careful as possible, wild animals are unpredictable.

So, in the event of a collision with a non-domestic animal, is your auto insurance obligated to cover you? According to the Public Service website, there are actually several legal remedies that allow you to obtain, or not, compensation. First of all, it is important to know what we call one “wild animal”. This is stated by the French administration“a wild animal accident is an accident where your vehicle is collided with a wild animal, an animal without an identified owner or an animal whose owner is not insured”.

You have five working days to report your claim.

Once you’ve identified the animal you collided with, you’ll have to gather as much evidence as possible and go to the gendarmerie or a police station to have the damage noted. Finally, you must report the incident to your car insurance company within five days. “You must send the insurance company the evidence you have collected (testimonies from your passengers or third parties, photos, videos, police or gendarmerie reports, etc.)”specifies Public Service.

However, be careful: You can only get compensation from your car insurance if you have taken out the policy “warranty for material damage” or that “guarantee for all accidents”. On the other hand, regardless of whether you get compensation or not, under no circumstances should your insurance company fine you after this accident. “if you demonstrate that it is an event that falls under force majeure”.