If your vehicle was damaged in an accident in which you were not at fault, or were less at fault, you can claim your loss from the other vehicle’s compulsory motor third-party liability (traffic) insurer (zorunlu mali sorumluluk sigortası), and the part exceeding the insurance limit from the vehicle’s keeper (işleten) and driver.
What losses can be claimed?
- Repair costs: The actual cost of the damage, including parts and labour.
- Loss of value (değer kaybı): Even after repair, the vehicle sells for a lower price on the second-hand market than it would in accident-free condition.
- Loss of use (replacement vehicle) costs: Compensation for not being able to use your vehicle during a reasonable repair period.
- Loss of earnings: For commercial vehicles such as taxis, shuttle vehicles or lorries, the loss from the days the vehicle could not work.
- Other expenses: Towing, loss assessor (ekspertiz) and similar costs.
First step: a written application to the insurer
Under art. 97 of the Highway Traffic Law (KTK), a written application to the other vehicle’s traffic insurer is mandatory before going to court or arbitration. If the insurer does not reply in writing within 15 days of the application, or its reply does not meet the claim, a lawsuit can be filed or an application made to the Insurance Arbitration Commission (Sigorta Tahkim Komisyonu).
The application should be accompanied by the accident report or police/gendarmerie report, the loss assessor’s report, the repair invoice, photographs, copies of the vehicle registration and driving licence, and IBAN details. An application with missing documents may later lead to disputes about the date from which interest starts to run.
Lawsuit or arbitration?
The Insurance Arbitration Commission generally delivers results faster in claims against the insurer. However, only the insurance company can be the respondent in arbitration; for the amount exceeding the limit, a lawsuit must be filed in court against the keeper and driver.
In court, the insurer, the keeper and the driver can be sued together as defendants. The Court of Cassation 4th Civil Chamber accepts that lawsuits against a traffic insurer are not subject to the mandatory mediation requirement for commercial cases (08.05.2024, E. 2023/12689, K. 2024/4378). The requirement under KTK art. 97 to apply to the insurer, however, must be met in every case.
If the amount of the loss is not fully known when the lawsuit is filed, it can be filed as a partial claim (kısmi dava) and the claim increased once, after the expert report. The unquantified claim lawsuit (belirsiz alacak davası) was abolished on 31 July 2026; for details, see this article.
How is loss of value calculated?
Loss of value used to be calculated with a formula in the general terms and conditions of the insurance. After the Constitutional Court annulled the provisions on which that formula was based, the Court of Cassation applies the following test:
The difference between the vehicle’s undamaged second-hand market value on the date of the accident and its second-hand market value after repair.
In this calculation, the vehicle’s make, model, age, mileage, the nature of the damaged parts and whether the vehicle has a prior damage record are decisive. For a vehicle that has previously suffered heavy damage to the same parts, the loss of value may be low or there may be none at all. The Court of Cassation consistently stresses that a judgment cannot be based on expert reports relying on general assessments that do not follow this test.
A comprehensive (kasko) insurance payout does not cover loss of value. If you had your vehicle repaired under your own comprehensive (kasko) policy, you can separately claim the loss of value, which the kasko insurer did not pay, from the other party’s traffic insurer.
Degree of fault
Compensation is paid in proportion to the other party’s fault. The assessment of fault in the accident report does not bind the court; if there is a dispute, the court obtains a fault report from a traffic expert. Camera footage, witness statements and photographs of the scene become decisive at this stage.
Limitation period
Claims for material damage arising from motor vehicle accidents become time-barred two years from the date on which the damage and the person liable for compensation became known, and in any event ten years from the date of the accident (KTK art. 109). If the accident also constitutes a criminal offence (for example, in accidents involving injury) and criminal law provides for a longer limitation period, that longer period applies.
If there are injuries
If the accident caused injury or death, compensation for permanent incapacity for work, carer costs and loss of support (destekten yoksun kalma tazminatı) also come into play. For events occurring after 31 July 2026, the start of interest on these compensation claims and the deduction of payments made by the insurer are governed by new rules (Turkish Code of Obligations (TBK) art. 55). Bodily injury claims require a separate assessment.
This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. For your specific situation, please seek advice from a lawyer.