What should I do immediately after hitting a deer or moose?

Get well off the road, hazards on, and stay in or near your vehicle away from traffic. Do NOT approach the animal - an injured moose or deer is dangerous. Call 911 if the animal is on the roadway, anyone is hurt, or the vehicle is disabled in a live lane. Then call for the tow.

Does insurance cover hitting a deer or moose?

Wildlife strikes are typically covered under the comprehensive portion of your policy rather than collision - which often means a different deductible. Photograph the scene and vehicle damage, and report to your insurer promptly. Confirm your specific coverage with your insurer or broker.

When are wildlife collisions most likely in New Brunswick?

Dusk and dawn, spring through fall, with deer activity peaking in the autumn rut. Corridors through wooded areas - like the Route 8 stretch between Fredericton and Miramichi - are documented higher-risk zones. If you see one animal cross, slow down: they rarely travel alone.

Is a moose strike different from a deer strike?

Significantly. A moose's mass and leg height mean impacts often involve the windshield and roof, not just the front end - injuries and vehicle damage are typically far more severe, and the vehicle is far more likely to be disabled or written off. Always get checked by a health professional after a moose strike, even if you feel fine.

Accident Recovery · Wildlife Strikes

Hit a deer or moose in New Brunswick? Here's exactly what to do.

Wildlife collisions aren't rare events here - they're a documented reality on NB highways, and the Route 8 corridor through our coverage area is prime territory. We recover these vehicles regularly. This is the guide we wish every driver had read before it happened.

First Five Minutes

The scene safety rules are different.

Get well off the road, hazards on. Wildlife strikes cluster at dusk and dawn - exactly when other drivers see you worst.
Do NOT approach the animal. This is the big one. An injured deer can thrash violently; an injured moose is genuinely dangerous. Stay back, full stop.
Call 911 if the animal is on the roadway (it's a hazard to the next driver), anyone is hurt, or your vehicle is disabled in a live lane. The RCMP handle roadway wildlife - it's their call, not yours.
Photograph the scene - vehicle damage, the location, skid marks, the animal if visible from a safe distance. Your comprehensive claim will thank you.
Call us at (506) 292-5604. Wildlife-strike vehicles often have radiator, steering or airbag damage that makes them undrivable even when they look okay - don't test it on a dark highway.

Deer vs. Moose

Why a moose strike is its own category.

A deer strike usually damages the front of the vehicle - grille, hood, radiator, a headlight. Serious, but usually survivable for both vehicle and driver.

A moose is different. Long legs put the animal's mass at windshield height, so impacts frequently involve the glass, A-pillars and roof rather than the bumper. Vehicle write-off rates are far higher, and so are injury risks - which is why our advice after any moose strike is unconditional: get checked by a health professional, even if you walked away feeling fine. Adrenaline masks a lot, and head/neck strain from that kind of impact is exactly the delayed-onset injury we cover in our post-accident guide.

When & Where

The risk map, from our dispatch log.

Time: dusk and dawn, spring through fall. Deer activity spikes hard in the autumn rut (October-November).
Places: wooded highway corridors. The Route 8 stretch through Doaktown and Boiestown is documented higher-risk territory, along with wooded sections of Route 3 and rural Route 101/102 stretches.
The one-animal rule: if one deer crosses, slow right down - they rarely travel alone. The second deer is the one that gets hit.

The Insurance Side

Comprehensive, not collision.

Here's the detail most drivers don't know until it happens: hitting an animal is typically claimed under the comprehensive portion of your policy, not collision. That usually means a different (often lower) deductible, and a wildlife claim generally isn't treated as an at-fault accident. Photograph everything, report promptly, and confirm the specifics with your insurer - our who-pays guide covers the towing and storage side of the claim.

General information from a towing operator, not insurance advice - your insurer or broker is the authority on your coverage.

Just hit something on the highway?

Stay in the vehicle, stay away from the animal, and call. We know exactly what to do - we've done it many times.

Call (506) 292-5604