Premium Increase due to an Accident

by Guest » Tue Sep 18, 2007 04:06 pm
Guest

I had a bumper to bumper accident but no tickets were issued since we did not called the police, now my insurance wants to increase my renewal by 250 every 6 months, now if I switch companies will they know of my accident? My car did not suffer any damages.

I am in florida (Dade County) not sure that makes a difference.

Thanks,

Fbabroff

Total Comments: 11

Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2007 05:46 am Post Subject:

Hi fabroff, how does your insurance company come to know about the accident? Have you filed a claim? If that's so, then they can increase your premium rate. Hope you know that. Switching may not necessarily increase your premium. Search online, you may find an insurance company which may offer a lower rate of premium even with an accident in your record.

InsAmi

Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2007 06:23 am Post Subject: about shifting

Surely, if you would have filed a claim you've done a mistake as far your premium-appraisal is concerned. But one thing I'd love to mention over here is that --> shifting with a carrier that offers a lower rate doesn't always signify a better or even an equivalent coverage. Think twice before you take a hasty decision! Regards, Fatman

Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2007 06:38 am Post Subject: need to mention everything..

Hi...

In case you'd filed a report you must have informed your insurer about the incident through a brief statement. Now the important thing is that, since it had been a bumper-to-bumper accident you wouldn't have needed to mention anything as your fault...am I right ?

You would also need to mention all of your injuries suffered through this accident (not only the significant ones) since every bit of it would help the insurer get a true n fair view of the magnitude of the accident...any dearth of data might just lead to newer challenges later. Got it ?
Thanks, Juanita

Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2007 09:52 am Post Subject:

I had a bumper to bumper accident but no tickets were issued since we did not called the police, now my insurance wants to increase my renewal by 250 every 6 months



Are we to take from this that you reported this loss to your present carrier, who took care of the other drivers damages, and that is why they are rating you up? And you want to know since it wasn't reported to the police dept, (but was to your insurance company) will a prospective insurer know of this loss?

The answer is yes more than likley they will either now (during the underwriting process) or when you have a claim, (which could be real bad for you).

Let me caution you about something VERY serious fbabroff. Never, ever give misleading or untruthfull information on an application for insurance. If the insurance company (any company), discovers ''mis-rep'' they can, (and I've seen this happen) deny an entire claim, because you lied on an application, thereby leaving you responsible for all costs associated with the loss. So here's how that could affect you. You apply for a new policy with company b, you 'misrepresent' yourself by saying you haven't had a loss or claim. You have an accident that is your fault, causing damage to your vehicle, another vehicle and injuries to the other party. You turn in your claim to your new company b, they set up the claim in their computer system. Bam! Thru the miracle of the modern era, what do you know a prior insurance claim shows up for the VIN of your vehicle, with company A (your carrier you are leaving). But wait!!
fbabroff said he/she didn't have any claims when completeing the app. sorry fbabroff, you mis-represented yourself, we (maybe) wouldn't have taken the risk had you given us truthful information, so here's the money back you paid in premium, best of luck with that 15k in damages you caused, you are on your own buddy.
Get the picture? It's an ugly, and life altering one huh? All because you were not truthful in applying for a policy, and after all you did have the accident and it was your fault right? Definately something to think about.

You can still do a lot of comparison shopping most larger companies will not only quote their rate but a few others, (even if lower) on line, give that a try...

Good luck. One other thing, that rate increase sounds like a very large increase, are you sure a percentage of that isn't just an 'across the board' rate increase? Might want to find that out, and EXACTLY how much of that increase is for a chargeable loss...

Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2007 08:32 pm Post Subject:

Thanks to al lfor your replies.

Lori thanks specially to you, you actually read my mind, on what happened and what I was planning to do. But I guess I am going to have to be open when I am quoting with the other companies. The increase is about 15% of the total premium, but I actuallu it is more, because if I would not had have that accident the woudl off probably reduce my premium by 3 % like every year for renewaing, I am assuming it is in the 18% increase. Oh when i called regarding the increase they did confirmed that it was due to the accident.


Thanks,

Fbabroff

Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2007 10:47 am Post Subject:

Your certainly welcome Fbabroff, my pleasure, most people don't understand the debth of trouble/problems that can arise from mis-rep on an application for insurance (any kind of insurance)......Good luck to you and visit the forum often, there is always someone willing to lend an ear...

Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2007 03:46 pm Post Subject:

Did you ever find a better rate elsewhere? The other party must have filed against your company and the reason your rate changed. There are some companies that can offer a competitive rate but unless you have a very good credit score you might be better served staying put. So many companies use credit scoring nowadays, but to offset an at-fault accident you would probably need a great credit score.

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 04:54 pm Post Subject:

I think you did a mistake by filing a claim for you insurance .. If it's a minor thing you could have payed it from your pocket only ..

Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 02:28 am Post Subject:

No matter what new insurance company you choose they will find out about your accident. However, $250 for 6 months is a huge increase on your premium. Comparison shopping should help you save money in the long run. I would let them know about the accident when getting quotes. The worst thing you can do is try to hide the accident and realize your rates will skyrocket once the insurance company does find out about it. They will know about the accident and you can't do anything about it.

Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 02:37 am Post Subject:

Ouch. $250.00 for 6 months coverage, or $250.00 .extra for 6 months? I mean, it never hurts to shop around for a cheaper rate I guess, and if you find one but would rather stay with the same company, play the "oh if nothing can be done I'll have to try and find someone else" bit to see if they are just being difficult. It was probably a bad idea to file a claim if no damage was done to either car, or at least very little damage. The other companies will know however about this accident because of the fact that a claim was filed. I would give it a go though and see if you can get a little cheaper rate, without sacrificing coverage of course.

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