Every driver worries about being in a car accident where they might end up totaling their vehicle or becoming seriously injured. Unfortunately, these are not the only potential scenarios that motorists need to worry about. In fact, many people who have been involved in a traffic incident that was not their fault have still been hit with insurance premium increases and even cancellations as a result of making a claim. Sadly, this is legal in some states, but there are some ways that you can help reduce your potential rate increases if someone else crashes into your automobile.
What does the law say about insurance increases?
You will need to research the insurance guidelines that impact your state in order to know whether or not the law is on your side. For example, if you live in California, your insurance provider does not have the legal right to increase your premium unless you were legally determined to be negligent. In many other areas, you can receive a partial increase in your rates if you were determined to be even 1 percent at fault for the accident. Additionally, some states allow insurance providers to seek restitution for the incident by increasing your premium if the at-fault driver was not properly insured.
Insurance companies are required by law to file rates with their local state insurance department. They also must provide their methods determining new or adjusted rates after a claim is made. In some states, companies are even legally required to give customers a copy of these guidelines, so be sure to include this information in your research. Once you obtain them, reading these documents can be difficult. However, it may be worth your effort to fully understand the likelihood of you incurring additional insurance fees.
How can I Protect Myself?
Once you have a better understanding of the way that your insurance provider could view your claim, it is important to carefully consider all of your options for keeping your rate from spiking after an accident. Please keep in mind, there can be huge differences from company to company. Therefore, research into the claim
1. Report the Accident to the Police Immediately – Without a police report to assign blame to a specific party, it will be very difficult for you to avoid dealing with extra insurance fees. After all, your provider sells insurance with the intention of making a profit, so they are always looking for ways to increase premiums to offset their expenses. Because of this, you could easily be found at-fault from the insurance company’s point of view unless you provide them with legal verification that you did not do anything wrong.
2. Contact an Auto Accident Attorney – For the most comprehensive help, you should contact a local attorney immediately. It is possible to file a lawsuit against the legally responsible driver to help you offset the cost of your insurance increase. Additionally, you can ask the judge to award you enough money to cover a wide variety of other expenses that might not have been completely covered by your insurance company, including medical bills, vehicle repair bills and lost wages. For more information on this, try searching the phrase auto accident lawyers in Orlando online.
3. Carefully Review Your Policy – Some insurance companies provide perks such as accident forgiveness for drivers who have a solid driving record. Signing up for one of these policies could help minimize your risk of dealing with any increases after another driver causes your vehicle to become seriously damaged.
4. Fully Document the Accident – Taking photographs of the accident scene and getting contact information from witnesses is one of the best ways to prove what actually happened. Even if this does not help you deal with your insurance provider, it could prove to be very useful during a lawsuit.
5. Consider Getting a Private Estimate – It is always a good idea to get an estimate of the damage before you file a claim to help you determine whether or not you want to get your insurance company involved. After all, if your deductible is $500, you might not want to call them for damages that are near that amount. Keep in mind that filing a claim that costs your provider even $50 after your deductible could end up costing you more than $50 when your policy is renewed. In a close call like this, it is often best to simply deal with the situation yourself so that you do not need to be worried about your provider raising your rates.
6. Keep an Eye Out for the Phrase Comparative Negligence – As previously mentioned, some states allow insurance companies to assign various percentages of blame. In other words, even if you were not at-fault, you could still end up being listed as partially at fault if you did anything that could be considered questionable. For example, if you were talking on your cell phone when another driver hit you, your provider could claim that you were partially at fault because you were distracted. If your policy allows your insurance company to do this it will include a section about comparative negligence, and you should avoid this type of policy if at all possible.
As you can see, there are several ways that your insurance company can attempt to raise your rates even if you were not at-fault. However, educating yourself about all of your applicable state laws and certain key insurance phrases can help you avoid receiving a dramatic rate increase after someone else crashes into your vehicle. Additionally, it is always a good idea to contact an auto accident attorney to discuss all of your options after an accident occurs.