Aftereffects of A Claim On Your Car Insurance PDF Print E-mail
Written by Graham McKenzie   
Thursday, 25 March 2010 11:37
After a claim you can normally expect your car insurance premiums to go up. This is because you have become more of a liability to the insurance company. They lose a lot of money every time you get into an accident, and they want to make sure that your payments are enough to cover those bills and profit from.
by GrahamMcKenzie


After a claim you can normally expect your car insurance premiums to go up. This is because you have become more of a liability to the insurance company. They lose a lot of money every time you get into an accident, and they want to make sure that your payments are enough to cover those bills and profit from.

How much your car insurance will be affected is hard to say. One of the main factors is by how many claims you have had total. If you have had an accident before your premiums will go up even more. If you have had several different accidents you are a high risk driver and will be expected to pay dearly for it.

Your insurance is also affected by how often the car accidents occurred. If you get into two car accidents within a year of each other you can expect your rates to go up much higher. No matter where you look, your insurance premiums will be affected by your driving record this way, although you may be able to find a better deal by searching around.

The insurance companies save the highest premiums for young drivers. According to a research done by the insurance companies, it has been proved that the young male drivers are more prone to accidents. These drivers have new driving records and hence are considered a burden by the insurance companies. If such drivers face accidents then their premiums will shoot up and remains so till they create a good driving record of many years.

At times, your premiums may not be very much affected. This happens only when the fault was not on your side or when you have had a really good driving record of many years. However there are some insurance companies which may still escalate your rate despite of this.

In order to know the process how the premiums are set you must have a slight knowledge about the ISO symbols. ISO is the abbreviated form of Insurance Services Offices, Inc. and they give a particular symbol or number to every car. This symbol tells how much the value of the car is. This makes the ratings by the insurance companies just and identical for all. If you own an expensive vehicle then your ISO rating must be really high. This means that it will take more money to fix the damages of your car. Such vehicles usually have a higher premium rate. After an accident, your premiums will also increase regardless of your ISO rating.

Your insurance will of course not be withdrawn after a car accident, but it possibly will become so huge that you may have to cancel it. Even if you cancel the insurance after an accident, the insurance company will still anyways cover your claim. You must provide the correct time when the accident occurred. This is important because if your accident took place even a minute after the expiry of your plan, you will have to bear all the expenses yourself.

By now, you know how significantly the claims influence your premiums. Therefore you must avoid filing unnecessary claims for petite accidents; otherwise your insurance premiums may shoot up considerably. If the damage caused in an accident is less than $750 dollars, then it is suggested that you avoid filing a claim. If you get involved in another accident in the same year, then too you may choose to avoid filing for claim.

DISCLAIMER: This article is provided as information only and is not to be taken as financial advice.