Well, I was in my first “accident” ever. Never touched another car or received a speeding ticket in the 10 years that I have been driving. The worst part is I was just backing out of a parking spot! Anyway, my question is, how will this change my insurance rate? The original estimate was just over $1000. Are rate changes based only off of the dollar amount of the damage, or does the nature of the accident have some effect? I mean, it was a stupid mistake that occurred in a parking lot. Its not like I ran a stop sign or something…
Ask your insurance agent.
You may just want to see if the other party will let you pay cash for it if its cheaper for you in the long run.
Different insurance companies have different criteria. Some are based on the number of claims, some on the amount of a single claim, some on the total amount of all claims. Call the company.
Call the insurance company, as said. Are you in a no-fault state? In my experience I’ve been in two at-fault accidents, and have never seen a rate increase. My insurance company (AAA Michigan, no-fault state) pegs both “fault” and “negligence,” and whilst both were my fault, I was never negligent. No increase. None of these every involved other vehicles besides my own.
Go to the source. Contact your state Dept of Motor Vehicles to get a copy of your driving report. (If you call the insurance company, all they’re going to tell you is, “Well, we look at your driving record to determine rate increases…”) The copies the DVM provides to insurance companies (at least here in Michigan) do not include accidents for which a ticket was not issued. Did the police come when you had your accident? Even more importantly, did you receive a ticket? If you both went on your merry way after exchanging insurance info, your insurance premiums may not increase.
I speak from experience. I’ve rear-ended two people, each time at a stoplight. It’s been a year already, and my insurance hasn’t increased. The two accidents, though I made insurance claims for them, are not on my driving record because the cops never came to the scene of the accident. Once they’re involved, you can forget it.
Well, well, well. . . lookie what we have here. Horhay who ranted against insurance discrimination against young people in this thread has got himself involved in an accident. Ironic, isn’t it?
Come off it, sailor. That’s not nice or fair. That thread was over a year ago. Here he says it’s his only accident in ten years. That’s quite an excellent record, I say.
I am still against age discrimination. Also, for what its worth, I am 26 now and this is the first accident I have ever been in. I had never so much as touched another car while I was under 25.:eek: