Drive Insurance

How Car Insurance is Affected by Drunk Driving

Posted on January 26, 2012 by JamesGreen

Drinking and Driving

Having a glass or two of wine with dinner doesn’t seem like it could lead to a DUI. However, the blood alcohol level that indicated being under the influence has changed dramatically. This means that depending on you body’s metabolism, two glasses of wine could cause you to have a blood alcohol level that reads as intoxicated. If this happens, there is a snowball effect that will ultimately affect not only your driving privileges but ultimately the cost and availability of car insurance.

If you receive a DUI you will find that your insurance options change dramatically. The information contained herein will hopefully be enough to make you reconsider that second glass of wine or at least wait until you get home to have it.

Rate Increase

Although the rate increase might not be seen immediately, when the insurance renewal period comes up it will go up in price drastically, if the company will even continue to offer insurance. Some car insurance companies do not cover DUIs and so you might have to find another company.

Additionally, depending on the state that you live in, you may be required to carry special insurance that is for people who have DUIs on their driving record. If this is the case, the insurance premium you pay will go up immediately, you won’t have the luxury of waiting for the renewal .

The amount that the insurance will increase varies from state to state and from company to company. If you have one DUI on your record you could see anywhere from a 30% to a 50% percent increase. If you have more than one, you can count on the increase being on the high side.

Length of Penalty

Once you have a DUI on your driving record you can count on it being on there for varying amounts of time, depending on what state you live in, it can be as short as a few years all the way up to a life time. For example, DUIs stay on your driving record for 10 years in California but forever in Alaska. This also means that your insurance rates will remain high for the entire time that the DUI is on your record. The bad news is that there is no in-between period when rates are decreasing, they stay high until the DUI is gone.

What Can Be Done

All hope is not gone. Yes, if you get a DUI you will have higher rates and your current insurance company may cancel your policy. This doesn’t mean that you can’t get car insurance, it simply means that you will have to do your research and find a company that offers insurance for high risk drivers.

There are auto insurance companies that specialize in DUI and other high risk cases. These companies can give you a better rate and possibly even set up payment options that make it easier for you to pay for your insurance. These companies know that some people simply made one bad decision and that they need to be able to drive to get to work.

The First Step

If you have a DUI there are some steps that you should take as soon as possible after receiving the ticket. The first one is to contact an attorney, You will most likely need an attorney to help you maneuver the legal system and help you understand the laws in your state. In some states you are required to surrender your driving license as soon as you are ticketed for drunk driving or at the least provide proof of DUI insurance. An attorney can help with this step by asking that you be granted a provisional license until your court date.

You should also start pricing insurance plans for DUI and high risk drivers. If you plead guilty or are found guilty you will need to have this to be able to drive. You should start out checking with major insurance companies and narrow it down to specialized companies in order to get a broader array of prices. Depending on whether it is the first offense or not, you may be able to find reasonable prices with the bigger companies or you may have to go with specialized companies.

If you have the unfortunate luck to have more than one DUI, you are going to have a more complicated process. You will need to take extra steps to show that you are serious about keeping your driving priveleges such as seeking treatment options. You may not have a problem; however, if you show the court that you are controlling your drinking you stand a better chance of leniency.

Ultimately, you should never drink and get behind the wheel of a car; however, with the blood alcohol level for intoxication being lower than ever, it is possible to get a DUI and not be obviously drunk. Should this happen, you will need to find an attorney and good insurance for DUI offenders.

Posted in Rates | Tagged car insurance, DUI, DUI Insurance | Leave a comment

Tips on Driving Insurance for Young Drivers

Posted on January 16, 2012 by JamesGreen

Milestones of Life

Driving is one of the highly anticipated milestones in a young person’s life. They can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the car and feel independent and free. Parents, on the other hand, often dread the day. They know that their young driver is going to need insurance in order to drive legally and they also know that driving insurance for young drivers is typically higher than that of older, more mature drivers. There are some tips that can help find the best prices and relieve some of the stress involved in getting the new driver ready for the road.

Academics and Driving Insurance

Many automobile insurance companies have discounts for young drivers that have a high GPA (grade point average). This is a win-win situation for parents. The discount on the insurance is the first win and the added incentive for the student to maintain higher grades in school is the second win. This is one of the benefits worth asking about when shopping for car insurance for young drivers.

Drivers Ed or Training

Many states require young people to attend a drivers education course; however, if not, it is worth considering since most insurance companies offer discounts for people who have taken a driver’s education class or have attended driving instruction school. Many people know that this discount is available but didn’t realize that it also applies to young drivers. Many schools offer the class as part of the high school curriculum. If it is not offered, the cost of the school is usually not very high and is made up by the discounts that are offered on the car insurance.

Car Selection

It’s natural for young people to want impressive sport’s cars. They want to stand out and look cool; however, the type of car a young driver has will play a large role in the cost of the insurance. Sports cars are very expensive, particularly what are considered “muscle cars”, those with big engines that are meant for speed. Convertibles are also increase insurance premiums. Young drivers needs cars with safety features that are not considered sports cars, like small coupes. If they want a sporty car, they should wait until they are older and the premiums are less.

Family Policies

Another consideration that must be factored in is the family’s insurance. In some states, the young driver who still lives at home with their parents will automatically go on the parents insurance when they obtain their driving license. This means that the family insurance will increase which in turn means that the family insurance should be well researched and price shopped with this in mind.

This is especially true if the family has a sports car or other vehicle that would be a high premium for a young driver. The insurance may not be high until the young driver obtains a license to drive and then suddenly the policy skyrockets. Families should check their state insurance laws and their policy terms and conditions so that they are not caught unaware with a huge price increase.

Don’t Skimp

It is important not to skimp on coverage for young drivers. It might seem tempting to keep the cost of the policy down to simply insure them for the required amount; however, statistics show that new, young drivers are at a higher risk for accidents than most other drivers. If they are involved in an accident it is important that they have enough insurance to keep from being sued in court. If the young driver still lives at home, it is possible that a court suit could affect the family finances. In many states the law allows lawsuits to extend to parent if the person at fault is a minor living at home.

Young drivers need to have full coverage in order to be able to make repairs to the vehicle if they are in a fender bender. However, the key is to make sure the liability coverage is fairly high and that the medical coverage is high as well. These two areas will help protect family finances if an accident does occur.

Future Insurance

One of the best pieces of advice any new driver should heed is to keep their driving record clean. A clean driving record will help them keep their insurance costs down in the future as they move into adulthood. Speeding and reckless driving are the two most common incidents found on young driver’s records; DUIs are the next most common as they approach adulthood and are out with friends. These things can be detrimental to future insurance costs and should be avoided.

Using tips for purchasing driving insurance for young drivers will help find the best insurance at the best prices and allow them to spend time on more important things like learning the open road.

Posted in Tips | Tagged auto insurance, car insurance | Leave a comment

Driving Instructor Insurance

Posted on January 6, 2012 by JamesGreen

Learn to Drive

Driving instructors provide a valuable service, they teach new drivers how to safely operate a vehicle, the rules of the road and other things that drivers need to know. The driver has to let the student drive in order to learn and so the importance of having driving instructor insurance cannot be overstated.

Car Insurance

Everyone needs car insurance, not just instructors. Car insurance adds protection for the vehicle, driver and passengers in the event of an accident. Driving instructors need extra insurance for the cars they use to train new drivers. Driving instructor insurance has to cover the driver of the car when it is not the instructor and is the student.

This insurance should be separate from insurance that is used for personal driving as the two are somewhat different even though they share many of the same characteristics. Typically, driving instructor insurance covers the car, the instructor and the student driver but does not cover any personal belongings of the instructor. For instance, if the instructor used the car to pick up some personal things before work and left them in the car where they were damaged during a wreck, the personal items would not be covered.

Many driving instructors have their own business and so they may use the same car for driving instructions which makes it necessary for them to have either two policies or a clause that covers personal use of the vehicle so that they don’t have to worry about their personal belongings and things of that nature.

Driving Schools

Often, driving instructors work for a driving school and are covered by the school’s insurance. The school will have enough insurance on the cars they use for the student drivers to insure that regardless of whether or not the driver is the student or the instructor the car is fully covered.

Importance of Driving Instructor Insurance

Driving on today’s busy roads is difficult for the most seasoned driver. There are people on cell phones, road construction, and other distractions that can cause an accident any given minute. these obstacles and distractions are even more difficult to overcome for the new driver who has not learned to react quickly and is most likely nervous.

Driving instructors need additional coverage to offset these risks. Many of the accidedents that involve student drivers are minor fender benders; however, should a student driver have a serious accident, the instructor needs to know they have enough coverage to protect their personal assets from becoming part of litigation.

Other Reasons for Driving Instructor Insurance

Accidents are reason enough to make sure there is enough auto insurance on the car used to train students; however, there are other incidents that can occur without an accident being the cause. Auto insurance also covers fire, theft, vandalism and more. This coverage is important, particularly if the car is left in the school parking lot where it could be vandalized.

Liability is the required insurance in most states; however, driving instructors should consider adding comprehensive insurance to their policy. As stated earlier, student drivers tend to have more fender benders than the average driver and a comprehensive policy will help get the car repaired when these occur. It is worth the added cost to keep the vehicle in good condition longer.

Pricing

If you have a driving school or are considering opening one, you should shop around and compare prices on instructor insurance. The prices could vary greatly from one company to another. The first place to look would be the your personal auto insurance company. They may be able to provide the additional policy and give you a discount for having multiple policies with them. You should also find out about any additional discounts you can get to help bring the cost down. Some things that could provide discounts include:

Car safety features such as side air bags
Instructor having a clean driving record
Student’s being required to pass safety classes and more before being allowed to drive

There may be other areas that can offer discounts and help bring the policy rates into manageable means.

Occasional Use Insurance

If you are a driving instructor and use your personal car for your students you may be able to get driving instruction insurance as an add on to your current policy and save some money. You should discuss this with your auto insurance carrier before purchasing a completely new policy. This may not be the best option available, but, if the car is only used occasionally for instruction, it could be the most cost effective.

Driving instructors help to make roads safer by educating new drivers on how to manipulate the highways and byways correctly. However, this also puts them and their car at a higher risk of being in an accident and so they need the added protection driving instruction insurance brings to the car and driver.

Posted in Types | Tagged auto insurance, car insurance | Leave a comment