If your insurance company notifies you that your car insurance rates have changed, it doesn’t invariably mean it has gone up. Read the letter carefully to see why they have made the change. It could be that something has come off of your record and they are adjusting your car insurance rate downwards to compensate. You should not rest on your good fortune, especially if something major, like a DUI, has come off your record. The company that gave you the best car insurance rates with the DUI may not have the best rates without it, and you should get new car insurance quotes to see if you can do better.
More likely, of course, the change in your car insurance rate means it is going up. This could be for many reasons and, again, read the letter you get carefully to make sure. Maybe you exchanged your older car for a newer one, or you’ve added another driver to the policy, or you have moved to another zip code — all of these will influence your rate. And of course, you could have submitted a car insurance claim.
This will often get you an increase in your premium. This is especially true if it is a major claim, like a terrible accident in which the result is that your expensive vehicle was totaled. You can expect a sizable increase in your premium when your policy renews and you can start looking for new insurance quotes now. Even submitting a number of small claims, even two, in one policy period, will generally get you a rate increase. It’s not worth making a claim for that broken window, if it’s only for a few hundred dollars above your deductible. Concerning deductibles, setting them higher, say at one thousand rather than the customary five hundred is a good idea; not only do you pay a lower premium, but it keeps you from making small claims.
If you wish to contest a change in your car insurance rate, then call the company and see what they require. Insurance companies love concrete proof like receipts and (dated) photos. If you were in a fender bender that you didn’t report, well, maybe the other person involved did, and their insurance company then informed yours. In any case, there are a number of reasons why your car insurance company would change your car insurance rate. The best thing to do is give your car insurance company a call to find out the exact details of the change. If they are negative, then ask about the reasons for the increase in your rates. Even if the changes are positive, you still need to know the details.
