The High Cost of Bad Driving

| by Gary Brown | April 27, 2007
Insurance Phoenix
home owner insurance quote arizona

We all know that accidents can cause your insurance rate to go up. What happens when you hit another vehicle?
Your insurance company pays to fix the "other" vehicle, as well as your own. At your next renewal, this accident is factored in and your rate goes up.

But what if you paid to fix the other vehicle yourself? Did you know that you may have the option of paying the claim out of pocket and keeping it from increasing your rate?

Some insurance companies allow you to file a claim, which lets their claims adjuster make decisions on how much the claim will total to fix your vehicle and the other vehicle. Then, at the end of the process you can decide whether you want to pay for the claims yourself or let the insurance company handle it.

I have seen plenty of claims where one vehicle is hardly damaged and the other has less than a thousand dollars in damage.

Obviously, if the claim is apparently large you will not bother with this idea. However, there are lots of claims that fall under $1500 that present you with the unique position of having to decide whether to handle it yourself or not. Actually, the insurance company would still take care of the claim and you would reimburse them for the out of pocket.

The key is finding out how much your rate would increase with the at-fault with your current insurer. Another thing to keep in mind - what if you have another at-fault in the future? One at-fault may increase your rate. Two at-faults will see it climb considerably higher.

Not every insurance company offers this option. But it is worth considering and finding out if your company does the next time you are involved in a smaller claiim.

Insurance Phoenix
home owner insurance quote arizona

Article Source: http://www.articleset.com



About the Author

Gary Brown is owner of Choice Insurance of Arizona. He has been serving residents of Arizona in the insurance field for 14 years. » Read more articles by Gary Brown
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