Insurance agents...I need some advice

[DopeyRN]

My 18 year old son was in a single car accident May 03...his fault. He fell asleep and hit a telephone pole. The car was totalled. No alcohol. Ticketed for reckless operation of a motor vehicle (which may be dismissed next month).

Ok with his 4.0 GPA we were getting the good student discount...this was his only accident. Though he is a better, smarter driver now than he was before, he is, of course, labelled 'high risk.'

We have just been dropped from our insurance. Rough estimates so far on new insurance show an increase of about $3600 a year on him.

Another issue is they are showing 2 losses on our record...guess what the 1st was?? My DH called about a broken windshield last year which we never filed for and WE paid for...they say an inquiry has the same impact as a claim.

My question is...will it be 5 years before the rate goes back down and he is no longer considered high risk? And how can they just drop all of us??? I know nobody says life is fair, but... Thanks.

 

[mrsstats]

I am a customer service rep for agency in NY. In NY, they go back 36 or 39 months depending on the company. I know how you feel about being dropped. I had 3 glass claims in 3 years and 1 accident, not my fault and I was dropped. But like everything else, its a business and they dont really care.

Have you thought about putting your son on his own insurance? Minimum limits. Maybe that could keep the cost down.

 

[DMickey28]

have you tried the bigger companies like geico, progressive and allstate? then tend to be a little more forgiving.

I work in claims for a major insurance company. I have dealt with many claims in which they have five plus accidents. I am not sure which companies you are looking at....

I have always understood it, in my company, that unless an adjuster actually goes out to look at the car and the claims process is started then it won't impact your premium. Many of the claims I deal with are called in and started but they end up going through the insurance company that is at fault. I have been told by our underwriting dept. that this doesn't usually impact the premium

 

[DopeyRN]

This WAS a quote from Allstate. We were dropped by Prudential.

 

[DMickey28]

try progressive and look at him getting a policy of his own, maybe liab only if that is legal in your state.... depending on the car you and he drives. that makes a large difference.

 

[DopeyRN]

Well the good news...or bad news (not sure which) is we opted to get him a new Camry as he is trying to get into Vet school and will be in college at least 6 years, and we wanted to get him something to carry him through till he is on his own. (Seemed like a good idea at the time). I know it is all a business as I actually work for a health insurance company these days. It just seems frustrating that we have gone 24 years with no claims against us and my oldest had his 1 at fault accident (do ALL boys have to have one?). He did not get ticketed (why I do not know...they could have gotten him for failure to yield) and our rates did not go up as a result (we were with Allstate then).

Please do not get me wrong...it was a very serious accident and I am very thankful he and his GF are ok. But good grief...this is more than double what he is paying now.

 

[ducklite]

Two thoughts...

Getting your son his own policy might be an option, but in some states as long as he's living with you, they can require you to claim him as a driver and charge you for him, even if he has his own policy.

Get rid of the Camry. They are expensive to insure. Get him something with a lower rate. Your insurance agent will be able to guide you on that. They take into account everything from the cost of the repairs to how often the car is stolen when rating. Some options for you to look at might be VW and Saturn.

My DS isn't driving yet, but I'm shuddering at the possibility that he might be within the next six months. Good luck!

PS--Where is your DS going to vet school?

Anne