Thursday, August 14, 2008

Car Insurance Rates - How Do Traffic Tickets, Accidents and DWIs Affect Your Car Insurance Rates

Do you know the true cost of a traffic ticket, an accident or a DWI when it comes to your car insurance rates? Do you know how long these things can have an affect on what you pay for your insurance each year? These are offenses that insurance companies take into consideration when they are deciding how much to charge you for your insurance. They are all reasons that your insurance rates will go up and you need to know how much you can expect to pay if you get a ticket, have an accident, or get caught drinking and driving.

First, let us discuss traffic tickets. When you get a ticket for speeding, if it is your first, you can usually use the deferment program and pay the ticket. This means that as long as you do not get another ticket within a year the insurance companies will never find out that you got a ticket because it will be removed from your record. If you can use this program, then you should do so. If you have already used the deferment program, then you will have to report the ticket to your insurance and this will cause your rates to go up from 50% to 150% of your current premium.

It will make a difference if you were going 20 miles or more over the speed limit because that is considered wreckless driving and you will have to pay even more on your insurance premium.

Second, let us discuss accidents. Even an accident that is not your fault will raise your rates some. This is due to the fact that somehow you were in the situation where you ended up in an accident. This will not raise your rates too much, but if you have a few of them in a year or so period of time, then it will have a heavy effect on your rates. Now if you have an accident that is your fault, then you better be prepared for your rates to skyrocket. They will at least double and might even triple in some cases. Accidents are one of the worst things when it comes to your insurance rates.

Last, let us discuss DWIs. These are the worst for your insurance. Beside the couple thousand in court costs, lawyer fees, probation fees, and alcohol class fees that you will pay, you can expect your insurance to jump about 200% to 500% for the next year, then it will go down a little if you do not have any infractions. After about 3 years it might make it back down to where it was before, but it may take up to 5 years. This will most likely bring the total cost of your DWI up to around $5,000 to $7,000 when you could have taken a cab for under $50 or rented a hotel room for under $100. Instead you will pay for it on your car insurance rates.

Do you want your teen to be safe on the road? How about the insurance premiums, do you want to know how to get the best deal when it comes to Car Insurance Rates incur? Get more answers here:

Car Insurance Rates

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Benjamin_Robert_Ehinger

Low Cost Car Insurance - How to Get Low Cost Car Insurance For Anybody

When you purchase an insurance policy you are paying for protection that the insurance company is hoping you will never have to use. This is how they make their money. It is most likely that the average consumer will never have an expensive claim and over their lifetime they will pay more for insurance than they will get in claims from the insurance company. You need to use the following tips to get low cost car insurance and make sure you shop smart.

You need to know that the lowest rates are not always found at the largest of insurance companies. This is why you need to shop around until you find the right rate for you. You have to remember that the smaller companies have to keep their rates low in order to stay competitive and in business. However, they may not be able to offer you road side assistance or rental car reimbursement. They also will not be charging you for them like the larger companies will. Larger companies like to make it seem that they are giving you all these types of goodies for free, but they are being paid for by you in your premium. You can, however, have these removed from any policy if you wish to do so.

You should also get a copy of your credit report. It is a little known fact that credit does have an effect on your insurance premium. If you have bad credit you are more of a risk to insure than someone that has good credit. The people with good credit are the ones that will have a better chance to get low cost car insurance, but if you have bad credit you can work on raising your credit score and watch your insurance rates fall.

There are times during the year that insurance companies are in heavy competition and are going to lower their rates to try to lure clients from other insurance companies to them. This is not something that they really advertise very much and it is pretty quiet, but if you can catch an insurance company doing this, then you can cash in on lower car insurance rates. When there are larger events going on to sell cars, then you should be shopping for car insurance. December and January are peak months to be getting your low cost car insurance.

Do you want your teen to be safe on the road? How about the insurance premiums, do you want to know how to get the best deal when it comes to Low Cost Car Insurance incur? Get more answers here:

Low Cost Car Insurance

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Benjamin_Robert_Ehinger

Car Insurance Avoiding an Accident

The UK now has roughly 33 million registered vehicles on its roads, and this figure is ever increasing. Correlating with this is the number of road related deaths, which two years ago was roughly 258,000. With congested roads filled with frantic motorists its imperative that you are clued up on basic road tips both for your sake and that of others.

First and foremost, never, ever drive while under the influence of alcohol or any other intoxicating substance. Even though this is against the law in every established country, with heavy penalty's being imposed on those found guilty - it is still a wide-spread problem. Not only does alcohol give you a false sense of ability, but it slows vital reaction times down considerably.

Tailgating, or following the car in front too closely, is another major contributor to road accidents in the UK. When tailgating you are essentially cutting off the view of any activity ahead of the car in front of you and reducing the amount of time you have to react to any sudden changes the car ahead makes. The space in between you and the car ahead should be considered as a sort of "buffer", as a rule of thumb leave a two second gap, four seconds when wet and 10 when icy.

Following on from the above point, many motorists fail to adjust their driving speed based on the condition of the road. When the road is wet or icy, braking times are increased considerably - your speed should therefore be adjusted accordingly. Minimising the number of distractions you have while driving also helps a tremendous amount, common distractions include, hand-held phones, loud music, eating food etc.

Having a good idea of what is going on around your vehicle at all times is imperative, relying solely on your mirrors is not enough - its important that you check your "blind spots" before slowing down or changing lanes etc.

Needless to say the roads are only as safe as the motorists using them, and you can exercise all the caution in the world but if someone else slips up then you too could end up paying the price.

For this reason it's vital that you have adequate motor insurance. If you feel you are currently paying too much for your insurance then the internet is an excellent place to compare car insurance and get a cheap car insurance quote.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Liam_Gerken

Post-Graduation Auto Insurance

Graduating from college is an excellent achievement; in a lot of cases graduation is the best moment of a persons young life. Having just completed at least four years of studying, classes, exams, partying, and everything else that makes up a hectic college schedule, this should be the point in your life where everything starts to come together. But what direction should you take your auto insurance in? Have you given it any thought? If not, now is a great time to start because auto insurance can help you and with the right knowledge, you can maximize the potential of your policy for the least amount of money.

The best feature about auto insurance is that it provides protection, which is also the primary reason for existing. Another great feature is the peace of mind that the policyholder feels when out on the road, knowing that even if something goes wrong, at least the financial burden will not rest solely on their shoulders. Car insurance is not an option, it is a requirement. In all 50 states you must have at least bodily injury liability and property damage liability. Bodily injury liability does not protect you in the event of an accident, but rather the body of the other party or parties involved. The same goes for property damage liability. It will cover the property damage cost, such as to a car or mailbox, in the event of an accident that is your fault. The third type of liability insurance, uninsured/underinsured motorist protection, works differently than the first two types. This coverage actually protects you as a pedestrian or your car against other drivers that do not have any insurance coverage at all or little insurance that does not adequately cover any necessary repairs or medical expenses. Uninsured/underinsured is especially helpful if you don't have your own health insurance policy yet.

Getting an insurance policy that only meets the bare minimum requirement is not always the best option. If you make payments on a car, or if you got an extra special graduation gift (a new car), it's not an option at all. Auto finance companies generally require that you have comprehensive auto insurance, also known as full coverage. If you have a new car, it is still recommended to get collision coverage or comprehensive coverage because the liability simply will not provide enough funding to repair or replace a new car that still has a lot of value. Comprehensive coverage will protect your vehicle against damage from bad weather, theft, and vandalism. Collision coverage protects against just what it says, collisions. You will be covered for damage done to your vehicle during accidents that are your fault. The reason you are only covered if it is your fault is because the other party would have to foot your bill should it be their fault, as long as they have insurance. Collision and comprehensive coverages are expensive, but on your policy you can tweak the coverage levels and deductible levels in order to lower your rates while not sacrificing too much coverage.

There is at least one thing all college students learn, probably without even going to a class, and that is how to save money any way you can. With auto insurance, there are plenty of ways to save money, like taking lower coverage amounts and raising deductibles as previously mentioned. Perhaps the best way to save money on auto insurance is by shopping around for the right company. Your current situation may be a perfect fit for a specific company and allow you to receive significant savings. Now you have your college degree, the perfect auto insurance strategy, and the rest of your successful life ahead of you!

Tod F. is owner of http://www.theinsurancefiles.com/ The Insurance Files is a great resource for information on all types of auto insurance, health insurance, life insurance, homeowners insurance and more. You will find a wealth of information to answer all of your insurance questions. Get a free auto insurance quote today from The Insurance Files!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tod_F.
 

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