How Much Does Car Insurance Go Up After an Accident?
It’s normal for your financial situation to be in flux after a car accident. However, even if the insurance company will cover all of your medical bills and vehicle damage, that doesn’t mean you’re financially in the clear. If your insurance company increases your premium, you may end up paying for that accident for years to come.
The threat of insurance premium increases can be so severe that some drivers would rather pay out-of-pocket for medical expenses and repairs than get their insurance involved if the crash is minor. But just how much can a crash impact your insurance rate?
How Much Does Car Insurance Go Up After an Accident in St. Louis?
A few factors contribute to a car insurance increase after an accident in St. Louis. Some of these insurance increase factors are:
- Which driver is at fault
- The extent of the covered losses
- Your previous accident record
- Which insurance company covers you
- Whether you have accident forgiveness coverage
Post-accident insurance costs may increase substantially after just a single crash. If your record has prior crashes, that increase may be even higher. What happens depends entirely on your specific circumstances.
Does Fault for the Accident Affect Your Insurance Premium?
Regardless of whether your accident happened in a fault-based or no-fault state, there is typically a fault determination, which can affect your insurance premium. Missouri is a fault-based state, so fault can play an even more prominent role in post-accident insurance rate hikes here than in some other states.
For example, if you’re in an accident that’s the other driver’s fault, their insurance covers your losses. However, if the accident is your fault, your insurance covers the expenses, plus those of anyone else involved in the crash. The insurance company will pass on some of their financial losses to you through rate increases.
Even if you aren’t at fault for the accident, your insurance company may still increase your rates if you’ve been in accidents before.
How Long Do Accident Surcharges Affect My Car Insurance?
The surcharges added to your insurance premiums can last several years or more, depending on your insurance provider and other circumstances. That means you could easily be out hundreds or thousands of dollars over this period. Luckily, there are ways an experienced car accident lawyer can help you keep your insurance rates down.
How Our Car Accident Lawyers Can Help You Prove Someone Else’s Fault
The best way a car accident lawyer can help prevent your insurance rates from skyrocketing after an accident is to prove another party was to blame for the crash. Your attorney can use various types of evidence, from traffic camera footage to witness statements to accident scene photographs and more, to demonstrate that you weren’t responsible for causing the accident.
If you’ve been in a car accident in St. Louis, Missouri, contact Sumner Law Group, LLC, today for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney. Our team has over 50 years of combined legal experience and a track record of securing favorable settlements and verdicts for our clients. Call today to learn how we can assist you with your car accident case.
Brent A. Sumner is the Managing Partner at Sumner Law Group, LLC. He focuses his practice exclusively on cases that involve serious personal injuries. Over the years, he has successfully represented thousands of individuals and families, recovering millions of dollars in compensation for injured accident victims.
