Understanding Accident Forgiveness In Auto Insurance
Posted on: 26 September 2018
Auto insurance companies use numerous factors to determine the premiums you should pay for their coverage. One of these factors is your accident history, which is an indicator of your future accident risk. Therefore, it makes sense that a driver with multiple accidents in their driving history will pay higher premiums than a driver with a clean driving history. This is the reason your rates may hike if you have been involved in an accident.
The good news is that your rates may not always rise after an accident. This will be the case if you are covered by an insurance carrier with an accident forgiveness program. The program, just as the name suggests, "forgives" you after an accident so that your rates don't rise after an accident.
How To Qualify For Accident Forgiveness
Not all companies offer accident forgiveness. Even for companies that have the program, you may have to qualify for it by:
- Not getting involved in an accident for a predetermined minimum number of years
- Purchasing the program as an add-on or rider to your regular car insurance coverage
- Purchasing the program after you have been driving without an accident for a number of years
Features Of Accident Forgiveness Programs
Just like the prerequisites for accident forgiveness programs differ by insurance carriers, their unique features are not all the same too. Therefore, you need to analyze both the requirements and the features of these programs when comparing different insurance programs. Here are some of the unique features of accident forgiveness programs of some carriers:
- You must be over a certain age to qualify; teenage drivers are usually exempted
- Only one accident is forgiven per policy even if a policy has multiple drivers
- A limit is applied on the maximum cost of an accident that can be forgiven
- The accident forgiveness only applies to accidents in certain states
Further Benefits
An accident forgiveness program will benefit you in more ways than one; it is not just about shielding you from rate hikes after an accident. For example, some companies will also reward you with the vanishing deductible program if you qualify for accident forgiveness. The vanishing deductible program reduces your deductible by a certain amount for each year you drive without an accident. Many companies will also reward you with a rate discount if you maintain accident-free driving for a number of years.
As you can see, accident forgiveness is a pretty good program if you can get into one. Consult a business like United Counties Insurance Group to learn more.
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