Should My Car Insurance Pay for a Dent From a Parking Lot?
Reader question:
I went grocery shopping the other day and and when I came out of the store, there was a big dent in the back of my car that hadn’t been there before. Of course, no note at all. What part of my car insurance coverage takes care or this type of damage?
Juan
Thank you for asking, Juan.
In your case, you are going to want to make a car insurance claim using your collision coverage. Collision coverage is most often known to apply to any vehicle that has gotten into an at fault accident, where liability of the other driver does not extend to their vehicle. Car insurance coverage for this type of damage could also fall under comprehensive, but in a different situation.
You might wonder why it is that collision coverage is needed if you can’t be sure that another vehicle was involved. You also might wonder why it is that whoever caused the dent does not have to pay with their auto insurance liability coverage. Both are valid questions, and to the first one I’d say that there isn’t much rhyme or reason to it, it’s just the way the auto insurance business works. As to the second one, you could do that if you know who the driver is. If you see the driver run into your car and cause the dent, or if they leave contact information on your car so that you can make a claim with their auto insurance company, then you don’t have to make a car insurance claim with your own company at all.
Also, not in every situation would a dent be covered under collision coverage. If the cause of the dent was, say, a shopping basket colliding into the back of the car, and you saw this and didn’t just guess it, or someone else saw it, then so long as you didn’t know the person who did it you could make a claim under your comprehensive coverage, because that is what would apply.
Now, one more question that might be remaining is, would your auto insurance rates go up for a dent that you claimed for under collision coverage, since collision coverage is usually used when you get into an at fault accident? Ninety nine percent of the time it would not, because most car insurance companies do not go by what type of coverage you filed the claim under, but instead by who caused the accident. It is obvious in this situation that you did not. Some car insurance companies are very draconian, though, and your rates would indeed go up so long as your state allowed it. However, in many cases it would not be necessary to even file a claim because if you have a higher deductible you can usually fix a dent in a car for much less than the deductible. If you want to stay on good terms with your auto insurance company, though, you should at least advise them of the incident.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
SR22 Car Insurance – Can I Insure a Commercial Vehicle?
Reader question:
I live in Kansas, and I wanted it to know if it’s likely that my employer will still cover me with commercial car insurance while I’m doing business, even though I have an SR22 form for drunk driving?
Nick
That’s a great question, Nick.
First of all, I find it very unlikely that you would even be able to be hired by a job for which you are required to do any more than a completely negligible amount of driving for a good, long time after you were required to file your first SR22 form after a drunk driving conviction. The most common number that I could throw out is ten years, although in many cases a company that requires driving will not hire you ever again after you have been convicted for drunk driving, especially, for example, a trucking job. There is already a big problem with the lack of safety among commercial vehicles on the roads, so employers are more cautious, at least in this area.
Secondly, as to whether or not your employer will insure you if you have an SR22 form filed, I really doubt it. It is possible that this could happen, but it would be entirely the decision of your boss or whoever is in charge of this aspect of your job. If your employer allows you to drive for business reasons under their own vehicle insurance policy, then they are taking on a substantial amount of risk. This could result in a rise in vehicle insurance premiums in the company, and could thus cause problems with your employment.
I would suggest that if you do find yourself in this situation, the best option for you, and most likely the only option that you have available, is for you to go and get a non owners car insurance policy. These types of policies are widely available, cheaper than normal, and will cover any car that you drive but do not own. It would be the perfect option for driving for business reasons if you have an SR22 form, or even if you don’t and your employer simply does not provide insurance.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
Who Has The Cheapest Commercial Car Insurance Rates?
Reader question:
I use my car for my business. Do I need commercial car insurance? I need cheap insurance, since my business is just starting out.
Graham
That’s up to you.
Now, you are allowed to insure your business car under a personal policy if you also use it for personal reasons. However, if you don’t want to get into trouble for misrepresentation, then you have to be up front about all of the mileage and uses of your vehicle. If you don’t tell your car insurance company that you also use your car for business purposes, then that could be grounds for nonrenewal.
If you do report using your car for business, then your rates will most likely go up. If you use it for business more than for normal uses, it might be a better idea to just get the cheapest commercial car insurance you can. You also might want to get more coverage if your business involves carrying people or goods around.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
How To Determine My Car Insurance Rate
Reader question:
What determines how much car insurance rate are?
Rebecca
Let’s see.
You probably know what factors go into your own car insurance premium, but why is it that, with all of your factors being the same, some car insurance companies have drastically different prices? Are they just over charging? This isn’t always true, although it can be. Generally, the main thing that factors into a car insurance companies average premium price is how much it costs them every year to pay for accidents and all the claimed results thereof. Then there are the normal costs that come with operating a car insurance business, such as advertisement and paying the salaries of all of the workers.
Car insurance companies have to plan ahead in what they charge because, due to the nature of the business, some years they make plenty of money and other years they don’t make much at all. The underwriting goes and comes in cycles. So long as they have enough money from previous years, they are able to handle the bad years, even if a few come in a row. Most companies work like this because they like to have more than necessary so that they can make a profit. As well as that, most of the time the state requires that an insurance company have cash set aside to avoid going under financially. All of these factors affect free auto insurance quote rates.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
Are Car Insurance Rates Falling? Should I Wait to Switch Insurance Carriers?
Reader question:
Are auto insurance rates falling in the U.S.?
Albert
They sure are.
It’s some of the best news to come out of the insurance business, and after so many years in which the rates have steadily gone up, they are finally beginning to go down. Not by too much, but in gradual amounts that are still reassuring and do make a difference. The very first drop in rates was by .3% nine years ago, and since then it has been growing. For this year, the expectation for reductions is somewhere around 3%. Again, it is going slow but the good thing is that it is going at all.
California has had some of the best results, with a 5.7% drop in insurance rates in the last year. This wasn’t the first year for rates in California to fall, but it was definitely the most successful. Other states where car insurance rates tend to be the highest, such as New Jersey, are also seeing good things happening. New Jersey alone will see a 15% decrease thanks to new state laws.
There are a lot of reasons that one might consider to be affecting the decrease of car insurance rates. One of the main ones is that there are now more people who are older than there are who are younger. The highest car insurance rates tend to belong to those under twenty five, and there are just fewer people of that age nowadays.
Another reasons is because cars are safer now. Every year a new kind of safety feature is added to the automobile market, and with things such as traction control, run flat tires, and all wheel drive, getting into a car accident these days seems like it takes a concentrated effort. Not only that, but car insurance companies provide incentives for people to buy safer cars with their discounts.
There are now more car insurance companies on the market as well, which means that the prices are going to fall due to there being more competition out there. Car insurance companies are falling all over themselves trying to come up with new discounts and innovative practices and advertising techniques to call customers. This mostly comes with companies that are now doing the bulk of their advertising through the internet, which is much cheaper and reaches customers just as well;if not better than traditional advertising schemes.
Another big factor has to do with more policing of drunk driving. Drunk driving laws are now much harder than they were before, creating larger disincentive. And the fewer drunk drivers, the lower car insurance prices.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
Loading ...