Will My Insurance Go Up If I Am in a Car Accident?

A recent study found that the average annual cost of full coverage car insurance in Florida for a driver between the ages of 20 and 70 with a clean record and average credit was $3,201, much higher than the national average of $2,329.

A car accident could put you at risk of paying even more. Here’s what you should know about whether your insurance will go up after a car accident.

Will Your Rate Go Up if You File a Claim for a Car Accident?

It is hard to say if your car insurance rates will go up after you file a car accident claim. Some insurance companies promise they will not raise them, and others do. The reality is somewhere in the middle.

Factors that may play a role in whether your car insurance rates go up include:

• The cause of the accident
• If you were at fault
• The costs the insurance company has to pay
• The type of insurance you have
• Your past insurance claims history

In some situations, you may not see your annual rate go up if you file a claim outright. Rather, you may lose some of the discounts they offered to you. That “safe driver” discount is no longer applicable because you were in an accident. Ultimately, you still end up paying out of pocket and our Miami car accident lawyers can help.

Rate Increases After an At-Fault Accident

If you are in a car accident that you cause, the insurance company pays for your losses. That may include:

• Damage to your vehicle
• Damage to the other party’s property
• Lost wages and medical expenses for the other party
• Pain and suffering for the other party

That means the insurance company is spending more to protect you. Chances are good that an at-fault accident like this will lead to an increase in your premium. That is the way insurance companies respond to claims. They raise their rates to compensate for the losses incurred.

Rate Increases After a No-Fault Accident

You did not cause the accident, but you filed a claim for your losses. It may not seem fair, but the insurance company may still raise your rates. They may justify this in various ways. It often comes down to risk.

A person involved in an accident is more likely to be involved in another accident at some point in the future. The amount of that increase is dependent on various factors. Sometimes, it may not be much at all. Other times, you could be shocked at the significant increase you are facing due to someone else’s mistake.

Why You Should Get Medical Care and File a Claim After an Accident

You feel fine. Why spend the money to get nothing out of it? The reality is you were in an accident and may not know the health consequences. Your insurance is likely to go up anyway. Consider the consequences of not getting care:

• You may have a serious health complication that puts your life in danger and has not presented symptoms just yet.
• You may need basic care now, but left untreated, a serious medical condition could develop, leading to worse outcomes.
• You risk not being able to show that the injuries you develop in a few days are related directly to the accident. That could mean you are not able to seek compensation for losses someone else caused.

By getting medical care now, you are able to document your injuries and what caused them. You get care right away, often minimizing the risk of complications that could develop in the coming days or weeks. Most importantly, you are safe.

Let a Car Accident Lawyer from Our Firm Guide You

In situations where you are in a car accident that someone else caused, you have the right to seek medical care right away. We encourage you to do so. In Florida, you must notify your car insurance company after an accident has occurred. It is up to you to understand the type of coverage you have and any requirements set by the insurance company. Our attorneys can help you.

• We help you file a full claim for all of the losses you incurred. You should not have to pay out of pocket for these losses. That is why you have insurance coverage.
• Our attorneys will help you assess who is responsible for any additional losses that may exceed the PIP policy limits you have.
• Our lawyers will help you determine which legal strategies are best suited to your situation. This will include determining which insurance company could be responsible for your losses.
• In some situations, it may be worth taking your case to trial to prove extensive losses if the insurance company denies your claim or there is a question about who is responsible.
• In situations where you have minimal losses, our lawyers will provide you with insight into how and when you can recover those losses, including when it makes sense to file a claim (based on your deductible and other factors).

Florida’s car insurance claims process can be confusing. Yet, this policy is there to protect your financial well-being. Seek out the claim owed to you. Get all of the medical care you need. Do not overlook the long-term consequences of what occurs when untreated injuries mount over time. That $200 increase in your annual costs may not be worth the long-term suffering and other losses you have.

Set Up a Free Consultation With a Miami Personal Injury Lawyer to Find Out What You Should Do Next

You may be unsure what legal steps to take. Most people do not want to pay more for insurance than they have to. While that may be the case, our legal team can offer you the support you need to know what all of your losses are and what legal steps we can take to minimize your costs.

📞 Call us at 1-877-305-3055 or fill out our online contact form to schedule your free consultation today. Our Miami personal injury legal team at Abogadas305 has your back, no matter what you face.