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Will a DUI conviction affect my car insurance rates

By: Marcos M. Garza

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When you’ve been convicted of DUI, drunk driving or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, it will most likely increase your automobile insurance rates through the ceiling.

In accordance to the Insurance Information Institute (III), there is an alcohol-related traffic fatality in the United States every 45 minutes. In addition to the risk of harming yourself and others, a drunk driving conviction bears with it a serious penalty from your automobile insurance company.

Car insurance companies may look at your motor vehicle report only once every few years or when you are applying for a new insurance policy. It's likely that accidents, tickets and DUIs might never make their way to your public motor vehicle report. Nevertheless, if your insurance company finds out your DUI and classifies you as a "high-risk driver," shopping about at renewal time is the ideal tactic, as rates will fluctuate significantly among auto insurance companies. On the other hand, a rate hike may be the the very least of your troubles; your coverage could be terminated or nonrenewed, particularly if you are presently in a preferred rate class. Then you'll be made to start looking for new automobile insurance policy with the dual whammy of a DUI and a cancellation on your record.

Laws and regulations relating to DUIs and automobile insurance coverage differ by state. The majority of states require DUI offenders to get a form called an SR-22 from their auto insurers, therefore you can't hide. This form demonstrates to the DMV that you carry liability insurance coverage and eliminates your license suspension. An SR-22 also requires your insurance company to alert your state’s department of motor vehicles (DMV) if it cancels your auto insurance policy for any reason. You will likely have to file evidence of insurance coverage for three to five years with your state's DMV.

Delaware, Kentucky, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania don't require SR-22s, but if you have an SR-22 and then move to one of these states, you must continue to meet the requirements of the SR-22 state where the offense was committed.

New York and North Carolina don't require SR-22 filings at all.

In some states there is a fee for SR-22s.

Some automobile insurance companies don't even offer SR-22 policies, so your policy could be nonrenewed or terminated because your company can no longer offer what you need.

Insurance companies can overlook DUI convictions

It is possible that your insurance company will never find out about your DUI conviction if your state does not require you to seek an SR-22. According to the Insurance Research Council, as many as one in five convictions for traffic violations never end up on motor vehicle records due to lack of shared information between courts and motor vehicle departments, or because a conviction has been erased through alternative means, such as driving school. If you get your DUI charge reduced in a plea bargain, or have a limited license suspension, such as 30 days, it's also very unlikely your insurer will find out about your conviction.

If your insurance company misses the conviction at the time it happens, it may still have a few years to increase your rates if the DUI is discovered later.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Knoxville DUI Defese Attorney Marcos M. Garza The Garza Law Firm, PLLC Tennessee DUI Lawyer

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