No Recent Claims vs. Pricey Car Insurance

You are a safe and responsible driver. You haven’t had any accidents in the last five years. You deserve to pay less for your car insurance in CNY. But despite your clean driving record, you may be paying more than you should.

Why is that? How can you get the best deal on your car insurance? What factors affect your rates besides your claims history? And how can you avoid paying more after having a claim?

These are some of the questions that we will answer in this article. We are Horan, a trusted and experienced insurance agency based in Baldwinsville, New York. We have been helping drivers like you save money on their car insurance since 2009.

We know how to find the best coverage and price for your needs. We also know how to protect you from unfair rate increases.

In this article, we will explain how having no claims history affects your insurance rates. We will also show you how to find the right carrier when considering your claims history.

How Having No Claims History Affects Your Insurance Rates

Say you have a clean driving record. You haven’t made any claims in the last five years. Not even for glass or towing. If this is you, you deserve lower insurance rates. But you may be paying too much.

If that’s the case, it’s time to shop around and compare prices.
But having no claims history doesn’t mean you get the best insurance rates by default. Many other factors affect your rates, such as

• your age,
• your location,
• your credit score,
• and more.

Your claims history is just one of them. Sometimes, carriers set your rates before they check your claims history. So, having no claims history may not help you much. It may only prevent your rates from getting worse.

No Claims History Does Not Guarantee Lower Rates

No claims history does not always mean lower rates. It may only keep your rates from going up. Having claims can make your rates go up. But no claims do not make your rates go down. They may stay the same at best. Understanding this point is critical.

Find a Carrier That Values Your Insurance Score More Than Your Claims History

So, if you have no claims and your rates are high, you need to find a carrier that suits you better. Find a carrier that uses your insurance score to set your rates. Your insurance score is based on many other things:

• your credit history,
• your payment history,
• your coverage history,
• and more.

Having no claims does not affect your insurance score. But they don’t improve it either. So, if you want lower rates, you need to shop around. Simple as that.

Different carriers have different ways of setting rates. They use a lot of information about you. These include your debt level and driving record, in addition to the factors we discussed above.

They may know more about you than you think. They use this information to decide how much to charge you. But sometimes, other factors matter more. Like where you live.

How Your Location and Your Carrier’s Market Share Influence Your Rates

Some carriers may have lost a lot of money in your area. This could be because of theft, accidents, or natural disasters. So they charge everyone in your area more. Even if you have no claims.

For example, say you live in Oneida County. This county has a lot of deer collisions. Your carrier pays a lot of claims for deer damage. So, they raise your comprehensive insurance rate. This is the part of your auto policy that covers deer damage. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never hit a deer. You still pay more because of where you live.

Learn more about how comp and collision coverage function by reading our comprehensive article on the subject.

Your rates also depend on your carrier’s market share. Some carriers may not have many customers in your area. So they charge you less. You may want to find these carriers if you have no claims.

Avoid Paying More After Having a Claim

But if you have a claim, your rates may go up a lot. Some carriers may care more about your loss history than others. They charge you more if you have any claims. Even if they were cheap before. So, to avoid paying more after having a claim, you need to shop around again. You need to find a carrier that doesn’t penalize you for having a claim.

You shouldn’t pay the same as someone who has many claims. That is the main message of this article.

Use Your Accident-Free History to Pay Less for Car Insurance

If you follow the advice in this article, you will save money on your car insurance. You will also be protected from unfair rate increases. You will feel confident and empowered to make smart decisions about your car insurance.
If you overlook this advice, you may pay more than you should. You may also pay more after having a claim. You may feel frustrated and helpless about your car insurance.

We don’t want that to happen to you.

You’ve been a safe and responsible driver. You haven’t filed a claim in the last five years. That means you should pay less for your car insurance in CNY. But that may not be the case. As we’ve demonstrated above, having no claims history doesn’t mean you get the best rates. Many other factors affect your rates. Your claims history is just one of them.

But what if you could change that? What if you could make your claims history matter more? What if you could use your clean driving record to negotiate lower rates?

That’s what we want to help you do. We want to help you turn your no-claims history into a bargaining chip. We want to help you find a carrier that recognizes and rewards your good driving behavior. We want to help you get the most value out of your car insurance.

How can we do that? By using our expertise and experience as an insurance agency based in Baldwinsville, New York. We have access to carriers and policies that can fit your situation. We can help you find the best coverage and price for your needs. We can also help you switch carriers without any hassle or fees.

To get started, click the Get a Quote button below. One of our knowledgeable agents will contact you to discuss your policy needs.

And since you’re in the market for auto insurance, learn how to properly compare quotes.