Just about to switch insurance companies when hit pole.

We were just about to switch insurance companies when I hit a pole in a parking lot and created quite a crease in our door. We got a quote for $2k to replace and paint the door panel on an otherwise nice 2004 vehicle. Our deductible is $500.

We are wondering whether filing a claim with the old company will increase the rate with the new company (i.e. will the new insurance company ask about claims with the new company and will this jeopardize the great rate we were going to get with the new company? We have no other driving incidents on our records.

Do we file now with the old company?

Thanks,

Answer:

Hello,

Hum, you have an interesting situation. The answer is “most likely not.” If the new company already gave you a quote and you are ready to go, then you can file and after the claim is covered change insurance companies.

What usually occurs is that insurance companies look at your record (claim history, drivers, etc) to give you a quote, then they honor the quote if you decide to go with them. Since you already got a quote, it is very likely that they will not look at your record again (thereby not finding out about the 2K damage).

What you do not want to do is to file a claim with the new company OR to switch companies and then file a claim with the old company. This will raise an eyebrow with the old company, which will put in notice the new company by arguing that the loss might be the new company’s responsibility and not theirs. This can lead to a coverage question to determine when your policy expire and when the accident happened. Again, if this occurred, then new company will find out about the claim and will take it into account when calculating your new premium.

I hope this helps,
Good Luck