Buying Car Insurance After DUI - How Long Does A Drunk Driving Conviction Affect Your Auto Insurance Rates?

Most states have laws requiring car owners to buy a minimum sum of property damage liability insurance and bodily injury insurance before they are allowed to drive their cars. If you want to reduce your auto insurance premiums, there are actually some ways to control how the rates you pay are being calculated by the insurers.

For example, you can choose to take on more insurance risk with increased deductibles in return for cheaper rates, buying only the minimum liability insurance coverage for cheap and old cars, premium discounts for driving safely and avoiding speeding tickets or accidents etc.

However, everything seems to be for naught when you are caught driving under influence (DUI).

A typical DUI can cost up to $10,000 spread over the bail, traffic fines, SR-22 filing fees and increased insurance fees, and that is provided you did not hit anybody or cause any property damage.

Sometimes, we lack self discipline for a moment but when you get a DUI or DWI (driving while intoxicated) record, your auto insurance rates will definitely be affected. Do not worry, you will still be able to buy car insurance coverage despite a drunk driving conviction.

If You Are A First Time DUI Offender

You can also ask your existing carrier for help with your state's DUI laws or get professional advice from DUI lawyers. The legal fees can be a small price to pay compared to the long term effects of increased auto insurance costs with a DUI offense.

How Long Does A DUI Increase Insurance Rates

Ending up with a DUI/DWI is one of the worst thing that can prevent you from buying cheaper auto insurance because you are now officially classified as a high risk driver. The exact laws differ in each state, but generally a DUI conviction will affect your insurance rates for a minimum of three years for the first offense and progressively longer terms on subsequent convictions. You will also be required to drive with SR22 proof of insurance during this period.

The moment you are convicted of DUI, your driver's license and privileges will be suspended for at least 30 days on the first offense and even as long as a year on repeated offenses. To get back your driver's license, you will need to carry the additional SR-22 proof of insurance certificate form to verify that you have the required motor vehicle liability insurance. You can get the SR-22 form from your insurer but they will now consider you as a high-risk driver and increase your insurance premiums. If you have any existing safe driver discounts or no claim bonuses on your auto insurance rates, these will be void as well.

Not All Companies Offer SR-22 Policies

If your insurer such as some of the bigger carriers such as Allstate, AAA, Geico etc do not provide SR-22 insurance policies, you will have to cancel your existing policy and buy from another company. Because SR-22 auto insurance can be considered as the highest risk policy, many carriers have decided to decline continued car insurance coverage once you are served with a DUI or DWI record.

Either way, your SR-22 car insurance rates will now be more expensive for the next 3 years or more if you have repeated DUI convictions. You can try State Farm and Progressive Car Insurance as well as some of the other smaller carriers that will cover you and file the SR-22 certificate to your state's Department of Motor Vehicles on your behalf so that your driver's license can be reinstated.

Typically, high risk after DUI car insurance coverage rates can cost up to 2 or 3 times the usual rates for normal drivers. This is because there are lesser companies willing to provide such policies and without competition to drive prices down, you will have to pay more auto insurance premiums after a DUI conviction. You should still compare rates and services from SR-22 auto insurance carriers in order to get an affordable rate though.

Can I Drive Any Car With SR22 Insurance With Permission?

Even if you do not own a car now, you still need to carry a non-owners SR-22 insurance policy. Typically, non-owner insurance coverage takes over when there is an excess over the original liability coverage bought by the vehicle owner.

For example, if you have an accident while driving your friend's car with permission, the owner’s liability insurance will pay out any compensation until the amount reaches the policy limit. The short fall is then covered by your non-owners SR-22 car insurance policy for the remaining cost of injuries or property damage until its limit is also exceeded.

Limitations Of Non-Owners SR-22 Insurance

Note that your non-owners SR-22 insurance policy will not provide cover for other vehicles within your household and you can inquire with a DUI attorney with a more thorough legal explanation. Just remember that for the non-owners SR22 coverage only applies when you are driving with permission a vehicle not owned by you or your family members.

You can get quotes for SR-22 insurance from qualified carriers on the internet. Usually, it will cost you an additional $15-$30 filing fee as required by your state's Department of Motor Vehicles for compliance. Note that after DUI car insurance rates can be 2 to 3 times more expensive compared to your existing premiums, which is why it cannot be over emphasized that drivers should never ever drink and drive, or be prepared to pay for the legal consequences.