Free DUI Lawyer In California

Reader’s Question:

I have not been involved in a car accident yet, and have no plans of being involved in the future, but I want to be prepared and know how to properly file a claim to my insurance company here in Berkeley, California. Any tips?

Dan Paulo

Berkeley, CA

It’s a good idea to be proactive and know how to properly file a car insurance claim if, and when, you get involved in a car accident. Car accidents may come as a shock to most that they forget to do some necessary process, or gather important information about the accident and the parties involved. Some may even find their car insurance provider unhelpful if they weren’t able to take all necessary information such as license plates, names, etc., during the accident, making filing a claim a bigger hassle than it should be. Here’s a list of the actions you need to take if you get involved in a car accident:

Get all the necessary information.
If a car accident involves others, make sure you note down names, vehicle information such as license plates, contact numbers and addresses. This will assist your insurance company in contacting all the people involved to process the necessary insurances or claims to be made.

File a Police Report.
Get in touch with the police department there in Berkeley, California and file the necessary report as soon as possible. Your insurance company will be looking for this when you file your claim.

Call your car insurance agent.
Ask what are the steps you need to do and documents you need to give or fill out to file for a claim. Also consult your policy to see what kind of coverages and bring this policy with you when you meet up with your insurance agent.

Reader’s Question:

How long will my DUI here in California stay on my driving record? What’s the average auto insurance rate increase and how long will I have higher rates after my DUI?

Patrick

Jurupa, CA

The period of time a DUI conviction would remain on your driving record depends on the state laws. In the state of California, your DUI in Jurupa, California would remain on your record for seven years unless you have a “Failure to Appear.” In that case, your DUI would last on your driving record for 10 years. You can also verify the information with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

The auto insurance rate increase would most likely happen at your next renewal period when your auto insurance provider checks your motor vehicle record (MVR) and finds out about your DUI. The length of time for the higher auto insurance rates would again depend on the state laws or the insurance provider’s own rating guidelines. Normally, it could affect you for three, five or seven years or as long as the offense is on your DMV record if state insurance laws allow it. The amount of the auto insurance rate increase depends on the insurance provider’s rating system but on the average, it could go up to 30%. If your current insurance provider increases your rate to an unjustifiable amount, you can get auto insurance quote from this website.

Reader’s Question:

Is it legal for my auto insurance company to raise my rates without my approval, just because I got involved in a drunk driving arrest in Sacrament, California? Is it also true that my old auto insurance company will provide my drunk driving record to my new insurance company, in case I decide to cancel my policy with them?

Juan

Sacramento, CA

Assuming that you’re involvement means that you were the one pulled over and charged with Driving Under the Influence, then the answer is yes, a DUI case would usually mean the start of a sour and uphill battle with your current insurance company, often involving ridiculously raised monthly premiums or a mail notifying the cancellation of your policy altogether. This is because it would be very risky for the car insurance company to keep you if you have been proven guilty of a DUI charge. You might even be labelled a high-risk driver, further complicating things in the event you do need to file a claim with them in the future.

If you do decide to go with a new insurance carrier or should your current carrier there in Sacramento, California decide to drop you, the best you can do is to look for the lowest rates you can find elsewhere. You may be interested to take a look at the very competitive auto insurance package being offered in this website as well. Finally, it is highly unlikely that a company will share its customer’s records with the competition, and California does have laws protecting your consumer information, however, this doesn’t mean that your new Insurance Company won’t know about your previous DUI charges or driving history. And even if they don’t find out about it for now, most insurance companies run driving record checks at least once every three years or if you get a new policy so it will still come up later.