Watch out for Car and Home Insurance Surprises


If your goal is to save money this coming year, then you should definitely be aware of car and home insurance gotchas. A new report by InsuranceQuotes.com unveils some surprising actions that can hike up your insurance rates.

For example, did you know that if your claim is denied this could still lead to higher car and homeowner’s insurance rates? The same goes for claims that were discussed with an insurance agent but never filed. In addition, claims made by a previous owner can also raise the costs for homeowner’s insurance.

Other key findings:

  • Car insurance premiums increase an average of 38% after a claim.
  • Home ownership premiums increase an average of 9% after a claim.
  • Each year, claims are stored in a database known as a C.L.U.E (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange) report. All insurance carriers are able to access this database.

“Most consumers are shocked to hear that denied claims, never-filed claims and claims made by a previous homeowner can raise their insurance costs,” said Laura Adams, insuranceQuotes.com’s senior analyst. “Prospective home buyers should ask the seller for a copy of the property’s C.L.U.E. report before making an offer. Unfortunately, we found that only 10% of homeowners have done this. And people need to be really careful when filing claims or even discussing potential claims with their agents.”

See the survey here.


×