Tickets that Will Raise Your Insurance

police officerRed and blue lights are only pretty on Christmas trees. You never want to see them flashing in your rearview mirror. Not only is getting a ticket an extremely unpleasant experience, it can make you insurance go up. If you end up with multiple tickets…be prepared for your insurance to skyrocket.

Every company has their own formula for figuring out your insurance premiums. But there are some traffic violations that are much worse for your insurance bill than the rest. Here are the top five:

1. Driving while impaired/under the influence. This one can cause your premium to increase by as much as 25%. Insurance companies are not known for handing out ‘passes’ on this violation.

2. Reckless driving. Expect your premium to raise anywhere from 15% to 20% if you get nailed with this charge. The violations that fall into the definition for reckless driving varies throughout the country, so it’s better to just keep your hands and eyes on the road.

3. Speeding. You may not think going over the limit is a big deal, but we bet you’ll think twice after your premium goes up about 10%.

4. Running a red light. Breezing through the light because you’re in a hurry or plain just don’t want to stop are not excuses your insurance company is going to care about as they’re raising your premium an estimated 10%.

5. Driving without a valid license. We’re sure that you would never consider doing this on purpose, but sometimes you forget to renew your license when your birthday rolls around. An incentive to not forget the next time you need to renew? If you get caught without a valid license, you’re looking at 10% premium increase…and that’s not accounting for anything else you may be fined for.

What’s the moral of this story? Drive safe and legally. It’s better for you and it’ll keep your insurance company from making any extra money off of you.