Knowing your claims history can help you know how much to budget for car insurance. Insurance claims typically cause your premium to increase. So if you have a number of them in your history, you can expect your rate to be on the higher side.
If you’ve been paying a lot for insurance but suspect that may be in error, checking what’s in your history can give you a chance to correct any details or omissions that are causing your insurance premium to be more expensive.
Why Do Insurers Look at My Claims History?
Insurance companies check your claims history and your driving record when calculating how much you’ll pay for coverage. They look at these factors to get a sense of your driving habits and how much of a risk you may pose.
Based on this information, the car insurance provider will place you in an appropriate risk class. If you have a significant number of claims in your past, an insurer could view you as a high-risk driver, in which case you’ll pay a significantly higher car insurance premium.
There are two main ways to check your car insurance claims. One is to ask your previous or current insurer for a letter of experience, which shows detailed information about your policy. If, for some reason, you can’t get a letter of experience, the other main way to check your claim history is to order a Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) report.
We’ll explain the difference between the two in the sections below.
Letter of Experience
A letter of experience is a document that contains all information about your policy. It includes details about the claims you filed, how the company investigated them and how they were settled.
What’s Included in a Letter of Experience?
Getting a letter of experience from your provider is as easy as asking your insurance agent for one. Typically, it will contain the following information:
- The names of the insured on the policy
- The policy number
- The current status of the policy
- The policy’s start and end dates
- All claims made against the policy
- Claim details like the type of claim and the date it was filed
- Any fault determination
- Any injuries claimed
- Total payout
- Information on why the policy ended (if applicable)
A letter of experience must be printed on the company’s letterhead and signed by an authorized representative to be considered valid.
CLUE Report
A CLUE report is a document about claims information, and it’s generated by the consumer reporting agency LexisNexisⓇ. CLUE reports typically contain up to seven years of claims history for auto and home insurance policies. Requesting a copy of your CLUE report won’t hurt your credit score.
What’s Included in a CLUE Report?
A CLUE report usually contains the following:
- Your name
- Your date of birth
- Your insurance policy number
- All claims information, such as the date and type of loss and the amount paid
- Details about the covered property
How Do Insurance Carriers Use a CLUE Report?
Companies may request a CLUE report when you apply for a new insurance policy. Because it’s such a detailed record, a provider will consult it for underwriting purposes to decide whether it’ll offer you coverage and how much it’ll charge you for it.
A CLUE report can be used to predict how risky insuring you might be. If you have a large number of claims in your history, an insurer will likely assume you’ll file more claims in the future.
How Can I Get a Clue Report?
To request a CLUE report, contact LexisNexis. The report is free, and you’re entitled to one copy every 12 months.
Insurance claims can remain on your record for up to seven years, but this varies by state and insurer. Some companies, like Progressive, keep the claim on your record for five years, though it only affects your rate for three.
How Past Claims Affect Future Car Insurance Rates
Once you file an insurance claim, you can expect your premium to increase, especially if it’s an at-fault claim. The amount a claim increases your rate varies from company to company.
Below is a chart showing how 10 providers’ average annual full-coverage rates increase after an at-fault car accident.
*Based off 2022 information
Insurers weigh a driver’s risk by evaluating their claims history and driving record. If you have a lot of past claims or traffic violations, you may be categorized as a high-risk driver and pay a lot more for car insurance.
Some companies specialize in helping riskier drivers find the coverage they need. Many offer discounts for time spent accident-free, as well as telematics insurance programs that track driving habits and reward safe motorists with discounts.
Top Auto Insurance Recommendations
To find the best rates on the coverage you need, we recommend comparing car insurance quotes from a few of the top providers.
Source: Automoblog
Erie Insurance: Best for Basic Insurance Coverage
Erie Insurance is known for its affordable coverage, offering below-average rates and numerous discounts. In addition to the six standard insurance coverages, Erie offers optional add-ons like roadside assistance and a diminishing deductible. If you opt for Erie Rate LockⓇ, your rate won’t change even after a claim unless you make certain types of policy changes.
Erie is only available in the following places:
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- New York
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- Washington, D.C.
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Read more: Erie Insurance review
Travelers: Best for Most Drivers
An important selling point for Travelers is its range of coverage options. Like most providers, Travelers offers the six standard types of car insurance. It also offers add-ons that could be especially useful for policyholders with insurance claims from the last few years, such as gap insurance, accident forgiveness and new car replacement coverage.
Read more: Travelers insurance review
Car Insurance Claim History: FAQ
There are two main ways to look up your car insurance claims history. One is to get a letter of experience from your past or current insurer, which contains all the details about your policy, including the claims you’ve made. The second is to request your CLUE report, which is a consumer history report that shows auto and personal property insurance information from the last seven years.
Yes, most car insurance companies check your claims history, usually by looking at your CLUE report. They use this information, along with your driving history, to determine how risky you would be to cover. If you have a large number of past claims or traffic violations, you’ll probably pay more for insurance coverage.
This depends on the insurance company and the state, but you can expect most insurers to keep claims on your record for about three to five years.
In general, yes. When you make a claim against your policy, especially for one you’re found at fault for, your car insurance company will usually raise your premium.
Because consumers rely on us to provide objective and accurate information, we created a comprehensive rating system to formulate our rankings of the best car insurance companies. We collected data on dozens of auto insurance providers to grade the companies on a wide range of ranking factors. The end result was an overall rating for each provider, with the insurers that scored the most points topping the list.
Here are the factors our ratings take into account:
- Cost: Auto insurance rate estimates generated by Quadrant Information Services and discount opportunities were both taken into consideration.
- Coverage: Companies that offer a variety of choices for insurance coverage are more likely to meet consumer needs.
- Reputation and experience: Our research team considered market share, ratings from industry experts and years in business when giving this score.
- Availability: Auto insurance companies with greater state availability and few eligibility requirements scored highest in this category.
- Customer experience: This score is based on volume of complaints reported by the NAIC and customer satisfaction ratings reported by J.D. Power. We also considered the responsiveness, friendliness and helpfulness of each insurance company’s customer service team based on our own shopper analysis.
Our credentials:
- 800 hoursresearched
- 45 companiesreviewed
- 8,500+ consumerssurveyed
*Data accurate at time of publication.
