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What is an Accident Forgiveness in Car Insurance?
<lingo>When you're involved in your first accident (or your first accident in a number of years), you will hope that you have accident forgiveness as part of your auto insurance policy. Specifically, having accident forgiveness means that your insurance company will not "punish" you for getting into an accident by raising your rates. Often times, accident forgiveness is offered to those who have relatively clean driving records for a specific amount of time. In some cases, however, policy holders can actually purchase accident forgiveness as a policy option regardless of their driving history.</lingo>
Accident Forgiveness Clearly and Briefly Explained
The purpose of accident forgiveness is to give drivers added peace of mind in knowing that if they are involved in an accident (even one that is determined to be their fault), their rates will not automatically increase, as is normally the case. Typically, accident forgiveness will apply to one accident—so if you are involved in more than one accident in a short period of time, you may still be on-the-hook for a rate increase.
<twitter>Accident Forgiveness is a common option among parents of young drivers who want to avoid a premium increase </twitter>
Some auto insurance carriers include accident forgiveness as a standard policy feature to those who have clean driving records or those who have not been involved in an accident for a certain number of years. Other insurance carriers may offer drivers the option of adding accident forgiveness to their policies for a monthly fee. This is a common option among parents of young drivers who want to avoid a premium increase if and when their teens get into a fender bender (which is statistically likely for new drivers in the first few years).
In some cases, those who get into an accident with accident forgiveness may be required to take a remedial driver safety course in order to avoid a rate increase. The specific rules and qualifications can vary greatly from one insurance carrier to the next, so it's always a good idea to check with your agent and read your specific policy details to stay informed.
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