I was recently involved in an accident where I was not technically at fault, and was not charged with any traffic violation, but I was drinking. I was arrested for DUI at the scene and now am in the process of getting my claim squared away. I have not told my insurance company about the DUI but they will no doubt discover it as soon as they recieve the police report, which I am guessing includes the fact of my arrest. I am expecting problems from both my insurance company and the other cars once this is discovered, but I am not sure. Anyone know what to expect?
Explanation of “not technically at fault” –
A stalled car was in the second from the left-hand lane in the interstate. On a night of very poor visability and rain, the car in front of me swerved and barely missed the stalled vehicle, but I did not have enough time to. I was not cited for a traffic violation.
By car insurance | 7 Comments
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March 12, 2010 @ 4:59 am
Insurance will have to cover the crash, if you have full coverage. They will probably cover the crash and you rate will go up by quite a bit. If you have more issues like this, they may drop you. I would not switch insurance companies for a while, because another company may not give you a policy due to the DUI.
March 12, 2010 @ 5:04 am
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March 12, 2010 @ 5:56 am
What do you mean ” you were not technically at fault ”
What happened in the accident?
If you have a clause in your own policy that states they do not cover losses if you are charged w/ DUI, then no, your own company won’t pay.
However, IF you truely were not at fault, the other party’s insurance is liable for your damages.
Depending on the state this occured in and their negligence laws, they may only cover a % of your damages and not the whole claim.
March 12, 2010 @ 6:43 am
Believe it or not, technically speaking, if you rear end another vehicle it is YOUR fault. Driving too fast for conditions and rear ending a car, as well as DUI, will not only raise your insurance rates significantly, you WILL be sued if your negligence caused an injury to the other driver. In addition the court system will soon be prosecuting you for DUI. So you will be in need of the additional expense of an attorney. If its your first time for a DUI you may only get a drivers license suspension, probation, AA meetings. If you’ve had another DUI, you could get jail time and all the other benefits of DUI’s that the judge may impose on you.
March 12, 2010 @ 7:39 am
Not cited does not mean you’re not at fault. In some states, the “standard of being at fault” includes just the fact that you’re DUI.
Yes, you’re at fault for this – you hit a stationary object in the road (another car). Technically, and every other way. Sorry.
Your insurance should pay for the claim, assuming this is your policy and you are listed as a driver, unless you have an OUI exclusion on your policy. This is NOT a common exclusion in the US, so I’d be VERY surprised if you have this exclusion on your policy.
Keep in mind, your policy will only pay up to the policy limit. Hopefully, you have more than minimum limits, or you could still end up writing a check on this.
Then expect to get a surcharge on your policy for both an at fault accident, AND a dui.
March 12, 2010 @ 8:21 am
It depends on your insurance company. Some “higher risk” policies have stipulations stating they will not cover claims where the driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Most policies however will pay the claim. Just expect a hefty increase on your next renewal.
March 12, 2010 @ 8:43 am
In this case if you have FULL coverage (damage to vehicle covered too as well as physical damage to victims) there should be no problem with making the claim since the report said you were not at fault for the situation in the traffic.