Can I Lie About My Driving History?
You can try, but it won't work. All carriers run your history reports before (or sometimes after) they write your policy. Most run the reports before they will bind the policy. Your reports largely determine your rates so they can be very significant in your pricing.The CLUE report provides a 7 year history of claims associated with the driver/car. It will show the date of the loss, the type of loss, the amount paid out and the driver and car associated with the claim. Your agent can send you your CLUE report and you can dispute any claims that are on your report in error.
The Motor Vehicle Report (MVR) provides your driving history, your drivers license history (including suspension or cancellations), your traffic violations/citations and DUI convictions. The time frame of the MVR varies by state.
Why Home Insurance Reports?
Home insurance claims are filed less frequently than auto claims of course. They will be different than the auto reports, but what they are looking at is the same; your claims history.
Catastrophe claims shouldn't affect your rates too much. These include tornadoes, hurricanes, hail storms. The industry decides if it is a CAT claim once the estimated claims from the "storm" reach a certain amount.
Water Claims will affect your rates due to the price of repairs. It does not take long for water to cause expensive damage.
Liability claims will affect your rates. It shows a concerning lack of safety and upkeep at your home.
Negligence claims will cost you , you may have a hard time finding a carrier who will insure you at all. And again, you can lie or not disclose, but the carrier will run reports and the claims (and their circumstances) will be found.
Frequent claims filing will cost you in premium and by minimizing the number of carriers who will insure you. If you believe a claim should be filed, wait! Call out a certified contractor and get estimates! If you file a claim and it turns out the repairs will cost less than your deductible, the carrier will NOT pay out the claim. But you will still have the claim in your history.
Why Do Carriers Use These Reports?
Home and Auto insurance carriers use these reports to decide how great the risk is to insure you. The greater the risk (bad history), the higher the rates. So a clean driving or claims history will earn you better rates. Most carriers will look back 5 years. Your claims history is very important to your rates. You can lie all you want. We have had people tell us they have not had any claims and then we find out they do. "Oh I forgot about that" seems to be the common retort. The reports will show your history, whether you have revealed it yourself or not and it will affect your rates. So be honest with your carrier for consistent rates. Carriers rate claims and violations differently, so where one carrier may choose to not insure you, another carrier may have decent rates for you. So don't lose heart and decide insurance is a luxury you cannot afford!
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