Everyone should know by now drinking and driving is a huge mistake. Yet it is a mistake some people continue to make, potentially ruining lives. We all know the possible consequences of drunk driving. But this blog post is not just for people running the risk of a DUI, DUII, DWI, or whatever the acronym may be in your state.

Did you know having any alcohol in your blood stream, while driving, can create problems with your car insurance? Responsible drinkers may be unaware of the risk they take when they drive. This blog post will explain a few things you may not have considered regarding drinking, driving, and your auto insurance, and if you are involved in an incident, even if the effect of alcohol is negligible, how you should handle your car insurance and keep your rates as low as possible.

You may ask, “What is wrong with having a beer or glass of wine every two hours and driving home? I know when I feel I’m okay to drive.”

You don’t want to take a chance. Any accident where alcohol might have been a factor, will get your auto insurance canceled at your next renewal date, although the alcohol in your blood stream may be below the legal limit. Your insurance company will not want to take the risk your next alcohol related claim will be severe.

Now, some people are very good drivers, drive defensively, and may have never been in an accident. Although driving defensively helps you avoid accidents, you can still be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

What if someone rear ends you? You’re not at fault for the accident, but having any alcohol in your blood stream can get auto insurance canceled, unless prohibited by law. Many states will allow auto insurance companies to cancel your auto insurance at renewal at their discretion. You may have done nothing wrong, received no ticket, and the other drive can be 100% at fault, but your car insurance company will want to avoid the risk of anyone drinking (drugs, too, prescription or otherwise) any amount of alcohol and driving.

You may have been a loyal customer for 20 years without a claim, but alcohol related claims are so expensive to insurance companies, they are willing to lose good customers, and all your business, which makes you feel your insurance company ripped you off. However, some insurance companies are more flexible, depending on the circumstances, than others.

This should be an even greater concern for drivers who push the envelope when drinking. You may feel okay to drive (Remember, when you drink, the first thing affected is your judgment), but you may be legally drunk. If someone rear ends your car while you are stopped at a stop light, you can be found at fault for the accident, because you should not be driving. You may not be considered at fault for the accident, but at the very least, you will get a DUI, regardless of the fact you were not so drunk where you caused an accident.

What if someone does something stupid? Like teens, out beyond their curfew, crossing the street against the light. Suddenly, they are in front of your car. The one drink you had may have slowed your reaction time, and you hit the teens, gravely injuring them. Maybe the one drink wasn’t really a factor, but it will bother you the rest of your life, wondering what would have happened if you had not had that drink.

I have heard people refer to themselves as being excellent drunk drivers. Let’s accept the absurdity of this notion. Given the situation above, you’re legally drunk, hitting teens darting in front of your car, and one of the teens is profoundly injured or killed. You may think, “Yes, I was buzzed, but I was okay to drive & I was driving the speed limit. The kid jumped in front of my car. No one could have stopped in time. But thank God I have a lot of auto insurance!”

Not so fast. You may not have the insurance protection you think you have. I’ve never seen an auto insurance policy excluding coverage for alcohol or drug related claims — but they could be out there, check with your insurance company to know what is excluded — but most auto insurance policies do have an exclusion for punitive damages.

Punitive damages are awarded by the court system for acts considered greatly irresponsible or egregious. They are not uncommon in litigation against corporations.

For example, a car manufacturer decides to not fix a known safety hazard involving their cars, because the car manufacturer has determined the cost to pay off the likely number of people injured by their product is less expensive than fixing the problem with their cars.

Knowingly allowing people to get injured by their unsafe product, rather than fixing it, is irresponsible, hazardous to the general public, and an egregious act. A class-action lawsuit of people injured by the defective product may get 10 million dollars for compensation for their injuries, but the court may decide to award punitive damages for an additional 100 million dollars, to punish the car manufacturer for putting profits over public safety. The cost of this judgment is enough to make sure this company  doesn’t again  put profits over being a good corporate citizen, and becomes a cautionary tale to other businesses.

Punitive damages can be awarded in drunk driving cases, and many car insurance policies exclude coverage for punitive damages. The idea behind punitive damages is to punish the person for a grossly negligent act, and the person is not punished if their insurance pays the punitive damages. You may have $500,000 liability coverage, but if $250,000 of a $500,000 claim is for punitive damages, $250,000 is coming out of your pocket — from your assets and paycheck garnishment, until your debt is paid. Filing bankruptcy may not be able to clear this type of debt.

Some insurance agents confuse pain & suffering damages for punitive damages. Pain & suffering settlements are compensation for injuries, NOT punitive damages, and an exclusion for punitive damages in your auto insurance policy does not mean your insurance will not pay for the pain & suffering you cause other people by injuring someone in a car accident.

Normally, I advise choosing a policy without such an exclusion, but I would not count on any car insurance policy to cover punitive damages. The solution is simple: Don’t drink and drive.

Okay, so you made a mistake, and you are facing a DUI conviction, or you had an accident where alcohol was involved. How does this impact your car insurance, and what should you do to minimize the impact?

First, wait for your car insurance company to act by mailing notice to you in writing, or until you need something from them. Getting a ticket for an alcohol or drug related driving offense is not the same as being convicted of it. It won’t appear on your driving record until you are convicted. If your auto insurance policy is going to be canceled by your company, you will be notified in writing at what date in the future it will be canceled.

Unless, your license has been suspended, your auto insurance company needs to become aware of the situation, with enough time to notify you it is non-renewing (canceling) your insurance at its renewal date.

If your insurance company has proof your license is suspended, they may cancel you before the renewal date, but with advanced notice.

However, if you need to file an SR 22 — notification to the state you have an active auto insurance policy — to avoid having your drivers license suspended, your insurance company will most likely decline to file it for your current insurance policy, unless you already have nonstandard (high risk, and expensive) car insurance.

Your agent or insurance company will most likely offer you a new nonstandard auto insurance policy, if they have one, at a much higher rate than you pay now, to file the SR 22.

Needing an SR-22 often forces you to get a new, more expensive auto insurance policy. You have less options when you have an alcohol or drug related driving offense on your record, but there are plenty of insurance companies offering nonstandard auto insurance, which you can find by clicking the link in this sentence.

Your auto insurance is going to be expensive no matter what you do, but you may find some insurance companies will charge you a lot less, or have lower down payments, or more affordable payment plans, than other companies. It always pays to shop for better rates, but it is even more important when your car insurance is expensive.

If you must get a new car insurance policy due to needing an SR 22 filing, the state will give you a date to present them with the filing before they will suspend your license. Don’t wait until the last minute, but try to make the start date of the new, more expensive auto insurance policy the day before the suspension date, so you pay the lower rates of your old car insurance policy as long as you can.

I hope you never need the advice I just gave you. Please drink responsibly. Please drive responsibly. But always remember, you cannot drink AND drive responsibly. Cheers to having a safe holiday season!

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