# Making a Claim **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [May 7, 2019, 8:54pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/making-a-claim/139942 "2019-05-07T20:54:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ng8111\_150582](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e19b73/32.png) [@ng8111\_150582](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ng8111_150582)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2019, 2:27am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/making-a-claim/139942/21 "2019-05-08T02:27:30Z")
No issue. We had $1,500 of damage on our car. I expected it to be $2-3k but it wasn’t that much. Thanks for all the kind replies. I just heard from my uncle and the guy I hear on the radio (Clark Howard) to not make small claims. The saying they use is: USE IT and LOSE IT. I think it depends on your insurance company and how they measure risk and their algorithm. It looks like your claim experiences were good. I guess your stories shows that your rates barely budged when you made a claim. That’s good to keep in mind. > [@oldtimer-11](#): > > We got a $49 surcharge on our $400, six month bill for 3 years. So, about 12% Thanks for sharing. I appreciate all the kind replies and the courtesy of everyone. This is what my initial post was from: > **[Guide: How much does insurance go up after an accident?](https://www.carinsurance.com/how-much-does-insurance-go-up-after-accident.aspx)** > > Data show that auto insurance rates increase about 56%, on average, after one at-fault accident with more than $2,000 in damages.  > **[How Much Does Insurance Increase After an Accident? - NerdWallet](https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/insurance/how-much-insurance-goes-up-after-accident)** > > Car insurance rates can increase an average of 47% after a crash. But by switching to the cheapest insurer, you may pay less than you paid before your accident. > **[These States Have the Highest Auto Insurance Premium Increases After a Claim](https://howmuch.net/articles/auto-insurance-premium-increase-after-claim)** > > One driving mistake can bump up your auto insurance premium more than you think. ---
**Author:** ![oldtimer-11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e79b87/32.png) [@oldtimer-11](https://community.cartalk.com/u/oldtimer-11)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2019, 2:52am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/making-a-claim/139942/22 "2019-05-08T02:52:15Z")
That is funny, I live in NY State, the fifth highest rise of any state according to your chart. I am with GIECO if that helps any but I have no idea what the surcharge would be for different age or risk classes. I was with State farm for 40+ years and I found out that I had no collision on my brand new car on a sat am and called State Farm and was told that any policy changes had to be made by my agent, who was only open Mon. -Fri… That was in 2004, I don’t know if their policy is still the same. With GIECO I can make changes 24/7, online or by phone effective at midnight. I put collision on a van I was going to sell to my granddaughter that she was moving to Florida with for one week and it cost about $10. ---
**Author:** ![Triedaq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Triedaq](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Triedaq)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2019, 3:00am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/making-a-claim/139942/23 "2019-05-08T03:00:56Z")
I was hit in a parking lot by a woman who was fleeing from the manager of Hobby Lobby. She had shoplifted a dozen candles. She hit my car and clipped a pickup truck as she drove away. I got the license number and the manager of Hobby Lobby insisted that I and the owner of the pickup truck remain while the police arrived. My car was 30 years old and all I carried was liability insurance. The policeman insisted that I had to notify my insurance company even though I only had liability. I did call the insurance company and reported the incident. A few days later, the insurance company called and explained that the woman that hit me did not have liability insurance. However, I was covered for the damage with uninsured motorist coverage that we had on all our vehicles. A couple of days later I received a call in my office from a claims adjuster and she said she was in the parking lot examining my car and would issue me a check. I went out to my car and she had a check for something over $200. I figured she had totaled out the car as it really wasn’t worth much. .Mrs. Triedaq had been wanting me to get rid of the car and I decided that now was my chance. I told the claims adjuster I would sign over the title and I congratulated her on.her purchase. “Not on.yout life, bub”, she replied. “Fix the car or buy yourself some beer”. I was worried that my insurance rates would increase but they didn’t. I didn’t fix the car as the dent didn’t hurt the gas mileage. ---
**Author:** ![pyrolord314](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/6a8cbe/32.png) [@pyrolord314](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pyrolord314)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2019, 9:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/making-a-claim/139942/24 "2019-05-09T21:17:30Z")
> [@ng8111\_150582](#): > > I just heard from my uncle and the guy I hear on the radio (Clark Howard) to not make small claims. The saying they use is: USE IT and LOSE IT. Then why in the world are you paying for it?? Given how few extremely cheap repairs there are when it comes to body work…use the insurance. You’re not going to get dropped by your insurance for a small claim. And as many others have said, unless there are some kind of extreme circumstances, you won’t typically have a huge increase in your premiums [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/making-a-claim/139942.md?page=1)