122 N. McDowell St. Charlotte, NC 28204

888-376-2889

brand-myerslawfirm

Auto Insurance Rates Likely Going Up in N.C. During 2017

  1. Car Insurance Premiums
  2. Distraction and Higher Repair Costs Fuel Proposed Insurance Rate Hikes in North Carolina
  3. Contact Myers Law Firm If You’ve Been Hurt in an Auto Accident

Car Insurance Premiums

For years, North Carolina has boasted some of the lowest car insurance premiums in the country, but those golden days for drivers in the state may be waning. The state’s insurers have reached a settlement with regulators for a 2.2% increase in auto insurance rates statewide. The rate hike will take effect on October 1. 

The 2.2% figure represents a much smaller increase than what the state’s insurers wanted. The N.C. Rate Bureau, which represents all insurance companies doing business in the state, filed a request in February with the North Carolina Department of Insurance for a rate increase of 13.8%.

The insurers cited a 7% increase in crashes stemming from distracted driving and a 13.2% rise in alcohol-related traffic deaths as factors that were increasing the average cost and severity of insurance claims. They also said that rising medical costs and higher auto body repair bills played a role in the rate-hike request as well.

“All of these [factors] together are why we are requesting an increase at this point,” said Ray Evans, general manager of the Rate Bureau, which represents all insurers doing business in the state.

As part of the final settlement with the N.C. Rate Bureau, the state’s insurers agreed not to request a rate increase in 2018.

Distraction and Higher Repair Costs Fuel Proposed Insurance Rate Hikes in North Carolina

Insurance experts say that several key factors have combined in recent years to make auto insurance claims more expensive than ever. Some of the most important among those factors include:

  • Higher repair costs: New, high-tech vehicles with advanced safety features and peripherals are much more expensive to maintain and fix compared to older models. While they may help avert crashes and can sometimes lessen the severity of injuries when collisions do happen, added features like parking-assist cameras are easily damaged during an auto accident and are costly to repair or replace.“[A fender-bender] used to be just fixing a bumper,” Allstate spokesperson Adam Polack told the Charlotte Observer. “Now [the bumper] has a backup camera in it. So, cars are more expensive to fix.”
  • Distracted driving: Mobile devices are fueling an epidemic of distracted driving on our roads, and the result is that auto accidents and related fatalities are on the rise nationwide after years of steady decline. According to the 2015 installment in an annual driver behavior survey from State Farm, more than one in three motorists surveyed admitted to texting while driving and 29% said they often browsed the internet behind the wheel.“It’s interesting to observe how the number and types of distractions available on cell phones have grown over the years we have conducted this annual survey,” said Chris Mullen, director of technology research at State Farm, regarding the survey’s results.In addition, many vehicles today are equipped with voice-activated systems for making phone calls, setting GPS, and adjusting the heat or radio. While drivers tend to believe these hands-free systems allow them to multitask safely, studies show otherwise. A 2015 study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, for example, concluded that voice-based systems in cars are “cognitively demanding and ought not to be used indiscriminately while operating a motor vehicle.”

RELATED: Why You Need More UM/UIM Coverage Than You Think

  • More miles driven: In recent years, low gas prices and a rebounding economy have encouraged people to drive more and take longer trips when they do. In North Carolina, drivers traveled 13% more miles in 2015 compared to the average total over the previous five years. Not surprisingly, this jump in miles traveled has coincided with higher crash rates in the state; the N.C. Department of Motor Vehicles reported that driving-related fatalities increased 8.1% in 2015 from the year before, while injuries increased 11.8% and reported crashes rose 11.1%.
  • Alcohol-related wrecks: North Carolina has recently seen a surge in alcohol-related traffic fatalities, although highway safety experts have so far struggled to explain why. In 2015, the state experienced a 13.2% increase in alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities compared to the previous year. This spike came after five decades of steady decline in drunk driving deaths.

Clearly, some of these factors should concern North Carolina drivers, as they indicate that the insurance rate hike is a symptom of serious statewide highway safety issues. While individuals are ultimately responsible for their own actions behind the wheel, N.C. residents should also look to law enforcement officials and highway safety authorities to develop practical measures to combat the ongoing epidemic of distracted driving and the recent spike in alcohol-related traffic deaths.

Let us help you.

SCHEDULE YOUR CONSULTATION

Contact Myers Law Firm If You’ve Been Hurt in an Auto Accident

The experienced personal injury attorneys at Myers Law Firm are committed to helping injury victims in the wake of traffic accidents and whenever our advice and advocacy are needed. If you or someone you love has been injured in a motor vehicle accident, please contact our offices to set up a free, no-risk consultation and speak with an attorney about your legal options.

To get in touch with us right away, complete the brief contact form on our website, or call 888-376-2889.

References

Nelson, K. (2016, September 19). North Carolina has second-lowest car insurance premiums nationwide, according to report. Wsoctv.com. Retrieved from http://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/north-carolina-has-second-lowest-car-insurance-premiums-nationwide-but-rates-are-on-the-rise/447639977

Ranii, D. (2017, February 9). NC auto insurers seek 13.8 percent rate hike. The News & Observer. Retrieved from http://www.newsobserver.com/news/business/article131736244.html

Ranii, D. (2017, June 15). Your auto insurance rates are going up – but less than insurers wanted. The News & Observer. Retrieved from http://www.newsobserver.com/news/business/article156389224.html

Smith, C. (2017, March 15). 4 reasons your NC car insurance will very likely rise this year. The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved from http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article138378218.html

The content provided here is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject.

Contact Myers Law Firm

We are committed to continuing to serve our clients’ legal needs

Single Divider

We are able to meet with clients and hold consultations with prospective clients via telephone or video conference. If you need to contact us, please do not hesitate; we are happy to speak with you about your situation, your needs, and how we can help.

Schedule Your Consultation Now!

Type of Case (Select One)(Required)
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Why You Need More UM/UIM Coverage Than You Think

  1. Legislative Change
  2. About Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage
  3. Is the Minimum UIM Coverage Enough?
  4. UM/UIM Coverage: Peace of Mind, at an Affordable Cost?
  5. Contact Myers Law Firm If You’ve Been Injured

Legislative Change

Since 2009, North Carolina law has required that all drivers purchase a minimum amount of uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM) as part of their auto insurance policy. Previously, North Carolina required drivers to have uninsured motorist coverage, but had no requirement for underinsured motorist coverage.

Although this legislative change marked an important step toward protecting all drivers in the event of a hit-and-run incident or an accident involving an underinsured driver, it does create the unfortunate side effect of convincing many drivers that the state-mandated minimum amount of UM/UIM coverage offers enough protection for everyone.

In this article, we’ll discuss why that’s not always the right conclusion to make, and why additional UM/UIM coverage makes sense for a lot of drivers out there.

About Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage

 If you’ve never paid close attention to what’s in your auto insurance policy, you might not understand what uninsured motorist coverage and underinsured motorist coverage do. While closely related, these are actually two separate types of insurance coverage that work a little differently when it comes time to file a claim.

  • Uninsured motorists (UM) coverage provides insurance coverage when an uninsured, at-fault driver injures you or someone else who is covered under your policy. This includes coverage for a hit-and-run accident so long as there was contact with the hit-and-run car. UM insurance also provides coverage for property damage. In a hit-and-run wreck, however, the other driver must be identified in order to claim UM property damage coverage.
  • Underinsured motorists (UIM) coverage covers you when an underinsured, at-fault driver injures you or someone else who is covered under your policy. UIM coverage does not provide protection against property damage.

Wondering what an “underinsured driver” means, exactly? For insurance purposes, an underinsured driver is one whose liability limits (1) are less than your UIM coverage limits and (2) won’t cover the monetary losses incurred by the people the underinsured driver injures in an at-fault accident. If you’re hit by such a driver, your UIM coverage will pay a maximum of the difference between the other driver’s liability limits and the limits of your UIM coverage.

Most responsible drivers never think much about what they’ll do if they get hit by a driver who’s not carrying insurance or who’s carrying a minimal policy that won’t cover the resulting damages. That’s because they tend to assume (wrongly, unfortunately) that the vast majority of people on the road are reasonable and law-abiding motorists, just like them.

The facts, though, paint a less rosy picture: according to the most recent (2012) data from the Insurance Information Institute, 12.6 percent of U.S. drivers — or about one in eight — are uninsured at any given time.

RELATED: Car Accident or Crash? Why What You Call It Matters

Fortunately, 2009 legislation made UM coverage mandatory for North Carolina drivers at a minimum level of $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident (with a $25,000 minimum for property damage for UM coverage), and combined UM/UIM coverage (equal to the liability limits) mandatory for policies with higher liability limits. But will these limits provide adequate coverage if you get in a serious accident?

Let us help you.

SCHEDULE YOUR CONSULTATION

Is the Minimum UIM Coverage Enough?

First, it’s important to understand how UM/UIM coverage works. As explained above, UIM coverage pays the difference between your UIM limits and the other driver’s liability limits. However, if you have a state-minimum $30,000 policy, then a $30,000 UIM policy would serve no purpose — because any other driver who has a valid insurance policy must also at least have the state-minimum $30,000 in liability coverage. This is why the state doesn’t mandate UIM coverage for drivers with the minimum liability limits, and why UIM coverage is only available at limits of $50,000 or more.

UIM coverage does become mandatory, however, when drivers select a policy with higher liability limits. If you purchase a policy with a $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident liability limits, for example, then North Carolina mandates that your policy include UM/UIM coverage with a $50,000/$100,000 limit as well. In this case, your UIM coverage would apply if you were hit by a driver who only carries the minimum $30,000 in liability limits, and would cover the difference between the limits of the two policies — $20,000 per person and $40,000 per accident.

Although total coverage of $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident may sound like a lot of money, we can tell you from experience that costs add up very quickly in the event of a serious crash with an uninsured or underinsured driver. Between medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost wages, $50,000 may not go a long way, especially if you’ve suffered a severe injury that requires complex treatment or extensive therapy. In this scenario, you could easily find yourself still facing tens of thousands of dollars in bills after exhausting your state-mandated UM/UIM coverage.

We’re not the only ones who’ve come to this conclusion, either. According to Edmunds.com, auto insurance experts generally recommend that drivers purchase insurance coverage that allows for bodily injury liability limits of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident in order to protect their assets against lawsuits.

Since those recommendations are intended to protect at-fault drivers, you can see how they relate to UM/UIM claims: If experts believe the at-fault person in a serious crash could easily end up creating liability of $100,000 per person or $300,000 per accident, and your UM/UIM coverage provides $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident in protection, that’s a massive gap between your coverage and the costs and the monetary losses you could be left with when the at-fault person’s policy won’t pay any more (or doesn’t exist in the first place). Not only that, but the total gap in coverage for you and others you care about could be several times that amount.

UM/UIM Coverage: Peace of Mind, at an Affordable Cost

As you can see, the modest extra cost of purchasing additional UM/UIM coverage beyond the state minimums can quickly turn into the kind of investment that preserves your financial stability if you get into a serious crash with an uninsured or underinsured motorist and find yourself depending on this coverage for help.

Fortunately, UM/UIM coverage tends to come at very affordable premiums — much less than you’d pay for standard bodily injury and property damage coverage. According to a 2016 roundup of insurance quotes from ValuePenguin, purchasing additional UM/UIM coverage of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident usually costs between $86 and $134 a year, depending on your insurer.

In general, we recommend that drivers seriously consider the benefits of additional UM/UIM coverage. While no one wants to believe they’ll be injured in an auto wreck, the reality is that bad things do happen to good drivers when other people’s negligence enters the equation. If you someday find yourself the victim of someone else’s recklessness, opting to purchase additional coverage now might turn out to be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made.

Contact Myers Law Firm If You've Been Injured

If you or someone you love has been injured in a car accident or other motor vehicle crash, you may be entitled to compensation, and the attorneys at Myers Law Firm are here to help. As a father-and-son legal team with 50 years of combined experience in the Mecklenburg County area, we know the local courts here in Charlotte.

When you choose us to represent you, we won’t hesitate to take your case to trial and defend your rights aggressively in court if necessary. We also provide free initial consultations, and we work on a contingent-fee basis for personal injury cases, which means you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we make a financial recovery on your behalf.

To schedule your no-risk initial consultation, please call our Charlotte office toll-free at 1-888-376-ATTY (2889) or fill out and submit our online contact form. We’ll follow up and get in touch with you as soon as possible.

References

North Carolina Department of Insurance. (n.d.). A Consumer’s Guide to Auto Insurance. Retrieved from (http://www.ncdoi.com/_Publications/Consumer%20Guide%20to%20Automobile%20Insurance_CAU1.pdf

Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage car insurance. (2016). ValuePenguin. Retrieved from https://www.valuepenguin.com/uninsured-underinsured-motorist-coverage-car-insurance#limits-premiums

Uninsured motorists. (2016, September). Insurance Information Institute. Retrieved from http://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/uninsured-motorists

The content provided here is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject.

Contact Myers Law Firm

We are committed to continuing to serve our clients’ legal needs

Single Divider

We are able to meet with clients and hold consultations with prospective clients via telephone or video conference. If you need to contact us, please do not hesitate; we are happy to speak with you about your situation, your needs, and how we can help.

Schedule Your Consultation Now!

Type of Case (Select One)(Required)
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.