Moving brings a lot of stress. You sometimes wind up paying for two places for a little while, you have tons of stuff to transport, and you have to get used to navigating around an unfamiliar area. Car insurance is probably the last thing on your mind. But if you’re moving, it’s important to keep your insurer in the loop.
Failing to do so could have disastrous consequences if you need to file a claim. Below, we’ll look at why home address matters to insurers and what could happen if you don’t notify it of the change.
Why do insurers care so much about home addresses?
The home address a driver gives to their insurer is assumed to be the place they’ll store the car most often.
Each property has its own risks, including:
- The likelihood of natural disaster
- The likelihood of theft
- The likelihood of animal-vehicle collisions
- The likelihood of collisions with other drivers
Insurers need to know about moves from low-risk areas to high-risk areas so they can accurately assess the new risks that insuring a driver represents and charge them accordingly. And it’s to the driver’s advantage to tell their insurer about moves to a lower-risk area because doing so could mean lower premiums.
Bigger moves generally have bigger effects on insurance. But just traveling across state lines could require a driver to get an entirely new insurance provider if their current insurer doesn’t operate in the new state. It could also mean purchasing more coverage if their old state’s minimum requirements were lower than their new state’s requirements.
But even a quick move a few blocks away can still affect rates. In cities, you don’t need to travel far to be in the next ZIP code and insurers consider this when assessing the risks above. Even small moves can affect how exposed a vehicle is.
For example, if the old home had a garage and the new one doesn’t, a driver might pay more for insurance at their new place because now they have to park their car on the street where it’s more vulnerable to theft and storm damage.
What happens if you don’t tell the insurer about your move?
Drivers should notify their car insurance company of their move as soon as they know when it’s going to happen. If moving states, drivers may have 30 to 90 days after moving before they need to comply with the new state’s regulations. Failing to do so could result in denied claims if the insurer discovers that the driver moved without notifying the insurer. This isn’t worth the risk, even if updating the home address raises the car insurance premiums.
There are better ways to keep costs down than hiding your current home address. Shopping around can help drivers find cheap car insurance at their new place. Compare rates from at least three to five companies before settling on one. Drivers should be able to purchase a policy in advance of their moving date and choose when they want the policy to go into effect.
Raising the policy’s deductible could also be helpful. This will lead to larger out-of-pocket costs in the event of an accident, but it will shrink monthly premiums significantly. Compare a few options before deciding which is the best option for you.
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