What a DUI will do to Your Auto Insurance Rates
To understand what a DUI will do to your auto insurance rates in Virginia, you need to understand Insurance companies.
Insurance companies provide financial relief in the event of an accident. To that end it is in their best interest if you do not have one. Insurance providers are particular about risk levels. Individuals who have high risk levels - which means the possibility of them getting involved in an accident is higher, will command higher rates than individuals who carry lower risk.
Risk is calculated in different ways. The three main factors involved are the matters concerning the environment - i.e population density in the area where you live, the details of your car - the more expensive the car, the higher the rate, the faster the car the higher the rate, and finally matters concerning you.
It is the later that we are currently concerned with.
In assessing risk based on an individual, insurance companies look for properties promoting or guaranteeing stability. In this vein a married man with children is likely to command less risk levels than a young unmarried bachelor. This is because a married man appears more stable. With the responsibility he has, he is less likely to go racing along the highway. These aren't confirmed certainties. There is no way an insurance company absolutely knows that a married man will not do something silly. But statistics show that the probability of a married man doing something silly is lower than that of an unmarried teen. And so they consider married couples as significantly "safer". In the same vein aspects of a person's life are taken into consideration. Insurance companies appreciate stability. They want you to be safe. They need you to be safe. The safer you appear to be the more comfortable they will become and your rates will remain relatively low.
What a DUI will do should now be obvious. A DUI will appear as bright red flag in the eyes of an insurance company. It basically announces "This guy here is prone to dangerous driving. Treat him accordingly". A DUI earns you an increase in risk factor. Insurance companies will worry more if records show that you have been driving under the influence. The reason is not hard to see. Intoxicated Driving is the cause of 50% of road accidents in the country. If you are going to do it, then it means the risks of you ending up at their desk requesting a claim is high and so they charge you for it. Your rates will fly up.
Insurance companies have no way of discerning the real nature of your character. All they have are public records and information to work on. It might well be that the 30 year old husband and father does in fact go joy riding, whilst the young bachelor stays home and practices on his guitar every night. None of this is knowledge available to insurance companies. What is available is what the records show and based on that they then make their calculations.
So now you know what a DUI will do to your insurance rates. It won't help them. The next time you're out taking a drink, think twice before driving home. Call a cab once you're done. If you are rash enough to drive; be shrewd enough not to get caught.
And try not to run into anyone. You don't want to know what that will do to your rates!