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May 15, 2008 9:35 pm US/Eastern
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3 On Your Side: Filing Insurance Claims
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ―
You pay for insurance to give you peace of mind. It's protection when your car or home is damaged. But as
3 On Your Side's Jim Donovan explains, filing a claim could cost you.
Every spring, storms roll through and high winds down trees, damaging homes.
But do you know when you should try to collect on your insurance policy?
Paula Busson has good insurance, but she's not quick to make claims.
"I had a fender-bender. The damage to our car was a little bit over a thousand, so we just went ahead and paid it out of pocket.
We didn't want to file a claim because we were afraid our rates would go up," Busson said.
She's right. Sometimes it pays to pay out of pocket.
"Insurance companies look at claim severity and frequency when they're deciding if you're insurable," said Madelyn Flannagan with Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America.
Too many claims can cost you with either a rate increase or no coverage at all.
When it comes to fixing things like a broken window you may want to think twice.
"Your homeowners insurance, auto policy are not maintenance policies," Flannagan said.
So when should you file a claim?
"Typically use the threshold of over a thousand dollars is something you might want to make a claim for," Flannagan said.
And realize companies are keeping count.
Databases created to combat mortgage fraud are also used as a repository that companies check before quoting to clients.
Some claims are sure to raise rates.
"Dog bite claims, lots of slip and falls, smoking in bed, that's always one the insurance companies look at," Flannagan said.
Experts say there are certain times to definitely file claims. One is when someone is injured, either in an auto accident or while visiting your home.
The other is when something has put you out of your home, such as a fire.
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