If you get too many traffic tickets, are found to be at fault in accidents, or violate the specific rules regarding your insurance policy, you may find yourself dropped. Even worse, most insurance companies reserve the right to drop a customer with little or no warning or even without providing any particular reason for doing so. Citing “demographics” is sometimes a sufficient cause to drop customers.
But once you have been dropped, what do you do? Since most states now make it mandatory to maintain insurance on your vehicles, even ones that are infrequently used, getting dropped could mean that you are at risk of having the vehicle license plates or even your individual driver license suspended or completely revoked. As soon as you have been dropped by an insurance carrier, it is important to take steps to get coverage from another company.
The difficulty involved in getting insurance from another carrier will depend on the exact reason why you were dropped. For instance, if your policy was one of many dropped because the insurance company was pulling out of your particular region, getting a new policy may not be any hassle at all, beyond the time required to shop and buy. It may even be that some local companies will offer you a discount, being eager to pick up the slack left behind by a competitor.
On the other hand, if you were dropped because of points violations or excessive accidents, you may have a bit more problems, and will almost certainly be forced to pay higher premiums. the best option in this case is to shop around with different carriers, and try to maximize the discounts you are eligible for, thereby reducing the overall cost.
In some circumstances, such as a license reinstatement after suspension for DUI or DWI, you may even have little recourse but to seek coverage from a company which specializes in high risk auto insurance policies. This type of insurance will almost always cost a substantial amount more than ordinary risk insurance, and the actual circumstances surrounding your case will influence the final policy rates to a large extent.
The good news is that since most state laws require your vehicle to be insured, if you are able to obtain a legal driver license, you will also be able to find an insurance company to insure you and your vehicle. You may be required to have a supplemental policy, such as an SR-22 insurance, before being insured, which means an even greater cost. But if the state you live in has deemed you to be eligible to enjoy the privilege of driving, it will be possible to get insurance, regardless of the circumstances involved in being dropped by your previous auto insurance company.