Reader’s Question:

How do insurance providers in Tulsa, Oklahoma calculate cost to repair damage with auto insurance claims? What do they use?

Ben

Tulsa, OK

How insurance carriers in Tulsa, Oklahoma calculate and determine the cost of repair damages sustained to a car is dependent upon state laws and an insurance carrier’s own guidelines. Some insurance carriers send you straight to a mechanic’s garage or repair shop for these professionals to estimate the cost of repairs and inform both the insurance carrier and you the cost of repairs.

When you file an insurance claim for damages to your vehicle the insurance carrier will normally refer you to a car insurance claims adjuster. The insurance adjuster will determine the loss to be sure it is covered and may view the car to determine what it will cost to repair the vehicle. In this type of situation the claims adjuster’s estimate can serve as a benchmark to which to compare your to your own mechanic’s estimate.

Most insurance carriers buy computer systems to assist them estimate costs in automobile claims and collision repairs. There are insurers out there that track the cost of repairs including parts and labor with software and databases and so when the claim adjusters use this computer information it assists them determine the repairs cost and the actual cash value (ACV) of a car based upon this auto insurance claims process.

If you want to know how a particular insurance carrier calculates the costs of repairs you should contact that insurance carrier for specific information on their car insurance claims procedures. To know more about car insurance laws regarding to car insurance claims and accident damage repairs in your state you may contact your state’s insurance regulatory body in Oklahoma.

Tags: auto insurance claims, car insurance

Reader’s Question:

We just moved here in Tulsa, Oklahoma and I’m planning to buy a new car and of course, I have to plan for the auto insurance as well. Is it true that getting a less horsepower car can give me a smaller auto-insurance premium?

Liz

Tulsa, OK

Yes, it’s hard to believe that in some cases in Oklahoma, one of the mechanics behind your insurance premium could be as simple as the engine under your car’s hood. If you own a sports car, you are going to pay much high premiums than somebody who drives a little Honda sedan. This is because statistics have shown you are much more likely to get into an accident and either hurt yourself or someone else. These statistics have resulted to considerably high insurance premiums for sports car owners.

Of course, it doesn’t always depend on your horsepower. Drivers of SUV’s and large trucks are the target of higher prices as well. That’s because when one of these large vehicles gets into an accident it’s much easier to injure someone outside of the vehicle or cause severe damage to some structure. This is one of those things people have to live with when owning larger more powerful vehicles. There are ways to try to lower the cost like finding better quotes online. You may also add safety features like an alarm system.

The only true solution in getting cheap car insurance is to get a smaller car but if you are set on having a larger vehicle, then I would say, go online and get multiple quotes. This would give you an idea of what you are going to pay.

Reader’s Question:

Does the state of Oklahoma requires that you have to have car insurance even though you don’t own a car?

Lester

Tulsa, OK

You do not necessarily need to have car insurance just because you have an Oklahoma driver’s license. There is no reason that insurance is needed just to get an OK driver’s license. Therefore if you have one for purposes of identification or just to have in case you even purchase a car then you would not need auto insurance.

If you do not have your own car but do drive other people’s cars in Oklahoma then you will need to make sure you would be covered if in an accident and be able to show proof of financial responsibility (an insurance card) if asked by police officers. If you do not own a car nor live in a household with cars in which you could be placed on the insurance policy of then you may want to consider getting a non-owner’s policy.

Basically a non-owner’s policy is a liability policy that would be secondary to the auto owner’s primary insurance policy if you were to cause an accident. A non-owner’s policy would be under your name and be proof of insurance if you needed to show an insurance card under your name.

Reader’s Question:

Can you tell me the difference between an SR22 and the regular car insurance? I thought an SR22 was a type of penalty for offenses? Is this right?

Julia

Tulsa, OK

An SR-22 car insurance itself is not necessarily anything special in the way that an insurance policy covers the car. The filing of the certificate for this car insurance policy is being required or mandated to by the court or Department of Motor Vehicle is what can set it apart from plain old car insurance policies that an average car owner buys.

In most states an SR22 is more than just a normal car insurance. For instance in Oklahoma the SR-22 includes bodily injury liability insurance of $25,000 for injury or death of one person up $50,000 per accident and $25,000 for property damage per accident.

Yes, normally an SR-22 is required of a person when he or she has been in an accident or convicted of a moving violation and was unable to show the proper financial responsibility.

Q: Can my credit rating affect my Oklahoma SR22 rates? Isn’t that illegal?

A: A majority of Oklahoma SR22 car insurance companies will look at your credit report when rating your policy for the price, in order to get the insurance risk score, which will determine whether you have low rates or high rates. You might get a low insurance risk score if you fail to pay your debts or if you make uneven or late payments, because this shows you are unreliable and also more likely to file a car insurance claim with your company.

Some people may think the practice of using credit reports in rating Oklahoma SR22 policies is unfair and should be illegal, but as of right now it’s legal everywhere you go in the United States. In some areas, there are groups which are trying to challenge the use of credit reports in car insurance rating, saying that it is discriminatory to minorities and lower income people, although so far they have been unsuccessful.

For the moment, Oklahoma SR22 car insurance companies will be using your credit report to determine your premium, so it would be a good idea to improve it as much as you can.

Q: While I’m buying my car, I come to his crunch time every month where I’m barely able to scrounge up enough money to pay for my big car note and my enormous monthly Tulsa SR22 car insurance premium. Is there some way I can make this easier?

A: The main thing you want to do to get some of the trouble off of your back is to get a cheaper Tulsa SR22 car insurance premium. An immediate way you can save several hundred dollars would be for you to raise the deductible on your comprehensive and collision coverage. By raising his deductible, you are taking more risk onto yourself and off of the car insurance company’s shoulders, and so they reward you by lowering your premium. Even just a few more hundred dollars for a deductible can shave a hundred dollars from your monthly premium.

At the least, you want to have a one thousand dollar deductible on your Tulsa SR22 policy for each of the full coverage categories which require deductibles. For the maximum amount of savings, raise the deductible as high as they will allow you, usually somewhere between $1500 and $2500. People usually need to file a claim with their car insurance company one out of five years, so it’s not likely you’ll be paying that deductible very often, and you’ll save more than you spend.