Question
Get insurance involved for $1800 in damage?
A friend of mine got into a fender bender 1800 w a 500 deductible. He is 20 is it worth it for him to get insurance involved?
Answer
The short answer is no but there's a lot to unpack here.
First is the other vehicle in the accident. Who is the at-fault driver? If the other driver is the at-fault driver, your friend's vehicle would be covered by his liability coverage. In that case, he would contact his insurance company as they can be helpful in this process. If he is at fault there are more factors to consider.
- Most insurance companies require you to report any incident, even if a claim is not filed.
- If your friend were to file a claim, it would definitely impact his rates for the next 3 to 5 years. He should consider if the value of the damage exceeds the rate increase he would receive. In 2020, average rates after a single at-fault accident increased 53% in NJ. Over a 3 year period, you should expect to pay over $2.3k in premium increases. This plus your friend's deductible would exceed the total out-of-pocket expenses he would save.
- Because of his age, this average premium increase is probably much lower than what he should expect. Young male drivers tend to pay above the average premium considering the risk they present.
Because of these factors, I recommend paying for the damages out of pocket if your friend is found at-fault. Check out our guide to filing claims for some additional information regarding the claims process. Best of luck.