What Changes May Be Coming To Mississippi's Auto Insurance Rates?

If you're a Mississippi driver who hasn't had an accident or auto insurance claim in the past few years, you may be part of a quickly dwindling minority. The Magnolia State leads the nation in auto repair dollars spent per year, and the number of fatal or serious traffic accidents on Mississippi roads has significantly risen over the past few years, with a ten percent increase in crashes from 2015 to 2016. As a result of these high repair costs and more frequent accidents, auto insurers are beginning to feel the financial burden of insuring Mississippi drivers. Read on to learn more about potential changes to the rates charged by auto insurers operating in Mississippi, as well as what you can do to keep your rates low.  

What must happen before your auto insurance rate increases?

Each state has its own insurance commissioner whose job duties (among others) include monitoring and licensing each of the insurance agents (and agencies) operating in the state, as well as setting insurance rates. While an auto insurance company is not required to request permission from the state insurance commissioner before raising the rate on a specific client or customer, these companies are required to formally request a rate increase and receive approval before implementing any large-scale rate changes. This should provide customers with at least some warning that rates could increase in the near future before higher bills are mailed. 

In practice, most insurers will request approval of a maximum rate and then raise their prices gradually over the next few months or years until they've hit this ceiling, rather than immediately increase customers' rates to the new maximum. However, it's good to be aware of when your state's insurance commissioner has approved a rate change so that you can anticipate (and budget for) any projected increase in your own insurance costs. 

What can you do to keep your insurance costs down if an increase is approved?

One of the biggest factors behind the impending increase in Mississippi's auto insurance rates is the number of individuals injured or killed due to crashes involving alcohol. In fact, thirty percent of those killed in car crashes in Mississippi were either drinking and driving themselves, riding with a drunk driver, or hit by a drunk driver in another vehicle. Avoiding drinking and driving (or riding with a driver who has been drinking) is not only one of the key factors in keeping you safe behind the wheel, it can keep your auto insurance costs down as well. You may want to investigate whether your insurance company offers any incentives for those who pledge to have a designated driver whenever they've been drinking. 

Texting and driving and seatbelt usage are also factors at play in the high number of traffic accidents in Mississippi. As with drunk driving, you may want to look into programs that can inform your insurer of your safe driving habits and keep you at a low rate. For more information on auto insurance, check with companies like Coast Comp Insurance Agency.