How does car insurance work?

More specific, claims. I've met my deductible. I've got 2 significant door dings on both sides, and worst, a completely destroyed rear bumper. Used parts for the FR-S are not easy to come by, and most used bumpers are sad shape. Normally I'd handle it myself, but it's looking close to $1,000 in parts and labor.

If I make sa  claim, how does that affect me?  Do rates usually increase? Is it a black mark that will follow me if I switch providers? 

Health insurance deductible can often be $1k per year.  Once you spend $1k out of pocket, your health insurance pays the rest, all year long.  

Auto insurance is not the same way.  

Auto insurance often has a $500 deductible.  This means that if you get in an accident of January of the year and the damage is $3,000 then the insurance will write a check for $2,500 and you are expected to pay the rest.  

In the same year (say June) you get in another accident and it is $5,000 damage then the insurance company will pay $4,500 toward the damage and you will pay the remaining $500.  

In the same year (say December) you get in another accident and it is $2,000 damage then the insurance company will pay $1,500 toward the damage and you will pay the remaining $500.  

In this auto insurance example you have paid $1.5k toward insurance deductibles in one year.  You have a $500 deductible per claim.  

In Summary:  No, you have not met your deductible.  

You pay the insurance company, they deny your claims, pretty simple.

I kid, I kid.

Did you bust up the car it or was the car nailed and the person drove off? I've filed two "uninsured motorist" claims for hit & runs and never had it ding my rates. Paid my deductible, had one car fixed and another totaled. No "permanant record" that I know of, or that anyone has brought up in the years afterward.

A guy plowed into the back of me at a merge. He had a fly by night insurance. I did all the leg work. Insurance Co sided against me (Of course they did.) 

As far as claims flowing me through different carriers, how does that work?  I'd like to make my  car whole again, but I don't want to render myself uninsurable or make the premiums unaffordable. 

I have a $250 deductible, so another claim for the bumper is doable as far as cost. I can't find a used bumper in the wrong color for less that $350.

So it's a little confusing what you've done so far.  Did you make a claim with their insurance and it was denied?  Have you contacted your insurance or not?  What coverages do you have?

The consequences of going through your insurance should be minimal.  

They sided with the other guy because apparently if you merge, you are responsible for merging. Of course you are. I did so at the speed limit. When I merged, the guy was 75 ft behind me and accelerating. According to the cop, it didn't matter that he was speeding, I have to get out of the way, even if that means coming to a complete stop. He also would also newver my question of when does a merging vehicle have command of a lane. The other guy and the insurance company he had didn't get back to me or my insurance for 3 weeks. The guy never talked to either insurance.  I took pictures of the merge, made a police report, got estimates, etc... 

I my opinion,  it was easier for my insurance to drop it in my lap, rather than deal with a cagey guy and his E36 M3ty insurance. 

They know of it. They are already dinging me for it. They won't cover the full repair of the bumper, because of a crack on the other side from a parking lot hit and run. I haven't yet filed a claim about that one abouts I figured it would raise my premium.  

I've moved on from the terrible dealings from the rear ender, it just want to know the best way to proceed to get my bumper fixed and the possible repricussions of whatever method I chose.

I ask about it following me if I switch insurance because I'm done with mine. I was with them for 23 years. The one time I really needed them and they left me hanging.

What company do/did you have?

in MI, every six months they berkeley you in the shiny happy person with a big d!ck (your pre-eee-eee-eee-mium).

then on the rare occasion you submit a claim, they either wipe the lube off that big d!ck and berkeley you with it some more, or they let you slip one finger up their shiny happy person while you suck that big d!ck (ie they pay on your claim).

edit:  i thought there was a filter word for d!ck?

In reply to mtn :

State Farm. 

An insurance company's job is to pay as little as possible.  It depends on the company, but some of them will comb through a thousand pages of info looking for one tidbit that can let them deny your claim.  Others just pay up.

My best ever was Horace Mann.  They were expensive, but not terrible.  Someone broke into my F250 and stole my leather jacket, the stereo, and some CDs.  I assumed the jacket wouldn't be covered.  I went ahead and spent $40 at a junkyard for a stereo and the little trim strip above it that was damaged.  They sent me a check for $1400:  $1000 for the damage, and $400 for CDs and the jacket.

Worst ever was Progressive.  My wife's Merc took heavy damage from a hailstorm.  Every panel looked like a golf ball and both windshields were smashed.  Shop estimated $8000 damage which would have more than totaled the car.  Progressive denied the claim because I reported that the damage happened at 6pm, but the NWS said the hailstorm came through at 6:20.  I lawyered up and called all of my friends who sent over their claims to show that they reported theirs at 6pm as well.  No dice.  Progressive cheated me out of $8000 with a massive law team at my side.  Then my Impala was broken into and the stereo stolen, window broken, dash destroyed.  Progressive denied the claim because I said I was over at a friend's house when it happened.  They had to verify my story, and the friend had moved away and I didn't have contact info for him.  They cheated me again.  There is a reason Progressive can afford those massive national "Flo" ad campaigns.

I was hit by another driver a few years ago and he was with State Farm.  The speed and efficiency with which they paid me was unheard of.  I had a shop do an estimate because the accident happened in a dealer lot ($2100).  Figured I might as well while I'm there.  On the way home, State Farm called me to set up an appointment, and he was actually there when I pulled in my driveway.  He looked at the estimate, looked at the damage, and wrote a check on the spot for his estimate of $2500.  

Needless to say, I switched to State Farm the next day.

As others have said, the deductible works more like a medical co-pay.  Every time you make a claim for repairs, you pay the deductible each time just like you have a $20 co-pay for each doctor visit.  Each insurance company is a little different, but you can expect to see your rates rise more from the at-fault accident than you will from filing a claim.

But most insurance companies will raise rates after a claim.  State Farm tends to take a more "human" approach - I think mostly because they are independent local agents instead of computer algorithms.  You may find that making a claim for something like a tree falling on your car won't raise rates because you weren't the inherent risk, but a moving accident (even if it's not your fault) can raise rates.  It has to do with your risk.  If you have 20 accidents that aren't your fault, the implication is that you must be driving in a way that isn't defensive or causes risk.

Since they are independant, do you think it would be worth switching agents? Mine is sa  glorified cashier, in the same vein as Apu, "Thank you. Come again." Up until now,  they've been great, but this is my first new car, first time with full covrrage. and they're treating me like they have me by the balls. 

One thing I learned about State Farm is they hold claim info for 5 years. Others, like Progressive hold it for less, Progressive for 35 months. Burns my ass that they'll be holding that over me for another 4 years. 

You have four claims, from four separate collisions.  If you make a claim for the rear end damage, you will have to pay betterment on the other side of the bumper...maybe.  If the bumper has to be replaced and painted, and the damage from the other collision is now fixed, most shops will roll with it. 

The door dings are completely unrelated, and will start another claim.  The body shop can give you an estimate for repair, since they are already painting it anyway.

This bodyshop is linked with state farm and does good work. They are not rolling with it. They were only authorized to fix one half of a completely trashed bumper. I'm suprised. 

Sounds like you should get the car out of that shop, have State Farm cut you a check for the claim, and take it to another shop to have it repaired. Repairing half a bumper doesn’t cost more than repairing a whole bumper, really. 

Which is a shame. They did a repair 2 years ago and it was perfect.

Appleseed said:

Since they are independant, do you think it would be worth switching agents? Mine is sa  glorified cashier, in the same vein as Apu, "Thank you. Come again." Up until now,  they've been great, but this is my first new car, first time with full covrrage. and they're treating me like they have me by the balls. 

One thing I learned about State Farm is they hold claim info for 5 years. Others, like Progressive hold it for less, Progressive for 35 months. Burns my ass that they'll be holding that over me for another 4 years. 

State Farm agents have no control over the rates you are charged. That is determined by the actuaries/underwriting department. 

Your State Farm agent is basically a contracted sales-person that is only allowed to sell you State Farm-branded products. When I was a claim rep there, Agents could handle claims for under $5000 total dollars without getting one of the Claim Reps involved, but most didn't bother with it. Why take away time you and your staff can be selling and answering questions to get more business since there is already a department to handle the claims.

If State Farm holds onto your claim info for 5 years, check your state insurance laws. When I had my accident back in Jan 2017 in my BRZ, they told me after 3 years it would drop off and my rates will come back down. 

State Farm agents are not 'independent'. They can only sell State Farm products. A true independent agency will sell multiple brands and find one that works best for your situation. Nationwide has been the same way but is working to dump that model and sell through independent agencies. The business is changing.

For the OP in this situation I'd just pay for the bumper out of pocket and get on with life. And they are correct about the merge situation whether you like it or not. The merger has the responsibility of making the merge safe regardless of the assclownery of the guy on the main road.

The door dings can be fixed by a paintless dent repair guy if the paint isn't chipped. Ask your body shop or local dealers who they use. If you pay the guy in cash you may get a deal.

With a cracked bumper cover I'd recommend getting a new one, even if its aftermarket. It is the rare case you get a used cover and don't have to do some work to clean it up for paint. That can quickly eat up any 'savings' over not going used. Also, if you are paying for the repair yourself you can sometimes negotiate with the shop a bit on the price. Make sure the labor rate is the same as the insurance company pays in the area. A lot of my shops have a higher 'retail' default rate. Don't pay $15 for 'flex additive' when six or eight bucks is adequate.

For a $1000 repair, I wouldn't even think about calling the insurance co.  Same with homeowner's insurance.  Basically, I consider insurance as protection against catastrophic loss or damage.  i.e: car gets totalled, or house burns down.