Why Your Premium Went Up When Nothing Changed

A clean record does not protect you from a rate increase. Here is what is actually driving it, and what you can do.

The most common insurance question is some version of this one: my driving has not changed, my car has not changed, and my bill went up 18 percent. What happened? The answer is usually that nothing about you changed. Something about the pool you are rated in did.

Rates are filed, not invented

Insurers cannot change prices at will. They file rate changes with each state's insurance department, supported by loss data, and a regulator approves or rejects them. When an approved increase takes effect, it applies to everyone in the affected class at their next renewal. That is why your neighbor with a different carrier saw nothing and you saw a large jump in the same month.

You can look these up. Most state insurance departments publish approved rate filings by company and line of business, and many publish a searchable rate comparison. It is public information and it tells you whether your increase was company-wide or specific to you.

What has been pushing rates up

Repair costs. A bumper is no longer a bumper. It houses radar sensors, parking cameras, and blind spot modules, and replacing it requires calibration on a level floor with target boards. Windshield replacement on a car with a forward camera routinely costs three to four times what it did a decade ago.
Vehicle values. Total loss settlements are based on the actual cash value of the vehicle. When used car values rise, every total loss becomes more expensive.
Medical and litigation costs. Bodily injury severity has grown faster than general inflation, and large verdicts affect the reserves carriers must hold.
Catastrophe exposure. Hail, wildfire, and severe convective storms have driven up reinsurance costs, which flow through to homeowners premiums and, in some states, to auto comprehensive.
Repair labor. Shop labor rates and cycle times have both increased, and rental reimbursement runs longer while parts are backordered.

What might have changed on your side without you noticing

Before you assume the increase is general, check for the ordinary causes:

A discount expired. Good student, defensive driving, and new-customer discounts all have end dates.
A driver aged into or out of a rating band, or a permit holder became a licensed driver.
A claim or violation from three to five years ago rolled on, or a new one appeared on the motor vehicle record.
Your credit-based insurance score changed. Most states permit its use in rating, and it is one of the strongest predictors carriers have.
You moved, even within the same city, into a different rating territory.
A telematics program ended its introductory discount and began rating on your actual driving data.

What to actually do about it

First, ask for the reason in writing. Carriers will generally tell you whether an increase was a base rate change or a change in your rating factors, and if it was the latter, which factor.

Second, get your records. Your CLUE report lists claims filed against your policies for the last seven years and is available free once a year. Your motor vehicle record is available from your state. Errors on both are common, and a claim that was closed without payment sometimes sits on a report as though it paid.

Third, re-shop with the same coverage limits, not the same premium. Comparing a $1,400 policy at 100/300 limits against a $1,100 policy at state minimum limits is not comparison shopping. Write down your current limits and deductibles from the declarations page and ask every quote to match them.

Fourth, ask your existing carrier to re-rate you before you leave. Mileage updates, a bundled home or renters policy, paid-in-full and paperless credits, and telematics enrollment can move the number materially, and they cost nothing to ask about.

One thing not to do