Updated April 2026 | Bankrate, NerdWallet 2026, Insurance Information Institute
Car Insurance Premium Increase After a Claim: By Claim Type
Comprehensive claims do not raise rates. At-fault accidents add 41 to 43 percent for 3 to 5 years. DUI doubles or triples premiums. Here is the full schedule by claim type plus the carrier dispersion that lets you shop your way out.
The surcharge schedule by claim type
| Claim or violation type | Surcharge | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Comprehensive claim (theft, weather, etc) | 0% | N/A |
| Glass-only claim | 0% | N/A |
| Not-at-fault accident (single) | 0-5% | 3 years (if any) |
| Minor moving violation (no points) | 0-10% | 3 years (if any) |
| Speeding ticket 1-10 mph over | 15-20% | 3 years |
| Speeding ticket 11-20 mph over | 22-28% | 3 years |
| Speeding ticket 21-30 mph over | 30-40% | 3 years |
| At-fault accident (single) | 41-43% | 3-5 years |
| Reckless driving conviction | 50-75% | 3-5 years |
| DUI / DWI conviction | 50-100% | 3-5 years |
| Multiple at-fault accidents | 70-150% | 3-5 years |
| Hit-and-run conviction | 100-200% | 5+ years |
The cumulative cost of a single surcharge
Premium increases sound like percentages but they accumulate into real dollars over the multi-year surcharge window. Examples on the $208 national average premium:
- One speeding ticket (25 percent surcharge for 3 years): $52/mo extra, $1,872 cumulative
- One at-fault accident (42 percent surcharge for 3 years): $87/mo extra, $3,132 cumulative
- One at-fault accident (42 percent surcharge for 5 years at carriers using 5-year lookback): $87/mo extra, $5,220 cumulative
- DUI conviction (75 percent surcharge for 3 years): $156/mo extra, $5,616 cumulative
- DUI conviction (75 percent surcharge for 5 years): $156/mo extra, $9,360 cumulative
- Multiple at-fault accidents (110 percent surcharge for 5 years): $229/mo extra, $13,740 cumulative
The DUI cumulative cost of $5,616 to $9,360 is roughly equal to the legal defense cost of contesting the DUI charge ($1,500 to $7,500), making aggressive legal defense potentially cost-neutral or favourable on the insurance side alone, before considering the avoided criminal record and license suspension.
The carrier dispersion is your shopping leverage
The same claim or violation generates meaningfully different surcharges at different carriers. The dispersion is your opportunity to reduce the cumulative cost by switching carriers post-claim. Based on Bankrate 2026 and The Zebra 2026 cross-referenced surveys, the relative rankings:
Lightest post-claim surcharges: USAA, Erie, State Farm (in that order, for most claim types). These carriers tend to view a single claim or violation as a minor underwriting flag and apply modest surcharges.
Mid-range surcharges: GEICO, Allstate, Travelers, Nationwide. Standard surcharge schedules at these carriers fall in line with the industry averages cited in the table above.
Heaviest post-claim surcharges: Progressive, Liberty Mutual, Farmers. These carriers tend to apply more aggressive surcharges, particularly Progressive's 5-year claim lookback for some claim types.
The implication: after a claim or violation, shop quotes at USAA (if eligible), Erie (if available in your state), and State Farm first. The savings vs continuing at a heavier-surcharge carrier can be $20 to $60 per month for the remaining surcharge window, totaling $720 to $3,600 over 3 to 5 years.