The automobile owner that intends to purchase a car insurance policy can make a blunder while applying for that same document. It could be an innocent mistake or an intentional lie. In either case, it invites the insurer to launch an investigation.
That investigation aids discovery of forgotten, overlooked or hidden information. After making that discovery, the insurance company has good reason to alter the policy’s contents. That alteration serves to punish the blundering policy holder.
Blunders that result from the demands made on the person applying for insurance
Here is the setting for blunder #1: The insurance company wants to learn about the driving history of the applicant. Hence, the company’s representative will ask if the applicant’s history includes a reference to a past traffic ticket. If the applicant’s answer is “yes,” then the questioner will want to know the dates.
That search for specific information encourages the sharing of imprecise details. The date provided might be off by one or two days. Yet that slight difference signals a lack of veracity on the part of the person that hopes to become a policy-holder. Hence, the same man or woman will end up paying a higher rate for what had been a less-expensive policy.
Now picture the setting for the second of the two blunders: Someone that intends to buy car insurance gets a question about his or her credit score. That score has not been checked recently, so the applicant makes an assessment, and states the figure calculated from that assessment. There is no guarantee that the calculated/assessed figure is correct.
It may be wrong. If it is, then that puts a blot on the applicant’s record, even before the policy-holder’s coverage has begun. Consequently, the insurer increases the policy’s rate, but does not promise to provide more extensive cover, in the event of injury or damage.
Paying the price for dishonesty
Sometimes, the owner of an expensive vehicle will try to cover-up the value of that same vehicle. He or she will claim to want coverage for a cheaper set-of-wheels. Then the person taking down the applicant’s information will ask for the VIN.
An insurer can check the records that correspond with that same VIN. If those records reveal the vehicle’s true value, the owner faces some terrible consequences. Either the policy’s rate could increase, or the person with the stylish set-of-wheels could be denied the chance to get covered by that particular insurance company.
Finally, there are those that feel daring enough to deny having ever gotten a ticket. In applying for car insurance, those daring men and women do provide the insurer with the license number of the vehicle that will be covered. Insurers know how to check a vehicle’s traffic record, using its license number. Thus the lie can be exposed, and can force an insurance company to take drastic action. That is why it is good to have an expert injury lawyer in Chatham in your corner to advise you wisely.