Can You Cancel an Auto Insurance Claim After Filing One?
Last Updated on August 21, 2020
There are some situations that require the canceling of an auto insurance claim after it is filed. Auto insurance claims can be canceled for a number of different, perfectly legitimate reasons. After all, if an auto insurance claim is paid, there is a chance the policyholder’s monthly premiums will increase as a result. However, this is not the sole reason why insurance claims are canceled.
Continue reading below to learn all about canceling auto insurance claims, including whether or not insurers allow claims to be canceled, how to cancel your claim, and whether or not canceling your claim is a good idea.
Why Insurers Allow Customers to Cancel Auto Insurance Claims
Auto insurance companies almost always permit customers to cancel claims after they have been filed. Canceling the claim ensures the customer does not have to pay the deductible. This is a logical reason to cancel an auto insurance claim as deductibles have the potential to cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
Consider an example where an individual is involved in an auto accident and files a claim prior to the point at which the mechanic provides a quote for the vehicle damage. The mechanic gets back to the driver, stating the repair cost will be $650. The driver is on the hook for a $500 deductible, meaning he or she will only be eligible for a $150 payment from the auto insurance provider. In such a situation, it makes sense to cancel the auto insurance claim. If the claim were to be processed, the driver would save $150 yet his or her auto insurance premiums would increase, offsetting the gain as time progresses.
Can the Claim be Cancelled in Every Situation?
If the driver has cashed the check from the insurance company after the claim has been processed, the claim cannot be canceled. Furthermore, if the driver has been found to be at fault for the accident, it might not be possible to cancel the claim. With simple collision claims or comprehensive claims, however, the claims can almost certainly be canceled if done within a certain time frame.
The Impact of Withdrawing the Auto Insurance Claim
If you withdraw your insurance claim, there is still the potential for your auto insurance premium to increase, generating a negative mark on your record as a driver. This mark will be especially bad if you are determined to be at fault for the accident. The bottom line is that filing the claim results in it being listed on one’s claims history and CLUE report. However, the chances of the claim withdrawal, or a zero-dollar claim, causing your car insurance bill to go up is very low.
Premiums will only increase if you file the claim, don’t cancel it, and then cash the insurance companies claim check, making the claim completed.
If you’d like the avoid any possibility of a claim withdrawal hurting your insurance rates, you could switch insurance providers after withdrawing the claim. The zero-dollar, or withdrawn claim, will not affect your insurance rates at the new provider.
Additional Reasons to Cancel an Auto Insurance Claim
The attempt to avoid a monthly insurance premium hike is only one of many reasons to cancel an auto insurance claim. Most insurance companies are more than happy to cancel auto insurance claims as it means they will not have to pay the claim. Some drivers simply decide they would rather pay out of their own pocket rather than rely on the auto insurance company to pay the majority of the cost related to the accident. In other situations, the negligent driver decides to pay for the damage resulting from the accident out of his or her own pocket. In fact, auto insurance customers are empowered to cancel claims whenever desired for any reason.
Some choose to cancel their auto insurance claim as they want to keep their claims-free discount intact. After all, this discount might provide upward of a 5% to 10% discount on the auto insurance policy so preserving it might be worth the cost of not filing a claim. Crunch the numbers to determine if it is better to file the claim or keep your claims-free discount intact and make the appropriate decision.
Try to Cancel the Claim While It is Under Investigation
The best time to cancel the claim is when it is under investigation. Nothing has been decided yet and the fault has yet to be determined. Money has not yet changed hands during this period of time, so canceling is a simple process.
Once you determine you no longer want the claim, the safest thing to do is to cancel it immediately. If you wait too long and a decision is made or if money is paid out, canceling might not be possible.
How to Cancel the Auto Insurance Claim
The initial step to canceling your auto insurance claim is to contact the auto insurer by phone. Call up your insurance agent or claims representative to state you would like to cancel the claim. By canceling you do not have to take the auto insurer’s money. Furthermore, the insurance representative you interact with is likely to be receptive to the idea of canceling the auto insurance claim as he or she might be provided with bonuses for a specific number of auto insurance claims per month/year.
In other words, your request for cancellation will be welcomed with open arms.
To cancel your claim, please contact your insurance provider’s claims department:
| Insurer | Claim Contact Number |
|---|---|
| 21st Century | 888-244-6163 |
| AAA | 800-222-7623 |
| Allstate | 800-255-7828 |
| American Family | 800-MY-AMFAM (800-692-6326) |
| Amica Mutual | 800-242-6422 |
| Auto-Owners Insurance Group | 888-252-4626 |
| Bristol West Insurance | 800-274-7865 |
| Chubb | 800-252-4670 |
| COUNTRY Financial | 866-COUNTRY (866-268-6879) |
| Dairyland | 800-334-0090 |
| Erie Insurance | 800-367-3743 |
| Farmers | 800-435-7764 |
| GEICO | 800-841-3000 |
| Infinity | 800-334-1661 |
| Kemper | 888-252-2799 |
| Liberty Mutual | 800-225-2467 |
| MetLife | 800-854-6011 |
| National General | 800-468-3466 |
| Nationwide | 800-421-3535 |
| Progressive | 800-PROGRESSIVE (800-776-4737) |
| Safeco | 800-332-3226 |
| Say Insurance | 800-225-5729 |
| Texas Farm Bureau | 800-266-5458 |
| The General | 800-280-1466 |
| The Hanover | 800-628-0250 |
| The Hartford | 800-243-5860 |
| Travelers | 800-252-4633 |
| USAA | 800-531-8722 |
| Westfield | 866-937-2663 |
What if You Have Already Received the Check?
If you have already received the check, it does not mean you cannot cancel the claim. If you have not cashed/deposited the check, it still might be possible to cancel your claim. Reach out to your insurance provider to see if you can cancel the claim. If so, submit your request for cancellation and send the check back to them.
Think Long and Hard About Whether Cancelling Your Claim is a Good Idea
Unfortunately, canceling an auto insurance claim has a small chance to backfire in a big way. If it turns out your vehicle’s damage is worse than you initially anticipated and costs an egregious sum of money to repair, it does not make sense to cancel your auto insurance claim. Doing so could result in you not being able to reopen it.
In general, if your vehicle has thousands of dollars worth of damage, it is better to keep the claim alive. After all, the point of insurance is to provide compensation in the aftermath of such a costly unfortunate incident. Though keeping your auto insurance claim active might cause you to lose your claims-free or safe driving discount, it is highly likely that going through with the claim is the smart financial decision, especially if the damage is expensive.
Remember that filing an insurance claim isn’t the end of the world. One at-fault accident will not make your insurance rates increase that drastically. Even if the rate hike from a single accident is more than you can afford, there are often ways to mitigate the increase – such as taking a defensive driving course.
Final Word – Can You Cancel Your Car Insurance Claim?
You can cancel your auto insurance claim in most situations. You might want to cancel your claim in order to preserve your claims-free or good driver discount. Usually, a zero-dollar claim showing up on your claims history will not affect your auto insurance rates at all.
Before canceling, however, you should think long and hard about your decision. First, think about how much you stand to lose by paying your claim out of pocket and compare it to how much your premiums will rise if you don’t withdraw the claim.
If you do decide to cancel your claim, most insurance companies make it easy to do so. Please contact your insurance company’s claims department to proceed.
