High-Risk Car Insurance: What It Means, What It Costs, How to Get Out

What does “high-risk” mean for my car insurance?

“High-risk” is a label an insurer puts on your file when your record suggests you may cost more to cover. No law defines it, and it is not a special policy you sign up for. It is ordinary car insurance with a higher price.

You will pay more, but you can still get covered. Published estimates put a first DUI at close to double a clean record (79% to 92% more). The same record can cost very different amounts at different companies, so comparing quotes is the step that saves the most money.

The label also fades. Insurers usually stop counting an incident after three to five years. Short on time? Jump to “What to do next” for an eight-step plan.

What makes an insurer treat you as high-risk?

Each company sets its own rules. One may treat you as ordinary while another adds a surcharge or says no. The usual triggers are:

• A DUI or DWI, reckless driving or a suspended license
• One or more at-fault accidents, or frequent claims
• Several tickets in a short time, or one serious violation
• A lapse in coverage
• Poor credit, in states where insurers may use it
• Very little driving experience, or a fast or often-stolen car

Insurers read your driving record from the state. Most also read a claims-history report called a CLUE report, which lists your past claims. The Texas Department of Insurance notes that a bad claims history can mean a higher price, or a flat no.

How much more will I pay with a bad record?

Two published studies give a fair picture. Both use the same rate data, so they are not fully independent. Here is the typical jump for a 40-year-old with full coverage:

• First DUI: 79% to 92% more, close to double. CarInsurance.com puts the average at $2,578 a year clean and $4,959 after a DUI.
• Two speeding tickets: about 43% to 63% more.
• At-fault accident: about 30% to 60% more, depending on how the study defines an accident.
• A gap in coverage of 30 days or more: 41% more, in one study.

These are averages, not quotes. Dollar amounts differ from study to study because the sample drivers differ, so compare percentages inside one study, not dollars across studies.

Which company you pick matters more than the average. For the same DUI, one study found a rise from 36% to 205% depending on the insurer. The other found 35% to 155%. One company added about a third. Another more than tripled the price.

Where you live matters too. One study’s table of state averages runs from 39% more in Colorado and Oklahoma to 110% more in Hawaii. It does not say which violation it measures, so treat it as a direction, not a forecast.

Standard, non-standard or assigned risk: which do you need?

There are three places to buy. Try them in this order.

• Standard insurers. These are mainstream companies. You get the same policies as everyone else, plus a surcharge. Some will decline you or not renew after a serious incident.
• Non-standard insurers. These are specialty companies, or divisions of big ones. Insure.com says their policies may limit who can drive the car and how much coverage you can buy. They may also skip punitive damages and certain lawsuits.
• Assigned-risk plan. This is the last resort. In the states we checked, auto insurers are required to take part. You usually apply through a licensed agent. In Massachusetts you cannot pick the company.

Neither standard nor non-standard is reliably cheaper. CarInsurance.com suggests comparing the total over three years. It also finds that no single company is cheapest for every kind of violation.

How do you get into an assigned-risk plan?

You qualify when the regular market has turned you down. The test differs by state:

• Texas: you sign a statement that two companies refused you in the last 60 days, then apply through an agent.
• Massachusetts: you try regular insurers first. If a company refuses you, it must say why in writing.
• Maryland: you have three doors in. Two insurers refused you, or an insurer cancelled you for a reason other than non-payment, or you went 12 months or more without insurance after an earlier policy.
• Florida: the plan is for people who cannot get coverage elsewhere. The application warns you in bold that a private insurer may cost less.

Plan policies often cost more and may cover less. The Texas plan sells no collision or comprehensive coverage, for example. The table near the end lists more states.

How do you get out of an assigned-risk plan?

Start with the exit date, because it varies. A Texas plan policy runs one year at a time. After three years without tickets or accidents, the state says the company must offer you a cheaper policy outside the plan. Pennsylvania uses a three-year assignment period, after which you can ask to move to another company. One guide says members probably stay about three years.

Before you sign, ask the agent when you can leave without a penalty. Massachusetts warns that ending a policy mid-term can cost a “short rate” fee.

How long will you be treated as high-risk?

Usually three to five years. Most guides say insurers look back three to five years. Some look back up to ten years for a DUI. Guides put a single speeding ticket at about three years and a lapse at one to three.

State rules can shorten this. In Texas, a DWI surcharge can last no more than three years from the conviction. North Carolina uses three policy years. For convictions worth four or more points on or after July 1, 2025 (other than speeding), it uses five.

One tip from CarInsurance.com: a violation clears on a specific date, not at your renewal. Put that date in your calendar and shop when it passes.

Can your state limit how much you are surcharged?

In some states, yes, and the rules are very different.

• North Carolina sets the surcharge by law. Speeding 10 mph or less over in a zone of 55 mph or higher adds 55%. Reckless driving adds 90%. Driving while impaired adds 340%.
• Texas bars most insurers from raising your price over a speeding ticket. County mutual companies and the last-resort plan are outside that bar, and the state’s consumer guide says companies charge more for tickets. So ask each Texas insurer how it rates a ticket.
• Massachusetts has a state points plan, which insurers may use or replace with their own. Details are in the table.

Other states have their own rules, so check with your state insurance department. Within any state, insurers weigh a record differently, which is why quotes vary so much.

Can your insurer cancel you for being high-risk?

Sometimes. In Texas, a company can cancel at any time if a license or registration is suspended. That includes a suspension for another driver in your household. It must give ten days’ notice. North Carolina requires 60 days’ notice for most liability cancellations and non-renewals.

A cancellation letter looks scary, but it is usually workable. Start shopping the day it arrives, and do not let a gap open. If you finance the car and lose collision or comprehensive coverage, your lender may buy a policy on its own and add the cost to your loan. The Texas insurance department calls that coverage expensive.

How can you bring your price down?

Check what insurers see. Order your driving record from the state and your claims-history report. Fix any errors before anyone quotes you. The Texas insurance department says you can get the claims report free each year.

Use your rights. If a consumer report plays a part in a higher price or a refusal, federal law requires a notice. It names the reporting agency and says the agency did not make the decision. It also tells you that you can dispute wrong information. Ask within 60 days and you get a free copy. Texas, Massachusetts and Michigan add their own right to know the reason.

Ask about discounts. Each insurer decides which discounts it offers. Examples are a defensive driving course, more than one car, other policies and a claim-free record. Guides put a course discount between 5% and 15%, but no rule sets it. Ask for the number in writing.

Weigh telematics carefully. These programs track your driving. They can offset a poor record, but they can also raise your price if the data looks bad. Tell the insurer your history before you enroll.

Check the credit rules. Three guides agree that California, Hawaii and Massachusetts bar the use of credit. Two add Michigan, so check your state. Our credit and rates guide has more.

What to do next

1. Get your records. Order your driving record and claims report. Fix errors first.
2. Write down your dates. Note each conviction or accident date, any filing end date and your renewal date.
3. Ask your current insurer. Ask in writing what it plans at renewal and how long it will surcharge the incident.
4. Quote standard insurers. Get several quotes with identical limits and deductibles. Our quote-reading guide shows which lines to match.
5. Add non-standard quotes. Compare the three-year total, not the first month. Check driver restrictions and coverage caps.
6. Ask about filings first. If your state requires an SR-22 or FR-44, ask each insurer whether it files before you spend time on a quote. An SR-22 is a form your insurer sends the state to prove you are covered. See our SR-22 guide, or the non-owner SR-22 guide if you have no car.
7. Use the plan only if you are refused. Ask the refusing company for its reason, then apply through a licensed agent. Ask about the term and how to leave.
8. Buy before you cancel. Start the new policy before ending the old one. Shop again each time a date on your list passes.

What does this look like in real life?

This example uses made-up numbers. It is not a quote.

Say you had a DUI conviction eight months ago. Before it, you paid $2,000 a year. Your insurer says it will not renew, and you are in Texas. A surcharge of 80% would put a typical price near $3,600.

You get three quotes with the same limits. A standard insurer says $3,900. A non-standard insurer says $3,100, but it limits who can drive the car. A third declines you. You take the $3,100 policy, tell the household who may drive, and write down the date three years after the conviction, when the Texas surcharge can end.

On that date you get new quotes. Your price may drop, and you can leave the specialty insurer.

Common mistakes

• Assuming the plan is your only option. It is a last resort. Florida makes the application warn that private cover may cost less.
• Choosing on monthly price alone. A cheap policy with driver limits or low coverage can leave you exposed when something goes wrong.
• Forgetting other drivers. A suspended license anywhere in your household can lead a Texas insurer to cancel you.
• Waiting for renewal to shop. The best moment is when the incident clears.
• Letting a filing lapse. In Texas, an insurer must tell the state before ending a filed policy. The state then suspends your license and registrations until you file new proof.

Details: state last-resort plans

These notes come from official sources, except where marked. Rules change, so confirm with your state regulator.

Bottom line

If a regular insurer will cover you, buy there, and compare quotes from at least three companies. If every company refuses you, apply for your state’s assigned-risk plan through an agent, and note the date you can leave. Either way, never let coverage lapse, and shop again each time a date passes.

This guide is not legal or financial advice. Confirm current rules with your state regulator. If your status follows a DUI, start with our DUI insurance guide, and see our state pages for Texas, Massachusetts and Florida.