How much does a Louisiana DWI affect auto insurance rates?

When a Louisiana law enforcement official stops you and charges you with operating while intoxicated or driving while intoxicated, you may face significant penalties if the large leads to a conviction. Some of the penalties you face after a Louisiana drunk driving conviction are criminal in nature. However, you also face financial repercussions, and one of those repercussions involves an increase in your auto insurance.

According to Insure.com, a drunk driving conviction raises your insurance rates by somewhere between about 28% and 371% based on where you live in the country. When you live in Louisiana, you should anticipate your annual automotive insurance premiums to increase by about 48%.

Insurance rate increases

If you consider yourself a pretty typical Louisiana motorist and you do not have any prior drunk driving arrests, you may have paid somewhere in the vicinity of about $2,228 a year to insure yourself behind the wheel. However, once you have your first drunk driving conviction, your annual premium might inch closer to about $3,292. This makes for an annual difference of $1,064.

Insurance company denials

Your current insurance provider may decide to raise your rates quite a bit or even deny you coverage in the wake of a drunk driving conviction. Some insurers consider a driver who has a DWI or OWI to be too much of a liability. For this reason, you may want to have several different insurers give you quotes.

Keep in mind also that the insurance provider that offers the most favorable rate without a DWI may not be the one to do the same once you have a DWI in your driving history.