Had a similar experience myself. I'm in Boise, and when my brother got his DUI, his insurance premiums jumped like crazy—felt like punishment enough just seeing the new monthly bill. But a buddy of mine who lives out near Cascade got one around the same time, and his increase wasn't nearly as brutal. Makes me wonder if insurers are looking at things like accident rates or maybe even the likelihood of repeat offenses based on location? Or could it just be that rural areas have fewer claims overall, so insurers feel less risk hiking up the rates? Either way, seems pretty random to me...
Yeah, you're onto something there. Insurers definitely factor in location when adjusting rates after a DUI. Urban areas like Boise usually have higher accident frequencies and more claims overall, so insurers see them as riskier. Rural spots like Cascade tend to have fewer incidents, so the premium hikes aren't as steep. It's not totally random, but sometimes the differences can feel pretty arbitrary depending on the insurer's internal data and risk models...
"It's not totally random, but sometimes the differences can feel pretty arbitrary depending on the insurer's internal data and risk models..."
Definitely agree with this. I've seen insurers rely heavily on their own internal stats, which aren't always transparent or intuitive. Sometimes two towns just a few miles apart can have noticeably different rate hikes after a DUI, even if their accident frequencies seem similar. And honestly, insurers can get pretty creative with their risk modeling—it's not always as straightforward as urban vs rural. Feels like there's a bit of guesswork involved...
That's a good point about insurers' internal models being a bit of a black box. I've noticed even factors like proximity to highways or intersections can swing rates quite a bit, regardless of actual accident stats. Makes me wonder how much weight they give to things like police enforcement intensity or local DUI prevention programs...maybe those factors subtly shape their risk calculations too? It's definitely not as clear-cut as we'd like.
I see what you're saying, but honestly, I doubt insurers factor in local DUI prevention programs much. From what I've seen, they're usually more reactive—focusing heavily on your driving record and claims history rather than proactive community measures. Could be wrong though...insurance logic is weird sometimes.
