Honestly, accident forgiveness saved my bacon a couple winters ago. I'm usually the guy who brags about never having an accident (knock on wood), but one icy morning, some dude slid right into me at a stop sign. He was apologetic, but apologies don't pay repair bills, ya know? Turns out he had insurance, thankfully, but my agent said without accident forgiveness, my rates would've jumped anyway—just for being involved. Crazy, right?
I get why some folks hesitate though. It can feel like paying extra for something you might never use. But hey, I also pay for Netflix every month and barely watch it...until that one weekend binge hits. Same logic applies here, I guess.
I've always been on the fence about accident forgiveness. On one hand, your Netflix analogy makes sense—you're paying for peace of mind. But on the other, I've gone decades without a single incident (knocks wood repeatedly), and I can't help but wonder if I've saved enough by skipping it to cover any potential rate hike down the road. Does anyone know if Ohio insurers typically offer it as a standalone add-on, or do they usually bundle it into pricier packages?
From what I've seen in Ohio, accident forgiveness usually isn't offered as a standalone add-on. Most insurers tend to bundle it into their higher-tier packages or premium plans. A few might let you tack it on separately, but that's less common and sometimes comes with eligibility requirements (like a clean record for X years). Given your decades-long clean streak (nice!), you might already qualify for some loyalty discounts that offset potential hikes anyway...worth checking into that first before paying extra.
I've actually found accident forgiveness to be a bit overrated, at least in my experience. A few years back, I had it bundled into my premium plan here in Ohio, thinking it was a smart move. But when I finally had a minor fender-bender (first one in 15 years), the premium hike wasn't as drastic as I'd feared—even without using the forgiveness. Honestly, loyalty discounts and a long clean record seemed to cushion the blow pretty well. Might depend on your insurer, but for me, it wasn't really worth the extra cost.
I'm still on the fence about accident forgiveness myself. I'm a newer driver in Ohio, and my parents suggested adding it to my policy. But hearing your experience makes me wonder—is it mostly marketing hype, or does it genuinely help newer drivers more than experienced ones?
