I agree with your reasoning—if you're already flagged as high-risk, accident forgiveness might not significantly lower your current premiums. However, it could prevent another steep hike if you do have an accident later. It's more about damage control than immediate savings in your situation...
Yeah, makes sense. Accident forgiveness seems more like a safety net than an immediate benefit, especially for higher-risk drivers. I recently shopped around in Ohio myself, and noticed some companies bundle it into premium packages without much extra cost, while others charge separately. So definitely worth checking if it's already included or if you'd have to pay extra—might tip the scales on whether it's worthwhile or not.
Honestly, accident forgiveness might be less relevant if you're driving classics or collector cars. Most of us baby our rides anyway, and a single claim can still ding your value, forgiven or not... I'd rather put that money into agreed-value coverage instead.
Gotta say, accident forgiveness always sounded kinda gimmicky to me. I mean, sure, if you're driving a daily commuter through Cleveland rush hour every morning, maybe it's worth it. But for classics or collector cars? Nah.
I remember a few years back when my buddy Mike had his '69 Mustang Mach 1. Beautiful car, candy apple red, pristine condition—he treated that thing better than his own kids (his words, not mine). Anyway, one day some guy backed into him at a diner parking lot. Minor damage—just a dinged fender—but Mike figured since he had accident forgiveness he'd just file the claim and move on. Well, turns out even though the insurance didn't technically raise his rates afterward, the incident still showed up on his record. When he went to sell the car later, potential buyers got skittish seeing an accident listed on the history report. Ended up costing him way more in resale value than if he'd just paid out-of-pocket for repairs.
Since then I've been skeptical about the whole "forgiveness" thing. If you're driving something special—like my old Corvette that only sees daylight on sunny weekends—you're probably better off going with agreed-value coverage and just being extra careful. Besides, most of us classic car folks are already paranoid enough about scratches and dings; we're practically parking three miles away from everyone else at the grocery store anyway...
But hey, if you're commuting through Columbus traffic in your Honda Civic every day? Different story entirely.
"Besides, most of us classic car folks are already paranoid enough about scratches and dings; we're practically parking three miles away from everyone else at the grocery store anyway..."
Haha, nailed it... I'm still learning the ropes here, but even I park my beat-up Civic in the farthest corner of the lot—just in case. Honestly though, accident forgiveness seems more useful for daily drivers in busy areas. For something special, I'd rather keep it off the insurance radar altogether and just pay out-of-pocket if it comes to that. Less hassle in the long run.
