Will a Sticky Toyota Accelerator Make Your Auto Insurance Rates Rise?

Car insurance experts say no, fortunately. While there have been a few accidents attributed to the faulty Toyota parts, there haven’t been enough to make a dent in car insurance premiums. Car part recalls happen frequently (more than most drivers are aware), and they don’t necessarily cause insurance rates to spike.

Insurers say that if an accident is caused by faulty engineering on the part of the auto manufacturer, the driver isn’t really at fault, and the accident is covered by the insurance.

That being said, there have been a few drivers popping out of the woodwork who say accidents they were involved in prior to the official recall were caused by the faulty devices in Toyota vehicles. Their auto insurance rates were raised after the accidents, and now they want their pre-accident rates, since the problems were caused by Toyota, not them.

For the most part, auto insurance companies are complying in these cases. They have instructed drivers who can prove that their vehicles were part of the recall and that their accidents were attributed to the faulty mechanisms, to contact insurance representatives to file an appeal to decrease the rates to what they were before the accident. In most cases, they will be approved.

What to Do to File an Appeal
If you drive one of the vehicles recalled by Toyota and experienced a recent insurance rate increase due to an accident you believe was caused by the sticky gas pedal, take these steps to file an appeal.

1. Gather all the information about your accident:

a. Date and location where it happened

b. What happened

c. Police report, if available

d. Your car insurance claim paperwork

2. Call your car insurance representative or insurance agent and ask what the process is to file a claim for an accident caused by the Toyota recall. Chances are they already have a process in place just for this purpose.

3. Follow the steps given to you by the rep to a T. Ask when you should expect to hear back.

4. A car insurance investigator may look into your case to determine whether the accident was indeed caused by the faulty foot pedal.

5. Ask for a retroactive reduction in your rate from the time of the accident until now. You may not get it, but it doesn’t hurt to ask.

In general, car recalls are nothing to fear. Manufacturers do their best to ensure the safety of drivers as soon as they realize they have faulty parts. If you haven’t yet scheduled your recall repair, contact your local Toyota dealer for an appointment to get your foot pedal and floor mat replaced for free.