Car insurance excess is what you are required to pay when you have your vehicle repaired under an insurance claim. The insurance company will pay the amount above the excess to have the repairs completed.
Your insurance company will determine what your excess payment will be when you start your policy. The excess payments in most cases will be made directly to the garage or mechanic that is repairing the vehicle, the insurance will send the remaining amount due directly to them or send a check to you that you will need to bring to the garage.
Every time you file a claim involving repair of damage to your vehicle that was the fault of another motorist the excess payment will be reimbursed to you or it may be deducted from any settlement you receive.
Too many drivers are on the road that have no insurance at all or coverage amounts that are insufficient to cover all your repairs or medical costs. It is illegal to drive while uninsured but this does not stop people from doing it. Your excess amount may not be able to be recovered if you are involved in an accident with a motorist who has insufficient insurance coverage. You can get protection from your insurer against underinsured or uninsured drivers and they will cover the costs that occur from the accident minus the excess payment originally agreed upon in your policy.
It is difficult to determine how many people are actually driving without insurance but the risk is real and this creates a rise in the insurance premiums that the honest drivers have to pay.
The minimum excess that your insurance provider will accept for your policy is the compulsory excess. This amount will change from one driver to the next. The insurer will use your vehicle type, age, experience driving, as well as your driving record to determine your compulsory excess payment. The amount will vary from $50 to $500 or $1000 depending on your criteria and the insurers guidelines.
You can choose to pay a voluntary excess to help lower your premium payments. If you have a very low excess quoted to you it can be increased and this will lower your policy price. You have to be careful when increasing your excess amount as you should be able to afford the amount if the need arises. You do want to lower your premium though so increasing it to what you can afford comfortably should give a good balance.
You should understand that if you have your car in the garage being repaired for an insurance claim that the garage will not release the vehicle to you until full payment is received. The insurance company will pay the amount they are required but the final payment will generally be your excess amount. This is where it comes important to know that you can afford the excess amount you have agreed to when the time comes that you need to have it ready.
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