California DUI / DWI Criminal Defense Attorney and Car Insurance

DUI / DWI and Car Insurance

There is no question that a drunk driving conviction is not good for a person’s car insurance rates. Insurance companies are basically gambling on the odds that a driver will not get into an accident or have their car stolen. When an individual is convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol, the insurance company will consider that person a greater risk for loss and will therefore increase that person’s premiums substantially or even cancel the policy altogether. One way to avoid this expense is to hire an experienced DUI / DWI attorney to fight the charges.

A DUI / DWI charge in California results in two separate cases. A driver will face a California DMV hearing and a California criminal case. Each case must be dealt with as soon as possible in order to avoid unnecessary negative repercussions. One such negative repercussion is the possibility that the driver’s insurance rates will increase or that the insurance company will cancel the policy altogether. In California Department of Motor Vehicles cases a person arrested on suspicion of drunk driving has ten days from the date of arrest to request a DMV hearing or the person’s license to drive will automatically be suspended. Such a suspension will have to be reported to the driver’s insurance carrier.

In your drunk driving criminal case, the first step is the arraignment. At the arraignment, you will be asked to enter a plea of Guilty, Not Guilty, or No Contest. You don’t have to enter a Guilty plea. If you do enter a plea of Guilty, you will be convicted and will face significant issues with car insurance. An accomplished and experienced DUI / DWI attorney can fight your case and win. Oftentimes it takes costly resources to fight a driving under the influence case, and the issues are complex. It is possible to win a case with the right legal counsel with a great strategy for success in both the D.M.V. hearing and the criminal case.

A driver who is merely arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated is under no obligation to report the arrest to the insurance company. Being arrested for a crime is different than being convicted. People are considered innocent until proven guilty, even to the insurance company. If one is convicted however, there will generally be some form of reporting requirement to fulfill. An experienced California criminal defense lawyer will aggressively defend a driver in a criminal case and give advice on how to communicate with an insurance company.

In reality, most large national insurance companies will cancel a driver’s policy once they have been notified of a conviction for drunk driving or driving under the influence of drugs.

Drivers convicted of DUI / DWI need to file an SR-22 form, or formal Certificate of Insurance, following the conviction. Drivers must also report a finding of Guilty at a DMV hearing. SR-22 forms are only used in drunk driving cases. Therefore, if someone requests an SR-22 from his or her insurer, this will raise an immediate red flag with the company.

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