My Geico policy just renewed and the premium increased by $100 for 6 months. I called them to ask why and was told that the rate increased because of their claim history with the Model S. I replied that I had no accident or ticket and their response was that it was not due to my personal history but the history of all Tesla Model S owners in the Maryland area. Talking to the authorized body shop (EuroPro) and the Rockville SC, I have learned that there are numerous cars that have been in multiple accidents, with a few being in 4 and 5 accidents. That's a lot for a car that has only been sold for less than 2 years. EuroPro also said that percentage wise, Tesla drivers seem more accident prone than Porche drivers.
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Mine went up too
My Geico premium went up also. I live in Orlando.
May be Tesla should start its own insurance program.
My Geico premium went up also. I live in Orlando.
May be Tesla should start its own insurance program.
GoBlue88
Member
At the San Diego Tesla Club meeting last week, we were given a presentation by the only Tesla-certified repair shop in the area. Those guys said the same thing, that they are seeing a disproportionate number of Teslas getting into accidents compared to the other high-end brands they service. They also said we should all expect a premium increase once insurance companies get enough data to run their risk models on this car.
Rebel44
Member
While material damage will cost insurance comapnies quie a bit of money, lower change of injury and death (which are major expense for insurance companies) should compensate to some extend.
Rebel44, what you say may be true, but in the U.S., auto insurance has seperate charges for bodily injury (to people) and damage to property (i.e., the car). It is the property portion of the insurance premium that is being raised, without a corresponding decease in the bodily injury portion of the premium.
GoBlue88
Member
Yep. And while there is a lower chance off injury and death to the occupants of a Model S, the same cannot be said for the occupants of any other model car that gets hit by a Model S.
GoBlue88
Member
This place does the vast majority of high-end repairs in San Diego. Porsche, Audi, Aston Martin, Bentley, Land Rover, and Jaguar certified. Pretty sure there is no other body shop in the county that has all those certifications.
I think their opinion is accurate.
Skotty
2014 S P85 | 2023 F-150L
This is my biggest concern with Tesla. High repair costs are a concern, but if I'm careful, I won't wreck my car (I've made it 25 years so far without a significant accident; I'm willing to accept this risk). But there is no way to escape ridiculously high insurance rates. I want a Tesla more than any car I have ever wanted in my life before. Big time. But if the insurance rates are or become ridiculous, I won't buy one. And people everywhere will start to realize that a Tesla costs more than an ICE to maintain for the insurance rates alone.
I have emailed Tesla about this concern. It's huge. It really is. Because insurance rates are outside of Tesla control. Insurance companies could end Tesla. It's Tesla's achilles heel. And auto insurance companies are not friendly; they are evil. Don't get me started on that. Despite never in my life having an auto claim, I have been royally pissed off by auto insurance companies multiple times. Like the time Millers First Insurance out of Illinois cancelled my insurance because I was briefly unemployed, even though I was paying my premiums. Oh I hate auto insurance companies, so so much. I hate them with a passion like nothing else. It's one of the only things in life I legitimately despise. That and wasps. I also hate wasps.
EuroPro in Gaithersburg, MD said disproportionate compared to the Porsche, BMW, Audi cars they repair. They noted that the majority of such car owners have previously driven sports (or sporty) cars, while (in the DC area, the typical owner they see previously drove a non-performance Honda or Toyota and are not used to "powerful" cars. As I noted above, they have repaired some cars 4 and 5 times, which is unbelievable considering the car has been sold only for about 2 years. Sure enough, last week I saw a person going to his Model S and we talked. I asked what he drove beforehand, and he replied a Honda Pilot. He said he was totally unprepared for the power of the car, and he was driving a S60, not a P85.
I don't really understand this. My previous car was a 2002 Protege. My Tesla is way more powerful, but it's not like it's difficult to control that power.
I don't understand the power argument either. It's different experience, that's a fact, but like anything new in your hands, you approach it with with caution and in few days, it feels like you've driven the car forever.
I don't think it's that big of a difference between S85 and P85 anyways, if you're coming from a Corolla I doubt you'll notice the difference between the 2 at first.
I don't think it's that big of a difference between S85 and P85 anyways, if you're coming from a Corolla I doubt you'll notice the difference between the 2 at first.
Not true. It's almost entirely Tesla's fault because of the insane parts cost and labor rates being charged by the "tesla certified shops" which seem to be at the rate of 3x-10x higher than they should be when compared to other comparable vehicles. They refuse to sell parts to "reputable" shops that would charge reasonable rates for repair. Tesla needs to take control of this. These shops can't go ahead charging amounts like$48k for non structural damage which leaves no choice to the insurance companies other than labeling all tesla accidents no matter how big or small as "total loss".
