Regardless of the circumstances surrounding your arrest, a first-time conviction for driving under the influence in Pennsylvania is going to hurt you financially. In addition to having to pay large fines, you may also encounter towing and bail fees, expenses related to substance abuse classes and similar expenditures.
While these expenses add up fast, you must also consider how much your auto insurance bills are going to rise in the wake of a Pennsylvania DUI conviction. How much of an increase should you expect?
Skyrocketing insurance premiums
According to Insure.com, if you are, aside from your DUI, a typical Pennsylvania motorist, you should still expect to watch your annual auto insurance premiums rise by more than 50% after a DUI. To put this in dollars and cents, say you were paying $1,438 a year for insurance coverage before authorities arrested and charged you with drunk driving.
Once that drunk driving charge leads to a conviction, your annual premium should increase to about $2,192. This is a $754, or 52%, increase over what you paid for insurance before your conviction.
Issues finding insurers
While paying this much more for insurance may hurt your wallet and bank account, you may also find it difficult to identify an insurance provider that wants to cover you at all. Some insurers balk at covering motorists who have DUIs in their driving histories. Even if you are able to find several insurers willing to cover you, the offers they make may prove quite different. So, you may want to check with several different providers before agreeing to a particular rate.
