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Public Safety

Surchargeable Incidents


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The Merit Rating Board (MRB) maintains Massachusetts driving records consisting of traffic law violations and at-fault insurance claim records. Out-of-state traffic law violations and at-fault accidents are also reported to the MRB. All of these incidents are called surchargeable incidents. Auto insurance companies may increase your auto insurance premium for surchargeable incidents.

The Merit Rating Board reports all at-fault accidents and traffic violations to insurers. As a result, drivers who cause accidents and violate traffic laws may incur a surcharge and pay more for auto insurance.

For policies effective on or after April 1, 2008, insurers may use the Safe Driver Insurance Plan (SDIP) or develop their own merit rating plan to determine surcharges for drivers with at-fault accidents and traffic violations. Both the SDIP and an insurance company’s own merit rating plan define the surcharges that apply to drivers with at-fault accidents and traffic violations, as well as the discounts given to drivers with clean driving records.

If a surchargeable incident is used to increase your premium, your insurance company is required to send you a statement of your driving record, whether they use the SDIP or their own merit rating plan.

To find out which merit rating plan your insurance company is using, contact your insurance company or your insurance agent.

To learn more about surchargeable incidents, select a topic:

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