All states take drinking and driving quite seriously, and Pennsylvania is no exception. While a conviction for driving under the influence may take a personal and professional toll on you, research shows that it takes a large financial one, too.
Even as a first-time offender, you should plan on having to pay a fine of about $300. You may also have to attend an alcohol highway safety school. You may, too, have to attend a substance abuse treatment program at your own expense. After you take care of these DUI-related expenditures, though, you still have to think about how much your insurance might go up.
Sharp insurance rate hikes
Regardless of where you live, Insure.com reports that you should expect your auto insurance premiums to rise quite a bit once you have a drunk driving conviction in your history. In Pennsylvania, specifically, you should expect your annual premiums to go up by about 52%. What might this look like?
As an average driver without any DUIs, you may have paid about $1,438 to insure yourself while driving. Once your insurer receives word about your conviction, though, this number rises to $2,192. So, you are looking at paying another $754 a year for insurance after a Pennsylvania DUI conviction.
Offers vary by provider
You may find some variation in terms of how much one insurance company wants to charge you versus another. Also, the provider that offers the most favorable rate to you without a DUI may not be the same one to do so after. So, shopping several different insurance companies may benefit you in the long run.