Determination of “Principally At-Fault” Accidents in California

In 2011, The California Department of Insurance made changes to California Administrative Code Title 10, Section 2632.13 Determination of “Principally At-Fault” Accidents.
This section explains the procedures an insurer should follow to determine whether a driver may be considered principally at-fault for an accident for the purpose of determining the driver’s driving safety record and eligibility for the Good Driver Discount.

Effective last December, insurance companies made the following changes to adhere to these requirements:

• Insurance carriers will record a claim as “Chargeable – Damage to Property Only” with the surcharge of (1) Good Driver point where:
• The driver is greater than or equal to 51% at fault; and
• No CA-specific fault exemptions apply; and
• Damage is to property only and the damage exceeds $1,000
  Please note: the $1,000 threshold is inclusive of any deductible charges. For example: $500 deductible + $600 collision payout would be considered as chargeable.
• Insurance carriers will record a claim as “Chargeable – Bodily Injury Involved” with the surcharge of (2) Good Driver points in the event that the claim involves bodily injury or death and:
• The driver is greater than or equal to 51% at fault; and
• No CA-specific fault exemptions apply

It is important for consumers to keep any evidence of how a claim was handled in their personal records. California Department of Motor Vehicle records do not show which party was at fault in an accident. If you change insurance companies, you may need to prove to your new carrier that an accident was not chargeable. Keeping a copy of the claims adjustor’s letter can be very helpful. You should keep this information for a minimum of three years. If you don't have this information you may have to ask the insurance carrier at the time of the accident for a letter of experience.