A new hot topic in insurance is accident response fees. These are fees levied on accident victims for the time and service provided by emergency responders, including fire, police and ambulance, at car accident scenes. Some municipalities are using accident response fees as a funding mechanism to provide additional revenue without raising property or income taxes. Fees can range from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars; however, there is no consistency in the fees that are charged from state to state.
These fees are becoming more common in the more liberal states in the west, but the trend is moving toward the eastern coast. Currently, ten states, including Georgia, restrict local governments from charging accident response fees.
The concern regarding accident response fees is because as a resident, you already pay for police and fire services through a portion of your property and local income taxes. Nonresidents may also be subsidizing these city services through income taxes.
Collection companies have the ability to bill your car insurance company for accident response fees, without you knowing. Insurance companies feel these fees are strictly the responsibility of the individual involved in the accident. Some fees, like ambulance service, may be covered by the medical coverage in your insurance policy, but these are charges most residents may not know about, since they are usually billed to your auto insurance company.
Many states charge fees when emergency services are dispatched for intentional false calls, such as, what happened in the 2009 incident of the Balloon Boy in Colorado. Nonetheless, most auto accidents warrant a dispatch of both police and fire personnel whether or not the services are used.
Unfortunately, if you are billed for an accident response fee, you have no other option than to pay it. We suggest that you ask your car insurance broker what is specifically covered in your car insurance policy. If you would like to talk to one of our experts about your insurance coverages, call us at 770-429-9166 or e-mail at experts@henssler.com.
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