You are stopped at a light on Chapman Highway or Kingston Pike and someone slams into your bumper. Beyond the repair bill, the question most drivers ask next is whether their insurance rate will go up. Tennessee Code § 56-7-1109 gives a direct answer: if the accident did not involve negligence on your part, your personal auto insurer cannot use it to set your premium or raise it.
| Situation | What § 56-7-1109 says |
|---|---|
| You were driving and were not negligent | Your personal auto carrier cannot consider the accident in fixing premiums or increase your premium because of it |
| You borrowed a friend's insured car with permission and were not negligent | The owner's premium cannot increase, provided the owner did not breach policy duties by letting you drive |
| You drive for work, in your employer's vehicle, and were not negligent | Your personal auto carrier cannot consider it or raise your personal premium |
| You drive for work but the non-negligent accident was in your own car | It cannot be considered for your employer's insurance or premiums |
Source: Tennessee Code § 56-7-1109.
The key words: "did not involve negligence"
The statute does not use the phrase "not at fault." It protects a driver when the accident "did not involve negligence on the part of the person." That matters because fault is not always all-or-nothing. If an adjuster, police report, or court finds you were partly careless, the protection may not apply. If you were simply struck while driving carefully, it does.
Your crash report is often the first document that shapes that finding. Tennessee's reporting rules are here: Tennessee drivers in many crashes must file a written report within 20 days, even when the other driver was at fault.
Borrowed cars: protecting the owner
When you drive someone else's insured vehicle with their permission and the accident did not involve your negligence, the law says it cannot cause an increase in the owner's personal auto premium. There is one condition: the owner must not have violated any contractual duties or obligations by letting you drive. If the owner's policy excludes a specific driver, for example, that condition may not be met.
If you drive for a living
Subsection (a) covers people employed as drivers. A non-negligent accident in the course of employment, in a vehicle owned by or leased to the employer, cannot be considered by the driver's personal auto carrier or raise the personal premium. The reverse also holds: a non-negligent accident in the employee's own vehicle cannot be counted against the employer's insurance or premiums.
What the statute does not address
- It speaks to premiums. Your deductible and which policy pays first are set by your policy and the facts of the loss.
- If the other driver has no insurance, your uninsured motorist coverage may be what pays: TDCI’s glossary defines uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.
- Repairs under your own collision coverage versus the other driver's liability are explained here: TDCI’s glossary separates collision coverage from comprehensive coverage.
- A repaired car can still lose resale value: TDCI glossary defines diminished value after a vehicle accident.
What to do after a not-at-fault crash
- Get the police report number and the other driver's insurance information at the scene.
- Photograph the vehicles, the road, and any traffic signals or signs.
- Report the claim promptly and ask how fault was determined.
- At renewal, compare your premium to the prior term. If you believe a non-negligent accident was counted, ask your agent or the insurer in writing.
- If you cannot resolve it, the Department of Commerce and Insurance takes complaints: How Tennesseans file an insurance complaint with TDCI’s Consumer Insurance Services.
A separate statute limits when an insurer can cancel an auto policy: Once a Tennessee auto policy has been in force for 60 days, the insurer can cancel it midterm only for reasons the law lists. Driving-based discounts work differently and are explained here: TDCI’s glossary explains how a telemetric device can feed auto insurance rate making.
This article is informational only. It summarizes a Tennessee statute and is not legal advice. It does not promise any premium, coverage, or claim result; your policy and the facts of the accident control.
Related reading from All Seasons
- Once a Tennessee auto policy has been in force for 60 days, the insurer can cancel it midterm only for reasons the law lists.
- Tennessee drivers in many crashes must file a written report within 20 days, even when the other driver was at fault.
- TDCI’s glossary defines uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.
- TDCI’s glossary separates collision coverage from comprehensive coverage.
- How Tennesseans file an insurance complaint with TDCI’s Consumer Insurance Services.
- TDCI’s glossary explains how a telemetric device can feed auto insurance rate making.
- TDCI glossary defines diminished value after a vehicle accident.
Free policy review
All Seasons Insurance Group offers a free personal policy review. Call 865-263-1400 or visit asigtn.com/get-a-quote/. This article is informational only and does not promise coverage or eligibility; your policy forms control. Seasons change. So should your coverage.
Can my car insurance go up after a not-at-fault accident in Tennessee?
Tennessee Code § 56-7-1109 says that if an accident did not involve negligence on your part, your personal auto insurer cannot consider it in fixing premiums or increase your premium because of it.
Does the law say not at fault or not negligent?
The statute uses the words did not involve negligence on the part of the person. If you are found partly negligent, the protection may not apply.
If I wreck a friend's car and it was not my fault, will their rate go up?
The statute says a non-negligent accident while driving another person's insured vehicle with permission shall not increase the owner's premium, provided the owner did not violate policy duties by letting you drive.
I drive a company vehicle. Can a work accident raise my personal premium?
If you are employed as a driver and the accident in your employer's vehicle did not involve your negligence, your personal auto carrier cannot consider it or raise your personal premium.
Can my personal accident affect my employer's insurance?
No, if it did not involve your negligence. The statute says such an accident in your personal vehicle shall not be considered for your employer's insurance or premiums.
Does this law cover my deductible?
The statute addresses premiums. Deductibles and which policy pays are set by your policy and the facts of the loss.
What if I think my insurer counted a non-negligent accident?
Ask your agent or insurer in writing how the accident was rated. If it is not resolved, you can file a complaint with the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance.
How can All Seasons help after reading this?
Call 865-263-1400 or visit asigtn.com/get-a-quote/ for a free personal policy review. Informational only; no coverage promises. Seasons change. So should your coverage.
