The 51 Percent Test Behind an At-Fault Accident
"At fault" is a loose phrase in conversation. In California rating it is a defined term with a procedure behind it, set out in 10 CCR 2632.13. The result feeds two things: your driving safety record, which is the first mandatory rating factor, and your eligibility for a Good Driver Discount policy.
The two-part test
An insurer may not find a driver principally at fault unless both of these are true:
- Cause. The driver's actions were at least 51 percent of the legal cause of the accident.
- Severity. The accident resulted in bodily injury or death, or, where only property was damaged, the total loss or damage exceeded $1,000.
The second part surprises people. A minor parking-lot scrape that you plainly caused, with total damage at or under $1,000, does not meet the regulation's test for a principally-at-fault accident. It may still be a claim, and it may still be something to discuss with your company, but it cannot be treated as principally at fault for rating.
Does the police report decide it?
No. The regulation says an insurer may not rely on "any finding of responsibility for an accident by a public agency," and it may not rely on the point the DMV assigns for an accident either. The insurer has to conduct what the regulation calls a "thorough, fair and objective investigation" and keep records of it. Traffic conviction facts on your motor vehicle record can support a finding, and the record alone is enough only when it contains everything the two-part test needs.
That matters because a report's conclusion and a rating decision are made for different purposes. What decides your rate is the insurer's own finding against the 51 percent test.
| What the law allows | A principally-at-fault finding only when you were at least 51% of the legal cause and the accident caused injury or death, or property damage over $1,000, reached by the insurer's own investigation. |
|---|---|
| What you can change | The evidence the insurer sees: photos, witness details, repair estimates and the outcome of any citation. |
| What you can't | An accident that genuinely meets the test, and the way the company's filed plan surcharges one. |
What a finding does to your record
For the Good Driver test in Insurance Code section 1861.025, a principally-at-fault accident that damaged only property counts as one violation point, on top of any points from a ticket for the same accident. A driver can carry no more than one point in the previous three years and still qualify. A principally-at-fault accident that caused injury or death is different: it disqualifies the driver for the three-year window on its own.
Separately, the DMV keeps its own record. Its handbook says each driver must file an SR 1 for a collision with more than $1,000 in property damage or any injury or death, and that the DMV adds the collision to the driver record whoever caused it. That entry is not the same thing as an insurer's at-fault finding.
If you disagree with the finding
The insurer that covered you must tell you the result in writing, give the basis for it, and tell you about your right to reconsideration. You then have 30 days from receiving that notice to ask for reconsideration, and the insurer has 30 days to answer in writing, with someone other than the original decision-maker doing the review. Before you ask, read our page on the situations presumed not to be your fault; one of them may already apply.
If an accident has changed your price and you want to know how other companies treat the same history, get a quote and describe the accident as it happened.
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Does a small scrape count as an at-fault accident?
Not for rating if only property was damaged and the total was $1,000 or less. The regulation's severity test is not met, even if you caused it.
I wasn't given a ticket. Can I still be found principally at fault?
Yes. A citation is not required; the insurer applies the 51 percent test to what its investigation finds. If the other driver was convicted of a moving violation and you were not, though, a presumption works in your favour.
Is the insurer's finding the same as what the DMV records?
No. The DMV adds a reportable collision to the driver record whoever caused it. The insurer's principally-at-fault finding is a separate decision made under the rating regulation.
How long does an at-fault accident count for the Good Driver Discount?
The Good Driver test looks at the previous three years.