Steady increases continue for motor vehicle report fees

August 20, 2021 / 2 min read

The cost of motor vehicle reports (MVRs) continues to climb, with the latest Verisk analysis revealing the nationwide average to be $10.32 as of July 2021, compared to $7.64 ten years ago.

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MVR data is proven to help combat premium leakage.

Verisk’s ten-year analysis of fees shows that state registry fees were up 25 percent nationwide over the past decade, with an average annual growth rate of 2.8 percent in MVR costs. These fees vary widely from state to state; 27 states raised them over the past decade.

Recent changes

Since the fall of 2020, three states have increased their fees. Effective July 1, 2021, the following increases took effect with:

Nebraska, $3.00 to $7.50 per record
Oregon, $11.83 to $13.17 per record
Pennsylvania, $13.00 to $14.00 per record

Nevada reduced its fee from $8.00 to $7.00 per record as of July 1.

Costly but valuable

Rising MVR costs can put a strain on expenses, but the information contained within the reports remains necessary, perhaps increasingly so. MVR data is a proven tool to help combat premium leakage and maintain clean books of business, as well as support risk management. This is especially important for commercial applications, as the information contained in these vital reports can help commercial fleet owners and insurers spot adverse driving history before it leads to accidents. MVRs are also useful in the life insurance industry, helping insurers better understand driving behaviors associated with higher mortality risk.

Smart spending on MVRs

The right strategy can help insurers get the driving history they need while cutting spending on unnecessary MVRs for drivers with clean records. Verisk’s cost-containment tools span the policy life cycle—point of sale, renewal, and ongoing monitoring:

MVR Risk Indicators to flag adverse activity on a driver’s record
Driver monitoring of new violations or changes in driver’s license status
Customized violation triggers and scoring to help contain costs
Help in creating geographically targeted business rules

Tools such as these helped one Verisk customer slash MVR costs by 37 percent, or $1.2 million. Focusing underwriting spend where it was needed helped to improve the combined ratio with no loss of underwriting accuracy. And more premium resulted from ordering full MVRs only when needed.