Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - MarketWatch Guide recently published information on the financial cost of getting a DUI. Senior Automotive Researcher David Straughan spoke specifically about the impact of a DUI on a Montana driver.

“In Montana, we found that a DUI citation on average raises both minimum and full coverage car insurance rates by about 46%,” Straughan said. “Car insurance costs all over the country are going up. Montana is included in that group of states that have seen an increase in car insurance rates, so already, people in Montana are paying more for car insurance, and getting a DUI conviction will certainly make that problem a lot worse.”

Straughan explained the specific financial burdens of getting a DUI.

“The average car insurance cost in 2024 in Montana, for our base average driver profile, is $515 per year for minimum coverage and $2,384 per year for full coverage,” Straughan said. “With a DUI conviction, those numbers can jump up to $750 per year for minimum coverage, and $3,485 per year for full coverage.”

Straughan said the impact of even a single DUI conviction on your insurance and on your driving record may be permanent.

“The points that you get from a DUI in Montana will stay on your record for five years, but the convictions can stay on your record indefinitely," Straughan said. "That may never come off of your record. That could continue to affect your insurance and other things, but it will certainly affect your rates for up to five years.”

Then Straughan provided stark statistics on fatal DUI crashes in Montana.

“In Montana, we saw 80 total fatalities that involved some amount of alcohol, and that's out of 253 total traffic fatalities,” Straughan said. “So in other words, about 32% of all traffic fatalities in Montana in 2022 involved some amount of alcohol. 27% of all fatal crashes in Montana involved at least one driver over the legal limit, so over .08.”

READ MORE: New Study Ranks Montana As One Of The Worst States For Driving

According to the Montana Department of Transportation, Montana has one of the highest fatality rates in the nation for number of deaths caused by impaired drivers per vehicle mile traveled. In 2022, 13,524 people were killed in alcohol-impaired traffic accidents.

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