Chapter 5. External System Verification Policy Merit Rating Board Message Re: Adding Driving Violations After Policy Renewal To Our Valued Insurance Partners, Recently we have received questions regarding the backlog of Out-of-State violations being added to MA driver records. Of concern is that these violations are being added after policy renewal which then causes an increase in premium and/or surchargeable activity to the driver ratings. It is necessary for the proper measures to be taken at this time and for these violations to be added to driving records. These violations are factored into the 6-year policy experience period related to policy inquiries and also remain on the driving record indefinitely. An example of one such addition may be: * A minor violation is added to a driving record with a conviction date of 6/30/2014. * This violation will remain on the driving record and will factor into any policy inquiry/SDIP rating until 6/30/2020. * If the violation was added in March 2020 then it will remain on any policy inquiry/SDIP rating for an additional 3 months. * If this is the first minor incident in the 6-year policy period, the driver may go from an SDIP rating of 99, Excellent Driver Discount to a rating of 98, Excellent Driver Discount with One Minor Incident. * It should be noted that the customer in such a case has been receiving a 99 rating since 2014 when the rating would have been a 98 had the violation been added at the time of the conviction date. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding any violation additions to driving records please feel free to reach out to the Merit Rating Board and we will be happy to review these records. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause to our insurance partners and their customers as we strive to make all necessary updates. 04/20