Oil spill predicted to raise insurance rates

Just as if you have too many accidents or speeding tickets your insurance rates can increase, making you start thinking about searching out insurance reviews to get a better deal, the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is expected to increase insurance costs.

While it's not the fault of the other oil companies, experts predict the higher premiums that will result could force some of the smaller oil and gas companies out of business.

"The experience is that insurance goes up in areas where there have been large claims," Devon President John Richels said at the Reuters Global Energy Summit, noting that rates always rise after big hurricanes.

While BP did not have external insurance, it's seeking up to $700 million through a policy held by Transocean. It's also been reported that Lloyd’s of London has estimated that net claims from the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico stood between $300 million and $600 million as of last week.