Yes, you generally should tell your insurance company if you get a custom paint job because it's a modification that increases your car's value and repair costs, requiring special coverage (Custom Parts and Equipment), but standard color changes (like blue to a different blue) usually don't affect rates, though updating your DMV registration is always a good idea.
Custom paint jobs and auto insurance rates
Modifying your car with a custom paint job(or other changes like rims or mod exhaust) can make your car look awesome, but you'll be required to report those changes to your insurance company — and you'll likely pay more to insure those modifications.
No, you're not required to notify anyone if you paint your car (unless there's a reason why someone would be interested in its color...?). Most information that talks about your vehicle's color is referring to how it came out of the factory.
In particular, specialist paint work - such as intricate designs, racing designs and colour shifting paint - can radically alter the look of the vehicle and even increase its value. This, to insurance companies, translates as a higher risk of theft, and so a higher risk of them having to pay out.
Paint Work
Especially, getting extra-ordinary paintwork done – like complex racing designs, eye-catchy designs can drastically change the look of your car. It imposes higher possibilities of theft and as a result, the insurance premium will also increase.
The biggest trouble you're likely to get in when it comes to painting your car would be from dressing it up like an emergency vehicle, be it a police car, a fire truck, or an ambulance. Impersonating an officer of the law, for instance, can net you a few years in the clink.
The belief that red cars cost more to insure is a persistent myth, but research and industry experts have debunked this claim. They said it doesn't matter what color cars you drive when it comes to insurance premiums. Insurers don't even ask for the color of a car when setting rates.
You should tell your insurer about them - even if they were done by someone else. If you're not sure if any changes were made before you got the car, it's best to check with the previous owner. Aesthetic changes include changing the body paint colour or adding tints to the windows.
Answer: State laws vary, but even if it's not required where you live, it's best to notify your state's DMV if you change the color of your car. You may not need to change your car title, but you probably should update your registration.
The color of your car doesn't affect your insurance rate. Instead, your insurance company uses other information, like your car's age, location, usage, and your driving record, to help determine insurance rates.
Your vehicle's official registration documents state its color, and in some states, you need to notify the DMV of any color change.
In most cases, a modification will mean a rise in your insurance premiums – particularly if you've managed to increase the value of your car or made it more expensive to repair. But it works both ways – you can also lower your risk in the eyes of insurers.
The main reason for the notion of certain colours being less stable is based on how our eyes respond to certain colours on the spectrum. White vehicle paint fades at the same rate as black and red colours, but white has no 'pigment' and therefore it is not as noticeable.
North American police cars are historically associated with being painted black and white—specifically, with the doors and roof painted white and the rest of the body painted black.
“Though car color usually will not have an impact on your car insurance rates, white, black, blue, and red cars are usually more expensive to purchase across the board as they are very popular colors,” InsuranceQuotes.com added.
In fact, about 35% of all vehicles on the road are white. And although red comes in second for the most-pulled-over car colors, only about 5% of all vehicles on the roadway are red. This means that law enforcement officers have a higher chance of pulling over white cars than red cars.