even if I was drunk I cannot come to that conclusion...
Mmm, counselor, allow me to introduce you to my turbulent friend, Jose Cuervo and his refreshingly less-than-demure niece, Margarita. Their Northern compadres, Mr. Daniels and the Walker brothers will be along shortly to mellow things out. :shades: With enough of their help, you can reach any conclusion you may care to. (and several you'd rather avoid...) :shades:
Still, ya gotta admit a profession that came up with the doctrine of "clean hands" (Har har har, tell me another) can't help but encourage folks to think "I cut corners, you cut corners... Hey, everybody's gotta do it, so why you comin' afta me?"
I went to an auto body shop this morning and they gave me an estimate of $1600. I decided to pay the repair by myself.
This is why I carry the maximum deductible I can find - $5,000 if I recall correctly. (I'd rather have a $10,000 deductible, but I can't find anyone to write it)
For some reason that silly elective I had to take as a senior actually burrowed into my brain... What was that... Couldn't have been Business Law, I flunked that hard - too many Margaritas... (Though Margharita's by far the prettier) Guess it must have been Insurance 101...
Insurance exists to keep responsible people out of bankruptcy... I means not having to look at a mother and say "Sorry, your kid goes to the coal mine 'cause my ship sank. Sorry about your husband."
Insurance is not an installment plan, though many of it's commissioned salespeople and a few congresscritters would prefer it that way. It is there so you can do the right thing when you can't do the right thing.
New to you, but not new to the world, if ya know what I mean. Really, this one's been around the block, no?
Her ins. agent and I have been discussing/debating the repairs to my car for the past 2-weeks. Always a good idea, they will take advantage of you given the opportunity.
I wanted new/not salvaged parts
A reasonably arguable position. They will argue back that they'll have a hard time finding junk yard parts with 100k on them in only 3 years and therefore will have a really hard time bringing you back to "pre-collision" without using new parts.
and no "bondo".
This is where your credibility self-destructs. You don't want a smooth finish on the repair? Alternately, you want them to replace a fender over an easily pullable ding? Bondo, like MIRVs[1], is a tool.
He told me that I was too picky... I may have been a bit over zealous... I agreed to let Honda Dealer Collision (who[...]felt [he] is a great guy) put on whatever they want
Problem solved, no?
-Greg
{1] MIRV, Multiple Independently targeted Reentry Vehicle, Pentagon-speak for a nuclear (not "nukuulaar") warhead mounted with it's closest friends (2-16-ish) on one rocket. I'm not sure the US ever got to 16 - We liked BBs at 100,000 rounds a minute. The Ruuuuuskies, OTOH liked one really, really big boom. Who knows, they might well have gotten to 32 MIRVs since the late 80s. As usual, someone who knows what they're talking about will come along in a sec and correct me.
Honda tells me their parts almost always fit/snap into place or there sent back. I was referring to them using salvage parts that need plenty of help (bondo) to look new. They also wanted to pull out the R-front quarter and putty around the head lamp vs replacing the part./// Wasn't looking for credibility, just really liked my car the way it was.Thank you very much.
I was privy to this scene many years ago, here is the story.
She, uninsured, was T Boned by He who ran a red light, but had insurance.
The state financial responsibility law required Her to get a release from him before they would continue her license. He said, "I'll sign the release when you pay the cost of repairing my pickup." To keep her license, she came up with the $ to pay for repairing his truck. All because she drove without insurance. The law says "Thou shalt not be involved without financial responsibility." The key word is "involved". The law doesn't allow for who's at fault. You have the privilege of driving through the process of license when your either post $35,000 cash with the state, provide a $35,000 Bond, or minimum Liability insurance.
Wasn't looking for credibility, just really liked my car the way it was. Thank you very much.
I'm following you and up to a few years back I'd have agreed with you.... Problem is I kept getting smacked around a lot for no good reason. Finally I figured out that it didn't matter what I thought about the world, it mattered how the world saw me.
Without credibility your best case is to struggle for what's right. Worst case you just get ignored. In this case random statements about a useful tool (Bondo) got you categorized as a PITA and promptly ignored. Fortunately you seem to have struggled through to success, for which I congratulate you.
I recently scraped the side of my car against a parking garage column. I am about to go shopping for paint/body estimates, and I'm wondering if I should expect to get different estimates depending on whether or not I tell the shop I'm going to use my collision insurance.
As the damage is relatively minor, I don't plan on using the insurance--however, I'm wondering whether I'll get a lower (or higher) estimate by telling the shop I might use the insurance.
Beyond this, I'm wondering if the final bill will be likely to be higher (or lower) if I pay on my own, rather than using the insurance.
It would help if we knew the year, make, & model of your car. (Late model luxury cars deserve better treatment repair than the average commuter car.)
IME, body shops will be more economical to the private payor than an Ins. Co.
Crashes such as scraping one of those @#$% invisible posts can usually be fixed quickly. The body shop will be economical hoping to get your repeat business.
Right, I forgot to mention - it's a 2002 Acura RSX. Really painful to scrape it up that way.
I took it to 4 shops (told them I wasn't sure whether or not we'd use the insurance), and got estimates ranging from $1115 to $1325.
The difference in price seems mostly due to some shops wanting to replace the left fender liner and mirror assembly, others not thinking one or both of these needed replacing.
"Remove/Install" simply means taking a part off and putting it back on, right? It doesn't involve any repair/refinishing to the part? The two more expensive estimates wanted to replace the left mirror assembly (it had been scraped pretty badly, though the mirror itself is fine). The two less expensive estimates don't mention doing anything to the mirror assembly, except "removing/installing" it. I wonder if they didn't notice the damage - or just didn't think it worth fixing...
You're correct about R&I - the shop will just take off the existing part as-is and then put it back on after the paintwork has been completed on the repaired panels.
The only reason a fender liner would need to be replaced is if it there is a crack to the liner itself or the tabs. If the damage is really only a scrape, this probably would not need to be replaced.
Is the mirror case body colored or black "textured" plastic? If its body colored, the scrapes may be buffed out or if it went through the paint, it can be refinished. If it is black textured plastic, the scrapes can not be buffed out without destroying the textured finish. This would be the only reason to replace the assembly if it wasn't cracked.
Generally, I have found that a shop is willing to work out a better deal with the customer if they are paying out of pocket and not through an insurance company.
If the damage is really only a scrape, this probably would not need to be replaced.
Well, it's a really bad scrape -- there's some good denting, an inch or so deep in places. I know the fender liner tabs are bent somewhat, but I'm not sure if they actually cracked.
The mirror case body is colored, and I don't think it got more than a scrape, so maybe it doesn't need to be replaced.
At this point, though, I think we're going to use the insurance after all. My wife and I are both currently students, so I think we're willing to risk a higher premium rather than eat the extra $700-$800.
This would be the first "accident" on her record. Any thoughts on whether reporting it would mean an automatic premium increase? I'm hoping this at least varies by company, so we'd have a shot at staying at our current premium...
You may want to check your policy to see if there is a minimum for a "chargeable" accident - IIRC, on my SF policy, an accident isn't chargeable (i.e., won't affect my premium) unless SF has to pay $700. If your policy has a $700 minimum (and you have a $500 deductible), you may be okay anyway...and if you're close, you may want to pay the body shop the little extra it would take to reduce the charge to under $700.
It is also my understanding that the first accident only has a small effect on the premium, but the second accident (w/i 3 years) dramatically affects the premium.
How much liability insurance should a college student without substancial amount of asset have?
Right now I have 250/500/50 but I think its more than needed for someone with my profile and the premium is too much. There is no question that more is better, but that costs me more in premium.
I recently hit a deer at about 60mph in my 2002 Nissan Altima SE 3.5. The estimated damage is $8,500. The State Farm claims adjuster I spoke with told me the value of my car is $16,700. He said that's based on the NADA business-to-business book.
The blue book value of my car is less than $10,000 and my brother, who works at a dealership said they would appraise my car at about $9,000. It has 74,000 miles on it and is in fair condition, at best. The bottom liine is I don't feel comfortable getting a car back that's had almost as much repair work on it as it's true value. I'd like to get rid of it.
Is the common with insurance companies, or should I look for a new insurance company?
My logic was that because he was on the road illegally, if he's in an accident (even if it was my fault) he shouldnt have been on the road in the first place...so doesnt get compensated when something happens.
" My logic was that because he was on the road illegally, if he's in an accident (even if it was my fault) he shouldnt have been on the road in the first place...so doesnt get compensated when something happens. "
In the eyes of the law and logically speaking, you are wrong. I know people who have been in an accident, got arrested for DWI, but the accident they were in was not their fault, so their insurance didn't have to pay.
While trying to park my car, (a leased 2004 Chevy Malibu Maxx) I hit the bumper of an SUV and caused a good amount of damage on the passenger side. The damage runs from under the gas hatch to the front door. I have had estimates from 600 bucks through 2000. The guy we may be going with said $900. Would it be worth it to go through insurance and pay the $500 premium, when I am part of a 4 person family insurance policy? Or should I just pay the $900 out of pocket? I'm afraid that if I do use insurance, that the accident will be on the record and then our rates will go up if , god forbid, a family member has a fender bender within the next three years.
Keep your present Bodily Injury Liability Limits and INcrease your Property Damage Liability to 100.
You may not be worth much now, but a college graduate can start earning over 60,000 a year and a judgement today can garnish your future earnings until it is paid.
Understand you wanted to get rid of your car prior to hitting the deer. Congratulations on your success in striking a moving object.
The insurance industry is not wired to "feel your desire". They just pay the cost of repair & go to the next claim.
Fix the car and if then you still want another one, trade it in as your brother can surely get you a really good deal, but changing insurance companies will not help in your love or hate affair with your ride.
If the other car was occupied, use your insurance company who will get an injury release settlement.
It there was a policy report, your insurance company will eventually find out about the accident and surcharge your policy, so you might just as well cash in. It all depends on whether or not the car was empty of people and if a policy report was made.
When you change companies, how will you answer the questionnaire regarding prior crashes?
If he's part of the household and doesn't have his on policy then you would need to cover him or ris what I posted earlier (delial of policy benefits in an accident)
This may be a stupid question, but my 93 VW was just hit, and even though I don't have collision my insurance company will handle it under their uninsured motorist coverage. My car is now waiting at a body shop for the claims guy to take a look at it, but I'm sure it's totaled. My question is, if I accept their settlement can I pull the MP3 player, wiring harness, and speakers and keep them? Or will someone say I'm stripping the car? There was no working stereo when I bought it, used, and the speakers were blown. I got a nice player and some good speakers installed as a birthday present, and I'd like to keep them.
Do I need to still purchase this if I do not mind paying the deductible on my collision & comprehensive insurance, and have excellent health insurance from my company. I have auto insurance through AM EX/Costco and the phone rep wouldn't explain the need of this for me. I have assets so I need all the protection I can get but It just seems like duplicate coverage to me - please correct me if I am wrong. Thanks..
" Do I need to still purchase this if I do not mind paying the deductible on my collision & comprehensive insurance, and have excellent health insurance from my company "
I'm in exactly the same situation as you are and cancelled UIM protection because of that. Can anyone think why someone in our situation would need UIM?
Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury Coverage is buying B.I. Liability for your benefit and your passengers and applies when the at fault party is uninsured or underinsued.
You may have a very extensive and wonderful medical insurance plan for you and your family, but your private health insurance will NOT cover the medical bills of your passengers. If you should loan your vehicle to another, the borrower assumes, in this day and age, that you automatically carry UMBI.
IMO a professional insurance agent would never provide a policy without it. Doing so creates a greater possibility of an E & O claim.
Personal Injury Protection, formerly known as Medical Payments, only goes so far in paying the med bills. UMBI is the necessary umbrella for catastrophic med bills.
Orthopedic surgery & it's associated costs are very expensive, often over 100k. Some health insurance plans have up to a 20% deductible on such claims.
If you have UMBI, keep it. If you don't have it, get it. It's prudent to do so.
OK I'll play devil's advocate here. You must be an insurance agent.
I don't recall the figure when I cancelled my UMBI but it wasn't chump change. You gave two scenarios when one would need UMBI.
1) I'm in an accident. AND I'm not at fault. AND the at fault party has no insurance or not enough insurance. AND there are non-family members in my vehicle.
2) I loan my vehicle to someone, extremely unlikely. AND they're in an accident. AND the at fault party has no insurance or not enough insurance. I believe in most states the driver's insurance would still kick in. But that wouldn't change my argument.
Sorry but given the chances of any scenario playing out, I just can't justify spending significant money on UMBI. We all don't have a money tree growing in our back yard so we can insure ourselves against every possible scenario. Insurance, not just auto insurance, is about making choices and fitting the best coverage within one's budget.
My friend put a hefty dent in my truck when he borrowed it. He does not have collision insurance himself. In his zeal to make things right he tried to bang the dent out with a hammer (without my permission) before I went to retrieve the truck. I knew he had done this, and could tell where without his telling me because of the cracks in the paint. I assume an insurance claims agent would also be able to tell what happened by looking.
Does it seem likely this would prevent me from being able to file a claim on my own insurance?
To me, it seems I'm insured against accidents, not lousy repairs. On the other hand, I had nothing to do with the damage he did, either initially or during his "repairs." Any thoughts?
I was recently in an accident. I was stopped at a red light when I was rear ended and then pushed into the car in front of me. The guy who hit me did have insurance but he had no-fault insurance and I have normal insurance (we live in MI..l recently moved here and haven't converted from IL insurance yet). Is there anyway I can get the guy who hit me to pay for my rental car? I had to rent a car for over a month! Any suggestions on what to say in a letter I write him to ask for the money? I would love to take care of this without small claims court (would I even win if we went to court?) THANKS!!!
ummmm.... wait? You mean he's paying for your car repair out of his pocket? How can someone carry no-fault insurance but not carry liability? So his car is covered and nobody elses? I don't get it.
In any case, if you were going through his insurance, yes, they would pay for a rental car. So I would think he should, too.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
No no sorry....I didn't explain that well. My insurance company is paying for the repairs since it was a no-fault state in which the accident occured. But currently I paid for the rental car out of pocket (almost $550) and was hoping he would reimburse me since neither of the insurance companies are willing to pay for the rental.
"The given chances of any scenario playing out" are greater than your being involved in an at fault crash. So why do you carry Liability Insurance in excess of statuatory limits? Your reasoning for not carrying UMBI can be applied to not carrying any insurance. The problem is, you are not in control of your future, fate, and other drivers goofs. The prudent & financially safe thing is to have UMBI.
Personally, I was licensed as a P & C agent back in 1956. I owned and operated four agencies combining them into one location. I was involved in Continuing Education, holding classes for our county association for over 30 years and retired ten years ago. However, the best teacher in my half century of insurance has been Experience which is why I recommend UMBI.
" The prudent & financially safe thing is to have UMBI. "
We can agree to disagree. For my hard earned money, as long as my family is covered by a sound medical plan and I can afford the deductible on my comp & collision, for the price of UMBI, it's a waste.
"IMO a professional insurance agent would never provide a policy without it. Doing so creates a greater possibility of an E & O claim.
Personal Injury Protection, formerly known as Medical Payments, only goes so far in paying the med bills. UMBI is the necessary umbrella for catastrophic med bills."
While it is my simplistic opinion that any insurance agent that everything should be offered, when someone goes in and says "Just give me the insurance that the law and my lender requires", that is enough...the possibility of an E&O claim against the insurance agent is less than zero.
Also, Personal Injury Protection and Medical Payments co-exist side by side, sort of...if you are in a no-fault state, it is called PIP...if in a fault state it is called Med-Pay... :shades:
On a rainy day a car (Pontiac Grand-Prix) was fishtailing/drifting at the T intersection and smashed with his right side into parked car. The driver tried to keep on driving right away, but he got stock to parked car, so without even thinking for a sec. he puts in reverse. Wile he was backing up the parked car got stocked to his car and he dragged that car backwards into my car parked behind him. He got away and I only got partial license plate number cops didn't find him. I only got liability insurance. Who should I claim at? Can I claim at the car that he dragged into my car. The damage to my front end is around $2000.
Underinsured Motorist Property Damage on your policy would be triggered with a small deductible because "Hit & Run" can be proven. UMPD is very beneficial when you have a valuable vehicle, but do not carry collision.
Your claim is against the driver who did all the damage, but if they cannot locate him by a partial license plate, and all you have is liability insurance, you will pay out of your wallet...euphonium is correct, that the PD portion of UM will pay for damages after paying your deductible, but you do not have UM...this is just an example of what I keep trying to emphasize...
By purchasing only liability, you have assumed the financial risk for ALL other damages, except those you inflict on another...by "saving" all that $$$ on UM premiums, you will now spend $2K to fix your car...only you can decide if the premium savings was worth the $2K you are about to spend on repairs... :shades:
" UMPD is very beneficial when you have a valuable vehicle, but do not carry collision. "
And who in their right mind would have a valuable vehicle and NOT carry collision? If they're foolish enough not to carry collision, I can't imaging they'd carry something like UMPD.
"valuable" to different people means different amounts of $.
When a vehicle is worth under $5,000 & you can afford to not carry collision, UMPD is a form of collision coverage at a much lower cost because your are narrowing the damage caused, - by an uninsured, at fault, other driver.
No need for sarcastic comments like that pal. We disagree on certain things. You're button is uninsured motorists. You were probably hit by one so I would understand your view point. Let's direct your comments to the issue and not the poster.....OK?
Let's keep the personal comments out of it, please.
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my wife was rear-ended last week, which only caused minor scratches to the rear bumper. this is a 2005 VW Passat and is only one month old, so she is obviously more upset about it than had it been her old car. anyways, the other driver's insurance has already spoken with us and is willing to cover any costs associated with repairing or replacing the rear bumper. my question is, is there any impact as far as depreciation is concerned if we follow through with this insurance claim. the adjuster told us, that since the bumper is plastic, more than likely it will have to be replaced all together.
1) Collision & comp insurance 2) Health insurance paying 100% of all claims in-network with NO limits - this would cover any catastrophic incidents 3) No one else driving my cars
Are there any other situations this insurance would cover? If not, from the previous posts it would seem that I do not need.
Based on the other insurance you have and the information euphoria posted in post #1208, only your passengers who are not immediate family members could come after you for their medical bills if you were in an accident and the other driver was at fault and they were not or under-insured.
Do you need UMBI? That's for you to decide. Do you frequently drive with friends in the car? In rush hour traffic like maybe a car pool? If so, I'd get UMBI.
Comments
Mmm, counselor, allow me to introduce you to my turbulent friend, Jose Cuervo and his refreshingly less-than-demure niece, Margarita. Their Northern compadres, Mr. Daniels and the Walker brothers will be along shortly to mellow things out.
:shades: With enough of their help, you can reach any conclusion you may care to. (and several you'd rather avoid...) :shades:
Still, ya gotta admit a profession that came up with the doctrine of "clean hands" (Har har har, tell me another) can't help but encourage folks to think "I cut corners, you cut corners... Hey, everybody's gotta do it, so why you comin' afta me?"
-Greg, professional Devil's advocate.
The pay's great but the checks always bounce.
Hmm.
Maybe I can make it up on volume...
This is why I carry the maximum deductible I can find - $5,000 if I recall correctly. (I'd rather have a $10,000 deductible, but I can't find anyone to write it)
For some reason that silly elective I had to take as a senior actually burrowed into my brain... What was that... Couldn't have been Business Law, I flunked that hard - too many Margaritas... (Though Margharita's by far the prettier)
Insurance exists to keep responsible people out of bankruptcy... I means not having to look at a mother and say "Sorry, your kid goes to the coal mine 'cause my ship sank. Sorry about your husband."
Insurance is not an installment plan, though many of it's commissioned salespeople and a few congresscritters would prefer it that way. It is there so you can do the right thing when you can't do the right thing.
-Greg
New to you, but not new to the world, if ya know what I mean. Really, this one's been around the block, no?
Her ins. agent and I have been discussing/debating the repairs to my car for the past 2-weeks.
Always a good idea, they will take advantage of you given the opportunity.
I wanted new/not salvaged parts
A reasonably arguable position. They will argue back that they'll have a hard time finding junk yard parts with 100k on them in only 3 years and therefore will have a really hard time bringing you back to "pre-collision" without using new parts.
and no "bondo".
This is where your credibility self-destructs. You don't want a smooth finish on the repair? Alternately, you want them to replace a fender over an easily pullable ding? Bondo, like MIRVs[1], is a tool.
He told me that I was too picky... I may have been a bit over zealous...
I agreed to let Honda Dealer Collision (who[...]felt [he] is a great guy) put on whatever they want
Problem solved, no?
-Greg
{1] MIRV, Multiple Independently targeted Reentry Vehicle, Pentagon-speak for a nuclear (not "nukuulaar") warhead mounted with it's closest friends (2-16-ish) on one rocket. I'm not sure the US ever got to 16 - We liked BBs at 100,000 rounds a minute. The Ruuuuuskies, OTOH liked one really, really big boom. Who knows, they might well have gotten to 32 MIRVs since the late 80s. As usual, someone who knows what they're talking about will come along in a sec and correct me.
She, uninsured, was T Boned by He who ran a red light, but had insurance.
The state financial responsibility law required Her to get a release from him before they would continue her license. He said, "I'll sign the release when you pay the cost of repairing my pickup." To keep her license, she came up with the $ to pay for repairing his truck. All because she drove without insurance. The law says "Thou shalt not be involved without financial responsibility." The key word is "involved". The law doesn't allow for who's at fault. You have the privilege of driving through the process of license when your either post $35,000 cash with the state, provide a $35,000 Bond, or minimum Liability insurance.
Trust this meets your wildest imagination.
I'm following you and up to a few years back I'd have agreed with you.... Problem is I kept getting smacked around a lot for no good reason. Finally I figured out that it didn't matter what I thought about the world, it mattered how the world saw me.
Without credibility your best case is to struggle for what's right. Worst case you just get ignored. In this case random statements about a useful tool (Bondo) got you categorized as a PITA and promptly ignored. Fortunately you seem to have struggled through to success, for which I congratulate you.
Cheers,
-Greg
As the damage is relatively minor, I don't plan on using the insurance--however, I'm wondering whether I'll get a lower (or higher) estimate by telling the shop I might use the insurance.
Beyond this, I'm wondering if the final bill will be likely to be higher (or lower) if I pay on my own, rather than using the insurance.
Thanks!
IME, body shops will be more economical to the private payor than an Ins. Co.
Crashes such as scraping one of those @#$% invisible posts can usually be fixed quickly. The body shop will be economical hoping to get your repeat business.
I took it to 4 shops (told them I wasn't sure whether or not we'd use the insurance), and got estimates ranging from $1115 to $1325.
The difference in price seems mostly due to some shops wanting to replace the left fender liner and mirror assembly, others not thinking one or both of these needed replacing.
"Remove/Install" simply means taking a part off and putting it back on, right? It doesn't involve any repair/refinishing to the part? The two more expensive estimates wanted to replace the left mirror assembly (it had been scraped pretty badly, though the mirror itself is fine). The two less expensive estimates don't mention doing anything to the mirror assembly, except "removing/installing" it. I wonder if they didn't notice the damage - or just didn't think it worth fixing...
The only reason a fender liner would need to be replaced is if it there is a crack to the liner itself or the tabs. If the damage is really only a scrape, this probably would not need to be replaced.
Is the mirror case body colored or black "textured" plastic? If its body colored, the scrapes may be buffed out or if it went through the paint, it can be refinished. If it is black textured plastic, the scrapes can not be buffed out without destroying the textured finish. This would be the only reason to replace the assembly if it wasn't cracked.
Generally, I have found that a shop is willing to work out a better deal with the customer if they are paying out of pocket and not through an insurance company.
Well, it's a really bad scrape -- there's some good denting, an inch or so deep in places. I know the fender liner tabs are bent somewhat, but I'm not sure if they actually cracked.
The mirror case body is colored, and I don't think it got more than a scrape, so maybe it doesn't need to be replaced.
At this point, though, I think we're going to use the insurance after all. My wife and I are both currently students, so I think we're willing to risk a higher premium rather than eat the extra $700-$800.
This would be the first "accident" on her record. Any thoughts on whether reporting it would mean an automatic premium increase? I'm hoping this at least varies by company, so we'd have a shot at staying at our current premium...
It is also my understanding that the first accident only has a small effect on the premium, but the second accident (w/i 3 years) dramatically affects the premium.
YMMV.
Right now I have 250/500/50 but I think its more than needed for someone with my profile and the premium is too much. There is no question that more is better, but that costs me more in premium.
The blue book value of my car is less than $10,000 and my brother, who works at a dealership said they would appraise my car at about $9,000. It has 74,000 miles on it and is in fair condition, at best. The bottom liine is I don't feel comfortable getting a car back that's had almost as much repair work on it as it's true value. I'd like to get rid of it.
Is the common with insurance companies, or should I look for a new insurance company?
In the eyes of the law and logically speaking, you are wrong. I know people who have been in an accident, got arrested for DWI, but the accident they were in was not their fault, so their insurance didn't have to pay.
did you damage the other vehicle? I hope you left a note.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
You may not be worth much now, but a college graduate can start earning over 60,000 a year and a judgement today can garnish your future earnings until it is paid.
The insurance industry is not wired to "feel your desire". They just pay the cost of repair & go to the next claim.
Fix the car and if then you still want another one, trade it in as your brother can surely get you a really good deal, but changing insurance companies will not help in your love or hate affair with your ride.
It there was a policy report, your insurance company will eventually find out about the accident and surcharge your policy, so you might just as well cash in. It all depends on whether or not the car was empty of people and if a policy report was made.
When you change companies, how will you answer the questionnaire regarding prior crashes?
Dont make it a big deal...next time you go to the body shop..just mention theres some stuff that youd like to take. No need to draw attention to it.
I'm in exactly the same situation as you are and cancelled UIM protection because of that. Can anyone think why someone in our situation would need UIM?
You may have a very extensive and wonderful medical insurance plan for you and your family, but your private health insurance will NOT cover the medical bills of your passengers. If you should loan your vehicle to another, the borrower assumes, in this day and age, that you automatically carry UMBI.
IMO a professional insurance agent would never provide a policy without it. Doing so creates a greater possibility of an E & O claim.
Personal Injury Protection, formerly known as Medical Payments, only goes so far in paying the med bills. UMBI is the necessary umbrella for catastrophic med bills.
Orthopedic surgery & it's associated costs are very expensive, often over 100k. Some health insurance plans have up to a 20% deductible on such claims.
If you have UMBI, keep it. If you don't have it, get it. It's prudent to do so.
I don't recall the figure when I cancelled my UMBI but it wasn't chump change. You gave two scenarios when one would need UMBI.
1) I'm in an accident. AND I'm not at fault. AND the at fault party has no insurance or not enough insurance. AND there are non-family members in my vehicle.
2) I loan my vehicle to someone, extremely unlikely. AND they're in an accident. AND the at fault party has no insurance or not enough insurance. I believe in most states the driver's insurance would still kick in. But that wouldn't change my argument.
Sorry but given the chances of any scenario playing out, I just can't justify spending significant money on UMBI. We all don't have a money tree growing in our back yard so we can insure ourselves against every possible scenario. Insurance, not just auto insurance, is about making choices and fitting the best coverage within one's budget.
Does it seem likely this would prevent me from being able to file a claim on my own insurance?
To me, it seems I'm insured against accidents, not lousy repairs. On the other hand, I had nothing to do with the damage he did, either initially or during his "repairs." Any thoughts?
In any case, if you were going through his insurance, yes, they would pay for a rental car. So I would think he should, too.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
Personally, I was licensed as a P & C agent back in 1956. I owned and operated four agencies combining them into one location. I was involved in Continuing Education, holding classes for our county association for over 30 years and retired ten years ago. However, the best teacher in my half century of insurance has been Experience which is why I recommend UMBI.
We can agree to disagree. For my hard earned money, as long as my family is covered by a sound medical plan and I can afford the deductible on my comp & collision, for the price of UMBI, it's a waste.
Personal Injury Protection, formerly known as Medical Payments, only goes so far in paying the med bills. UMBI is the necessary umbrella for catastrophic med bills."
While it is my simplistic opinion that any insurance agent that everything should be offered, when someone goes in and says "Just give me the insurance that the law and my lender requires", that is enough...the possibility of an E&O claim against the insurance agent is less than zero.
Also, Personal Injury Protection and Medical Payments co-exist side by side, sort of...if you are in a no-fault state, it is called PIP...if in a fault state it is called Med-Pay...
By purchasing only liability, you have assumed the financial risk for ALL other damages, except those you inflict on another...by "saving" all that $$$ on UM premiums, you will now spend $2K to fix your car...only you can decide if the premium savings was worth the $2K you are about to spend on repairs... :shades:
And who in their right mind would have a valuable vehicle and NOT carry collision? If they're foolish enough not to carry collision, I can't imaging they'd carry something like UMPD.
When a vehicle is worth under $5,000 & you can afford to not carry collision, UMPD is a form of collision coverage at a much lower cost because your are narrowing the damage caused, - by an uninsured, at fault, other driver.
Happy to help broaden your education - again.
Euphonium
No need for sarcastic comments like that pal. We disagree on certain things. You're button is uninsured motorists. You were probably hit by one so I would understand your view point. Let's direct your comments to the issue and not the poster.....OK?
Peace
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2015 Kia Soul, 2021 Subaru Forester (kirstie_h), 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 (mr. kirstie_h)
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so why is this a "no-fault" accident?? You said he rear-ended you, no? What is more "at-fault" than that??
well, unfortunately, if you have to go through your insurance, and you don't carry rental reimbursement on your policy, there is nothing you can do.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
1) Collision & comp insurance
2) Health insurance paying 100% of all claims in-network with NO limits - this would cover any catastrophic incidents
3) No one else driving my cars
Are there any other situations this insurance would cover? If not, from the previous posts it would seem that I do not need.
Do you need UMBI? That's for you to decide. Do you frequently drive with friends in the car? In rush hour traffic like maybe a car pool? If so, I'd get UMBI.