Effective Car Insurance

We all said this to ourselves, we need a car… and so it begins the quest to find the perfect car…

oh man… I NEED A CAR!!!… I really need a car to go from point A to point B / here to there / anywhere to everywhere… hehhe…I need a car so I won’t bug my Dad to let me borrow his to get things like my usual cravings for coffee, burgers, pizza, chicken wings, or when i need to go to Blockbuster to rent games and such… hehehhee!!

I desperately NEED a car… but I still need to a research on cars… I want a BMW M5
Can I afford it? really that’s the question I leave to the philosophers…hehhe but for my price range it’s from $10k – $30k, so BMW M5 would be out of the picture…

What if I list my far-out Specifications and standards on the type of car I would need…

it should be able to fly, and I can drive to a side of a building, that car should be able to sense what i’m feeling on that time i’m driving it, so if i’m angry… it would change into a menacing car… like what the batmobile looks like hheee… voice-activated driving (oh YEAH! the best)… so i don’t need to hold the steering wheel, when i’m driving on the freeway, i can switch the voice-activated driving on and off anytime i want… and my steering or control pad would be like my xbox 360 controller, and oooohh, ooooohhh i know….I want a soda dispenser, a microwave oven, a coffee maker, a personal fridge and a grill… so i can make burgers, sandwiches, drink coffee anytime when I’m driving… and it should fold small enough to fit in my pocket so I don’t have to worry about parking too far…

The adventures of the QuickStop Project — BackPackers Crew : Jaren’s Quest for the perfect car and the mixture fantasy and reality…

Pic Link
AutoClub.com.AU

Also via [Auto Insurance Blog]

“Always buy original,” this is what we usually hear from car manufacturers. There’s a very valid reason to this as having original car parts will ensure that you’ll be covered by their warranty and guarantee. Another reason is for insurance.

Your insurance company promises to return your vehicle to its pre-accident condition after you’re involved in a crash. Unfortunately, the definition of “pre-accident condition” is hazy at best, and the use of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts at repair time could develop into a tug of war.

OEM parts are manufactured by the maker of your vehicle. Non-OEM parts, often called aftermarket or generic parts, are made by third-party vendors. Many insurance companies recommend non-OEM parts for the repair of damaged vehicles to keep insurance costs down. The industry sees non-OEM parts as quality replacements that are guaranteed and a perfectly reasonable alternative to OEM parts, and less expensive.

Insurance policy coverage requires repairs that use “certified” parts, parts of “like kind and quality,” or “functionally equivalent” parts. These are commonly called aftermarket crash parts. These aftermarket parts usually cost less than genuine OEM parts.

Many consumers aren’t aware that their car insurance coverage may allow use of aftermarket parts. One of the easiest ways for for you to ensure you get the highest quality parts is to choose an insurance policy that assures use of OEM parts. Read your policy carefully and ask your agent before you have a claim.

State Farm issues repair estimates using only OEM parts for exterior crash parts, although the company may prescribe aftermarket parts for non-crash components, such as batteries and headlights. State Farm sometimes also recommends recycled crash parts, mainly for older vehicles, when it believes a recycled part will restore the vehicle to its pre-loss condition.

You are certainly entitled to demand OEM parts after you crash your car, but your insurance company might not pay 100 percent of the repair bill if you do.

“We have an obligation to keep the cost of auto insurance down for all of our customers, whether or not they’ve been involved in an accident. If we paid for higher-cost OEM parts when non-OEM parts would allow us to return the vehicle to its pre-accident condition, we would overpay claims, which would result in higher costs to our customers,” says a Progressive spokesperson.

Progressive policyholders can request that OEM parts be used for repairs, but they will have to pay the cost difference between the OEM part and aftermarket part if the Progressive claim representative believes that an aftermarket part is appropriate.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which conducts crash tests, maintains that non-OEM parts do not degrade the safety of a vehicle involved in a crash. The IIHS refers to crash repair parts as “cosmetic parts.” According to IIHS, the source of “cosmetic parts” is “irrelevant to safety because the cosmetic parts themselves serve no safety function. They merely cover a car like skin,” with the exception of hoods, which must buckle properly during impact. And the IIHS says that “there is no evidence that hoods from aftermarket suppliers fail to perform as well as original-equipment hoods.”

Via[Car Insurance News]

for further reading : Are you entitled to brand-name repair parts? Know You’re OEM Rights!
via [Insure.com]

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For car owners, auto insurance is not just an option, but rather it is a legal necessity. If you get into an accident, or if your car is stolen or damaged, you need insurance so that repair costs or the loss will not be too heavy a burden. So what really is this auto insurance? Is it an easy way to get easy money in just an instant? Or is it just another problem that will just cover up another one in times of need?

The first time I read about auto insurance information online, I felt it’s a way to get a rush of money so easily, in a flash. Well it sounds cool but I never knew that auto insurance would involve a lot of things.

Having auto insurance will essentially cover up for financial losses in certain instances. Coverage will usually be in the following forms:

1. Property coverage – payment received from damages and theft
2. Liability coverage – payment for accident related injuries and property damage.
3. Medical coverage – payment for injuries, medical operation cost, rehabilitation, funeral expenses.

In other words it is one means to get yourself secured, whatever happens to you or your car.

via [Auto Insurance Blog]

Keep your distance Amigo!

Avoid following too Close. As tailgating will most likely result to rear-end accidents.. Maintain a 3-second following distance from the car in front of you, except in hazardous weather conditions where you should maintain a 4- or 5-car following distance.

Have your whip maintained.

Give your vehicle regular checkups, especially the wiper fluid, brakes, and tires. and replace wiper blades whenever they are worn. You don’t want your car to break down or suffer an accident just for not spending a few dollars on maintenance. Remember: Your life also depends on the condition of your vehicle. Also a well maintained vehicle doesn’t eat up as much gas as an un-maintained one.

To be continued…

• Ask that your car be taken to a secure location where an adjuster or appraiser from your insurance company can have access to it. Some municipalities require that your vehicle be taken to a Collision Reporting Centre or police station before it goes anywhere else.

• Contact your insurance company, if possible, for information on towing and where to take your car to be repaired.

• Consider having your car towed to a preferred car repair shop. Some insurance companies use preferred repair shops where they have an agreement that guarantees your vehicle will be repaired to the highest possible standards. For more information, contact your insurance company.

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It is very important to equip yourself with knowledge about insurance accident scams to avoid being a victim. Here are a few tips on what to do to avoid car insurance scams:

• Make sure the tow truck has a municipal license number on its side before you use its services.

• See if the tow truck is affiliated with a reputable company such as an automotive roadside assistance group or automobile association.

• Ask if the tow truck has a police contract.

• Listen for obvious clues. Does the driver recommend a particular repair facility without being asked? If he/she does, this might be an indication that a referral fee arrangement exists.

• Carefully read everything the tow truck driver asks you to sign.

Source

Turns out that risky and aggressive driving behavior don’t just pose serious threats to your physical person, they also make you pay higher car insurance premiums.

Car insurance companies generally give higher insurance premiums to people with risky driving attitudes – those who have fast cars and are more inclined to aggressive driving (as evidenced by driving history like number of accidents involved in, speeding ticket, etc.). The rationale behind this is that these kinds of people are more likely to cash in on their insurance policies or file claims, unlike people who just take car insurance for that added security just in case something bad happens. Cars belonging to people like these also have their parts wear out faster, and thus cost more to maintain and repair – something which is again another concern for insurance companies.

So if paying high premiums is a no-no for you

Auto Insurance rates are expected to rise due to increasing worries about the economy where all aspects of businesses have been heavily taxed upon. The coming year is forecast to be a bit more dismal for the signs industry experts are looking for seem to be all pointing to one thing, it’s gonna get worse. Jobs are on the line that will add to the millions who have already lost them in the end of 2008, and financial markets cannot seem to rectify their differences to figure out when they will be rebounding to begin recovery.
Be prepared to pay for higher insurance rates and expect add-on charges such as for coverage should you get into an accident with an uninsured driver for they are growing day by day. The rate accidents are happening still conform to statistics but the amount of insurance policies issued are not increasing as more people cannot afford to get them. This increases the risks for insurance providers who bear the brunt of costs even with caps placed upon them in their policies.

New cars are very much easier to insure than older cars but with a little wrangling, a respectable firm may issue insurance cover for a vehicle that is no longer accepted by other providers. Having an auto policy doesn’t assure prompt assistance though, for some of the best ones offer many lines of communication throughout the day. This communication lines allow you to get help when you need it as you need it whatever the time of day it may be. May it be through land line, mobile or SMS, most respectable firms offer several modes of contacting them. Others even offer free emergency roadside assistance and can also cover board and lodging should there be more than a minor defect with your vehicle.
List down these important numbers along with a copy of the certificate of cover in your glove box to ensure anybody using the vehicle has access to them.

Image Source: images.google.com

Although it is mandatory in most states to have car insurance, it does not automatically mean everyone has it. In accidents many people are quite shocked to find that the erring driver’s insurance cannot pay for the damages. That is the only time they realize the importance of getting a “UM/UIM” motorist insurance. An “uninsured motorist” or UM is a driver who does not have insurance; or had insurance which did not make the state’s requisite liability coverage; or whose insurance provider refused to shoulder the damages; or who is unable to pay for damages himself/herself. Hit and run drivers also fall into this category. An “under insured motorist” or UIM on the other hand , is someone with insurance that is compliant to the state set minimum requirement but whose payment ceiling is not sufficiently high to pay for the damages caused by the accident.