Posts Tagged ‘auto insurance’

IIABNY Takes Stand Against Legislation to Change Auto Accident Injury Lawsuits

June 18th, 2010 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in auto insurance, insurance news

The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New York (IIABNY) is pressing legislators in the Empire State to defeat a bill it says would expand the role of the jury in deciding whether or not a lawsuit can proceed, thus weakening their state’s no-fault auto insurance system. The bill, IIABNY says, would expand the types of injuries for which a person hurt in an automobile accident could sue the responsible party, and would also require that juries, rather than judges, make the determination of whether or not an injured person may sue another.

Accordinto to IIABNY the measures in question, Senate Bill S7518 and Assembly Bill A10739, which were introduced by Senator Antoine M. Thompson (D – Erie and Niagara Counties) and Assemblyman Matthew Titone (D – Staten Island), also broaden the legal definition of “serious injury” to include such injuries as torn muscles, injuries requiring minor surgery, and less serious neck and back injuries. In addition, a jury rather than a judge, would be responsible for deciding whether an injury meets the legal definition of “serious” or not, preventing judges from quickly eliminating those lawsuits which do not qualify for exception in the no-fault system.

According to the Insurance Journal, IIABNY chairman David M. Gelia explained to the press, “If this proposal becomes law, minor injuries from fender benders will end up in the courts. This will delay recoveries for the injured, bog down New York’s already overburdened court system, increase the cost of handling these claims and eventually result in higher auto insurance premiums for every vehicle owner in the state of New York… We believe New York’s no fault insurance system can and should be improved with common-sense reforms. This legislation is a major step in the wrong direction.”

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NC Drivers Pay $1350/Year Due to Road Conditions

March 29th, 2010 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in auto insurance, insurance news

Here’s another reason to save money on auto insurance in North Carolina: the road conditions will cost you the equivalent of an extra tank of gas every week.

Last week, a national transportation group released the results of a study which estimated that drivers in the two largest urban areas in North Carolina lose an average of $1,350/year due to pot holes, perilous roadways, and longer-than-usual waits in traffic, car repairs and “accidents where roadway design likely contributed to a wreck.”

The study was completed by a nonprofit group called TRIP, based in Washington, and was based primarily on federal highway and traffic safety statistics. Some of the state “transportation boosters” are hoping the results will spur the North Carolina legislature to approve new fund raising methods for road construction. Several years ago, the state had an estimated $65 billion funding gap through the year 2030, between projected transportation needs and available sources of funds.

Will Wilkins, executive director of TRIP explained, “North Carolina is falling behind in maintaining its major roads, bridges and highways and the state lacks adequate funding with numerous projects that would greatly enhance economic development in the state.”

North Carolina did receive $838 million in federal stimulus funds for ready-to-build roads and bridges, but that is merely a short-term solution for a state with a population that is expected to increase by a third to 12 million people, and vehicle travel is expected to increase by 45 percent over the next twenty years.

At a news conference in Raleigh, North Carolina Transportation Secretary Gene Conti agreed with TRIP’s findings, saying, “The bottom line is our needs are growing in North Carolina. Our revenue stream is not. We need to continue to work hard and do more with less, but I don’t think at the end of the day that’s going to get the job done.”

TRIP’s findings said that in Charlotte, costs above “normal” driving and maintenance averaged $1,351/year, with a similar average of $1,350/year in Raleigh-Durham. Drivers in Winston-Salem and Greensboro still pay more than average, about $900/year. This number is less because those cities are less congested. Throughout the state, deteriorating and congested roads, and those which lack improved safety features result in a cost of $5.7 billion to North Carolina drivers. The state ranks fourth-lowest in the country for per-mile capital spending on its roadways, and has the second-largest state-maintained highway system. Wilkins discouraged the calculation of a statewide driver average because only the three metro areas had available congestion statistics.

There are more than six million drivers in North Carolina.

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Get Some Rest, Don’t Get Arrested

February 11th, 2010 by admin | Comments Off | Filed in auto insurance

It’s no secret that maintaining healthy habits can save us money on health and life insurance, but in New Jersey doing so can also keep you out of jail, and it’s been that way since 2003.

What am I talking about?

There’s a law on the books in the Garden State that makes it illegal to sleep and drive. More specifically, the law prohibits motorists from knowingly operating their vehicles when impaired by lack of sleep.

How does this work?

Well, according to the Insurance Information Institute, New Jersey law equates sleepy driving with reckless driving. If you’re behind the wheel, and you cause an accident that results in a death, you can be charged with vehicular homicide, and be sentenced to fines plus up to ten years in jail.

That may sound like a stiff penalty for missing a little shut-eye, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has statistics pointing to falling asleep at the wheel as the cause of at least 1,500 deaths and 100,000 crashes every year. As well, the National Sleep Foundation has polling data showing that roughly half of all American adult drivers “drive while drowsy,” and about twenty percent have admitted to actually fallen asleep while driving.

Currently, New Jersey is the only state with a “Don’t Doze and Drive” law on the books.

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Auto Insurance Increases in Canada and UK, Too

January 26th, 2010 by admin | Comments Off | Filed in auto insurance, insurance news

It may seem as if the United States is the only country suffering from a dire economic situation. Our auto insurance premiums rose in almost every state this year, as did our homeowners insurance premiums. However, we are not alone; what affects us, tends to affect the world at large. In 2009, Canada and the United Kingdom of Great Britain also saw rate increases.

On January 15th, the Canadian Press reported that the Finance Services Commission of Ontario approved increased auto insurance rates in the last quarter of 2009 that averaged 2.5%, while the overall increase for all of last year was 8.77% – a much sharper increase than 2008’s rate hike of 5.6%, and a significant change from the period from 2004-2006 where auto insurance rates in Canada actually went down.

Representatives of the Canadian government are quick to remind their constituents that current rates are roughly the same as they were in 2003, and that there are planned changes to auto insurance pricing that will go into effect this summer, and help stabilize costs and premiums.

If the nearly 9% increase in Canada has consumers worried, be glad you’re not in the UK. According to the Glasgow Daily Record, pricing in parts of the UK has increased to $564.19 pounds/year – almost 20% more than it was at this time a year ago, with young drivers (those aged 17-24) seeing an increase of nearly 25%, to an average annual premium of $1499 pounds.

The Daily Record gets its figures from the Consumer Intelligence market research firm, which also says that the smallest increases in insurance are in the premiums paid by mature drivers – those over the age of 65 – whose increases have been a mere 15%.

Overall, the average increase in the last year has been 20.1 percent for male drivers in the UK, and 19.1 percent for female drivers.

Ian Hughes, managing director for Consumer Intelligence, told the Daily Record, “The advent of price comparison websites had actually kept a lid on car insurance premiums for some time. But these figures show the upward pressure on pricing has well and truly broken through. The worry is this could result in more motorists choosing not to insure their vehicles and drive illegally, or feel that they can no longer afford to run a car.”

It would seem that the adage “times are tough all over,” is truly universal, at least when it comes to auto insurance premiums. How do you save money? The answer’s the same whether you live in Canada, the UK, or the United States: shop online, compare quotes, and ask for discounts.

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In an Accident? What Should You Do?

January 22nd, 2010 by admin | Comments Off | Filed in advice and how-tos, auto insurance

According to a survey done by the British auto insurance firm Swinton, up to 45% of commercial van drivers don’t exchange the required information when they’re in an accident, whether it’s serious or not.

Here in the United States, the statistics may not be quite so scary, but a significant number of drivers have found themselves sitting behind the wheel after a minor bump, wondering, should I report this fender bender?

The answer, probably unsurprisingly is “yes.” Why? Because if you don’t you leave yourself open to a lawsuit, or other financial repercussions.

If you are in an accident, even if it’s minor, what should you do?

  1. Call the police, if you’re required to do so in your state.
  2. If your cars are driveable, move them out of the roadway.
  3. Exchange your information with the other driver. This should include your insurance company information and phone number, as well as your name, address, and phone number. Make sure you get the same information in return. Also, take note of the license plate number of the other car.
  4. If there are any witnesses, get their information, too.
  5. If you have a camera on your phone, or have an actual camera in your car, take pictures of the scene, and any damage.
  6. Be sure to call your insurance company.
  7. If the police are called, cooperate fully with them.

Whatever you do, remain calm. If the accident is just a fender-bender, yelling at the other driver is only going to make things worse; if it’s really more serious, you’ll need to remain as rational as possible. Finally, it’s important that you never claim to be at-fault, even if you think you are. Instead, let the police and insurance companies work out the details.

- Get evidence – Use your camera phone to take photos

- Ensure you notify the police and your own insurance company

Phil Moss, Commercial Vehicle Manager at Swinton van insurance said: “Sub-zero temperatures across the UK are resulting in icy driving conditions which always increase the risk of an accident. Vehicle collisions can be very traumatic and the stress of the situation means people fail to take down the required information. It’s important that you take down all the details of the other driver, especially both their mobile and home telephone numbers as well as their insurance company details.

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Arizona Drivers: Uninsured? It’s Going to Cost You!

January 19th, 2010 by admin | Comments Off | Filed in auto insurance, insurance news

Uninsured motorists in Arizona have a new law to contend with: under a change in state insurance law which went into effect late in 2009, drivers who are convicted of driving without proof of insurance will face an automatic 90-day long suspension of their licenses.

Before the new law took effect, judges had the option to waive license suspensions if the cited driver purchased insurance, and provided proof of coverage, at the time of sentencing, but the new law takes that option away from judges, and gives the responsibility of suspending licenses to the Arizona Department of Motor Vehicles, which, according to Somerton Municipal Judge Manuel Figueroa, in an article in the Yuma Sun, makes the three-month suspension virtually automatic.

Judge Figueroa also said that uninsured drivers are getting a rude awakening in court because the change in the law has not been widely publicized. “This penalty continues to surprise motorists who have been accustomed to judges being flexible,” he told the Sun. He added, “This concerns me a lot, because this change was not published. We ourselves were surprised by it. We didn’t find out until the law was in effect, a month after the act. It’s affecting and will continue to affect thousands of people across the state.”

But how big a problem is this for Arizona? Capt. Eben Bratcher, spokesman for the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office, told the press that deputies issue citations for not having insurance, or proof thereof, on a “fairly regular” basis.

“It is more common that the motorists are just being careless and aren’t carrying their proof of insurance in their vehicle,” Bratcher told reporters. “There is also a citation for that.”

Bratcher also pointed out that while the new version of the law may not have been well publicized, Arizona has had a mandatory insurance law requiring all drivers to have liability insurance at a minimum, for many years. “We strive to keep up with all the changes in the law and once they become active to start enforcing them,” she said. “While we do recognize there are changes in the law that require a grace period, one isn’t needed in this case because having automobile insurance has been the law for many years.”

Under the mandatory insurance law, which covers motorcycles, mopeds, and golf carts, as well as cars and trucks, the required minimum liability insurance is $15,000 for bodily injury per person, $30,000 to cover bodily injury for more than one person and $10,000 for property damage.

In addition to a 90-day suspenion of driving privileges, convicted uninsured motorists are subject to a fine in the amount of $995.20, though this can be reduced to $231.60 upon presentation of proof of insurance, and a record that has no convictions for lack of insurance in the previous 39 months.

What do the judges think of the new law? Figueroa says they’re a bit frustrated by the change, “…because in the courts there’s nothing we can do. In my personal opinion, there are more important things that we should be doing to protect ourselves, but whatever, we will enforce this statute.”

Bratcher, on the other hand, simply stressed the point that drivers who have insurance, but aren’t carrying proof of coverage will not lose their driving privileges, though they would still have to pay the reduced fine. Only motorists who are completely uninsured will be subject to the license suspension. “It is a driver’s responsibility to carry their proof of insurance with them at all times,” she reiterated.

But Figueroa has another concern: even though lack of proof of insurance is not punishable with jail time, driving on a suspended license is. “This law is so drastic that it’s going to create another level of criminal offense,” he cautioned. “That’s why we recommend that people not ignore these infractions, and that they come to court so we can explain to them the situation and their options.” He added that in addition to the loss of driving privileges, drivers who are cited for lack of insurance will end up paying more in fines than they would have in insurance premiums.

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