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Posts Tagged ‘Auto Insurance’

Finding Cheap Sports Car Insurance

May 26th, 2010

Along with the hot wheels, cool trim, leather interior and killer sound system, your sports car came with another line item add-on that wasn’t part of the MSRP: sports car automobile insurance. Insuring your shiny fast ride can add thousands of dollars to cost of ownership over the life of the car…unless you’re a savvy shopper. Here’s what you need to know to help you find cheap sports car insurance (or at least reasonably priced).

For starters, different insurance companies have different definitions of what is and isn’t a sports car. This is typically based on a VIN (vehicle identification number) system published by the Insurance Services Office or the company’s own ranking system. Either system takes into account such factors as engine type and size, manufacturer, body style, transmission, horsepower, wheel base, etc. It all goes into helping the insurance company determine your car’s potential speed and performance mobility.

In general, if it looks like a go fast machine and acts like a go fast machine, it is one as far as the insurance company is concerned. That fact will be reflected in your auto insurance quotes, because high-performance vehicles are statistically involved in more serious and costly accidents and are more attractive targets for car thieves.

Tricking your sports car out will make it harder to find cheap auto insurance. Adding high-performance doodads tells potential insurers that you’re thinking of driving like Dale Jr. Go easy on the modifications.

Feel free to pile on the safety and anti-theft devices. Look for Thatcham-rated Category One or Two systems. Thatcham is a British non-profit organization dedicated to containing or reducing the cost of auto insurance claims. They rank car security systems. Onboard tracking devices, airbags, anti-lock brakes and automatic seat belts may qualify for discounts on sports car insurance, too.

Some insurers offer limited-mileage policies if you agree to cap the distance you drive in a policy year. Other discounts may be available if your car is garaged when not in use, if you belong to a car owners’ club or if you only drive your convertible sports car during summer months. Shopping around for sports car insurance quotes will help you uncover other discounts.

Your driving record, age and even your credit rating will also affect what you pay for sports car insurance. In general, the older you are, the fewer claims, tickets and accidents you’ve had and the higher your credit score, the more likely you are to find cheap car sports car insurance.

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Finding Cheap Sports Car Insurance

Insurance Considerations For Domestic Partners

April 28th, 2010

Domestic partners are couples who form a union, who desire to share an exclusive life together, and are of the same sex.

A recent Supreme Court ruling overturned a Texas state ruling that prevented domestic partners from being recognized as “legal partners” for the purposes of obtaining insurance coverage together. This case has caused insurance carriers nationwide—as well as the present administration—to sit up and take notice.

Many insurance carriers take the view that these partnerships pose a high risk of HIV-related claims, thus presenting a greater risk of adverse selection than traditional marriages. This, however, is no more than an educated guess on the part of the carriers. Since such claims have never enjoyed significant coverage in the group health insurance market, carriers do not have accurate actuarial claim tables describing the risks associated with these unions.

Since insurance carriers cannot yet accurately factor this risk into their claims-paid formulae, any that provide domestic partner coverage are likely to hedge their bets with a general increase in premiums. Such a strategy would be unpopular with carriers and clients alike, and most insurers have taken up wait-and-see positions with respect to the domestic partnership issue, hoping against hope that it will go away of its own accord.

Meanwhile, even political conservatives agree that, as a civil rights issue, domestic partnerships are here to stay.

In S.D. Myers v. City and County of San Francisco, a landmark 1999 U.S. District Court decision upheld a 1997 San Francisco ordinance requiring all vendors doing business with the city to prove that their group medical plans provide coverage for domestic partners. At that time, only Hawaii among the 50 states required that carriers provide this coverage. Frantic vendors deluged the city with insurance carrier affidavits indicating that such coverage was not available, effectively bypassing the ordinance. Following recent Supreme Court decisions regarding the constitutionality of sodomy laws—and as the state of Massachusetts flirts with legislation that would make it the first state in the Union to recognize same-sex marriage—such administrative dodges are quickly losing steam.

At present, only a few states require insurance carriers to provide domestic partner coverage. An additional handful of medical carriers offer such coverage as an optional rider to traditional policies. A competent insurance broker will be able to locate domestic partner coverage on an individual basis in most states. For groups larger than 50 members, such coverage—whether as a rider or as a separate policy—is quickly becoming an industry standard.

For employers and Human Resources professionals, the message is clear: regardless of an individual’s stance regarding the political or moral implications of domestic partner coverage, the handwriting is on the wall. Failure to consider domestic partnerships when constructing or maintaining an employee benefits system will soon constitute a very real competitive liability… and quite possibly a legal one as well.

Relevant Links

Domestic Partner Benefits: Facts and Background. Employee Benefits Research Institute discusses laws affecting domestic partner benefits, sample policies, and issues in structuring domestic partner benefits.

Domestic Partner Benefits in Wisconsin and the Midwest. Records domestic partner benefits offered by companies based in or with a strong presence in Wisconsin, and by colleges and universities in neighboring Midwestern states.

Domestic Partner Benefits Resources. National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association offers a cross-section of DP resources, such as insurance consultants, publications and organizations.

Domestic Partnership Registration and Benefits Information. San Diego LGBT Community Center discusses domestic partner policy, cost factors, and available insurance carriers nationwide.

Equal Benefits for Domestic Partners and Spouses. Describes San Francisco’s DP ordinance and provides resources to assist with compliance.

Partners Task Force for Gay & Lesbian Couples. National resource for same-sex couples, supporting the diverse community of committed gay and lesbian partners through a variety of media. The constantly updated Web site contains more than 250 essays, surveys, legal articles, and resources on legal marriage, ceremonies, domestic partner benefits, relationship tips, parenting, and immigration.

States and Municipalities with Domestic Partner Registries. Queries HRC WorkNet Employer Database for cities that allow for the registration of domestic partnerships by state, including the year in which the applicable law was adopted.

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Insurance Considerations For Domestic Partners

Aliens Among Us: The Uninsurables

April 28th, 2010

David Oxley is Managing Director of Coppergate International‘s Houston-based U.S. practice. Coppergate provides specialist advice to over 2,000 clients in Europe and America relating to cross-border immigration, tax, social security, Human Resources, and family orientation matters arising from the movement of key talent around the world. Prior to his tenure at Coppergate, David was a senior manager with Ernst & Young’s Expatriate Services Consulting Group in London, and global head of HR for the trading business of a Fortune 100 energy company. David is a graduate and fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

The U.S. insurance industry is guilty of massive misrepresentation. Far from being the hyper competitive, super convenient, low-cost provider of consumer insurance portrayed in slick TV marketing campaigns, the industry has singularly and spectacularly failed to provide reasonable insurance services to one rapidly growing U.S. demographic group.

Many insurance industry professionals reading this article may even now be sighing with exasperation at the prospect of another socially conscious article on health insurance for the poor and the elderly. Interesting and relevant these topics may be, but I propose to address a group whose plight is all the more perplexing because—unlike the poor and the elderly—they remain perfectly capable of meeting their premium payments. Legally resident alien professionals are an affluent and rapidly growing sector of the domestic economy. Often highly paid, with corporate sponsorship and guaranteed employment, such professionals bring their families to the United States and participate fully in the economy during assignments that typically range between two and five years.

What People Want

Whether home is London, Sydney, or Capetown, American products, terminology, and politics are inescapable. Though impressions of life in America formed from such sources are necessarily distorted, such impressions are often the best information available to foreign nationals contemplating a term of service within U.S. borders.

Workers from countries that boast universal or near-universal health care often express grave concerns over what they perceive as a gluttonous and mercenary U.S. health care system. Tabloid reports and a few high-profile cases provoke fear—not entirely unreasonable—regarding the legendary litigiousness of American society. Many foreign workers fully expect to be robbed by American health care workers and left for dead at the scene of an accident, then sued for all they own if they survive.

As a result of these factors, health and liability insurance typically top the list of concerns expressed by foreign nationals to prospective employers in the U.S. Generous employers accommodate such concerns by arranging coverage to supplement their home country plans, or by enrolling prized, high potential, international executives in an expensive U.S. domestic plan. Less generous employers often still provide assistance in navigating the immensely complicated American health care billing and reimbursement system. International Human Resources departments have learned to address personal liability issues forcefully and proactively.

What People Get

Their major concerns regarding health care and liability addressed by most employers, foreign nationals arrive on American shores expecting their insurance hassles to be minimal at worst. Instead, they face a perverse reality. Though health care and liability issues are largely solved before their arrival, and property concerns are usually laid to rest with a good renters or homeowners policy, the entry of a foreign national into America’s car-happy culture rapidly devolves into a prolonged stay in the insurance industry’s automotive twilight zone. Faced with a newly situated expatriate assignee, most insurance companies decline to present so much as a quote for auto insurance.

How can this be? Has a university-sponsored research study shown that foreign drivers are higher risks than the native variety? In a word, no. In fact, compared to most developed nations, U.S. driver training is woefully inadequate, and most foreign nationals consider U.S. state driving tests to be something of a simple-minded joke.

Here are the facts. The Immigration and Naturalization Service takes between one and six months to process a family’s visas. It takes an additional two to eight weeks to get a Social Security Number. State Departments of Motor Vehicles will not permit a person to take a drivers license test without a valid Social Security Number, and no insurer will issue an automobile policy unless the policy holder has a valid state drivers license. Most states will not allow a vehicle to leave the sales or rental lot without proof of insurance. Thus—despite the inadequacy of public transportation in most American cities, and the mobility demanded of professionals by most employers—most newly resident aliens cannot reasonably expect to acquire an automobile until at least a month or two after arrival in the United States.

Even after the foreign national acquires a vehicle, he faces other challenges. Consider the mother-in-law visit. Distance and bureaucracy often tempt relatives visiting from the home country to stay for a month or more. In addition to the obvious distractions posed by a live-in mother-in-law, there are troubling insurance considerations. Any senior citizen visiting the U.S. for a month or more needs medical insurance. The products on offer cater more to the holidaymaker than the perpetual visiting relative with asthma and an arthritic hip.

Forget about lending her the family car.

A Call to Action

Where is the sense is this? Within a multi-national company, international assignees tend to be the cream of the crop. Highly paid, often receiving assignment allowances to pay their rent, car lease, and children’s private-school tuition, these are not people with financial problems. In fact, these are typically the careful types, with not so much as an overdraft on their financial records, much less major credit problems. In an increasingly difficult and competitive economy, why are insurers not falling over themselves to attract this easy money?

Do some esoteric regulations prevent insurers from offering tailored, focused, and affordable insurances services to foreign nationals? Not really. Instead, we see a conservative U.S. insurance industry, saddled with a peculiarly insular nationalist perspective (there is life east of New York and west of Hawaii!) and a rampant bureaucracy. In the existing climate, the ability to look beyond the lack of a U.S. driver’s license to 20 years of extraordinary insurance and credit history overseas seems quite beyond most insurers.

The solution? Perhaps there isn’t one. Maybe this strange, humiliating ritual constitutes part of the price of a foreign national’s entry into the U.S. job market. The brave will survive and perhaps get green cards; the weak will be banished, crying into their warm beer, a few months after arrival.

Increasingly, the complexities not just in insurance, but immigration, tax, social security, wills, mortgages, financial planning, spousal career support, and children’s education are reinforcing the critical role of expatriate and international HR consultancies who specialize in navigating these hazardous bureaucratic shoals. This is good news for those of us employed in the field: the greater the complexity and insanity, the better! Despite my most mercenary tendencies, however, I can’t help but feel that the insurance industry—if only as a matter of self-interest—should do more to provide for affluent foreign professionals who do vital work on behalf us the U.S. business community.

Relevant Links

Expat Exchange. The largest regionally indexed online information resource for the English-speaking expatriate community.

Expat Focus. Provides expat news, an international job vacancy board, independent financial advice, a discussion forum, and much more.

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Aliens Among Us: The Uninsurables

High Auto Insurance Premiums: The Fraud Factor

April 28th, 2010

So your monthly insurance premiums are pushing $100 a month, and you’re convinced your insurance company is taking you to the cleaners.

Right?

Not so fast. MoneyCentral reports this week that, in 2001, drivers in four states—New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts—paid average combined premiums in excess of $1,000. Washington, DC, also boasted annual average premiums over $1,000, ranking between New York and Rhode Island. The national average for that year was $817.43.

The figures come from a study compiled by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), which says the term “combined premium” comprises liability, collision and comprehensive coverage. NAIC reports that a major factor contributing to high auto insurance premiums is the robust Northeast economy. Simply put, more money equal finer and newer automobiles, which cost more to insure.

While this is no doubt true, there is another factor that may contribute at least as much to Northeast auto premiums as the robust economy: insurance fraud. According to a July 2004 press release by the office of Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-NY), staged car accidents and other scams cost drivers in New York state alone in excess of $300 million a year in inflated insurance premiums. In that state, fraud accounts for around $60 of the average driver’s annual premium.

A common example of auto insurance fraud is the “Swoop and Squat.” In this scenario, the scammer swoops in front of you, jams on the brakes, and you hit them from the rear. Inside the scammer’s car are passengers who then pretend to have severe and painful injuries, even if the collision was at a very low speed.

The upshot: a black mark on your driving record, elevated premiums for years to come, and a big cash settlement for the scammer.

ScamBusters.org, a great website whose mission is to help people identify and avoid scams both on-line and off, devotes a page to staged auto accidents and other forms of insurance fraud. To reduce your odds of being caught up in such a scam, ScamBusters recommends the following defensive measures:

Don’t tailgate, which helps reduce the chance of “swoop and squat.”
Always keep a pen and paper and inexpensive camera in your glove compartment so you can be prepared if you’re ever in an accident. Write down all the important info immediately if you’re in an accident: license plate number, insurance info, etc. Take pictures of the damage done to both cars and the passengers.
If you’re in a collision, count the number of passengers in the other car and get their names, phone numbers, and driver’s license numbers. That way, people not in the car cannot make claims against you.
Call the police immediately even if there is just minor damage. Get a police report, including the officer’s name. Make sure it accurately describes the degree of damage.
Watch how the people in the other car behave. If they stand around joking until the police come—and then all of a sudden complain loudly about pain—you know something isn’t right.
Only use medical, car repair and legal professionals you trust.

So what’s the bottom line?

The police can’t be everywhere at once, and insurance companies have to turn a profit to survive. The reason scammers manage to make off with hundreds of millions of dollars a year in other people’s insurance premiums is that—far too often—scams work! Why do they work? More often than not, they work because drivers fail to take common-sense precautions like the ones listed above.

Senator Schumer and others have proposed massive legislation aimed at recovering more damages from succesful scammers in an effort to reduce the cost to insurance holders, but to some degree this puts the cart before the horse. An alert, responsible, and prepared driving public means that scammers will have to work harder for their living… and, the criminal mind being what it is, that should be enough to push many of them into another line of work.

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High Auto Insurance Premiums: The Fraud Factor

Filing Liability Claims: A Reality Check

April 28th, 2010

Over the past several weeks, I’ve received a number of inquiries that follow this general form:

I’m unhappy with my [pick a service provider] because he [describe an act of negligence]. I think he owes me money. How do I file a claim with his liability insurer and collect?

In a word: you don’t.

What we’re dealing with here is a fundamental misunderstanding of what liability insurance is for. Simply put, the purpose of liability insurance is to pay the insured’s court costs and damages arising from a lawsuit against the insured. Therefore, if there is no lawsuit, then no claim is possible. Even in a case where the liability is overwhelmingly obvious—like the lady who told me about a valet company that left her keys in her car, which was subsequently stolen—it is pointless to contact the insurance company directly. They’ll just send you packing.

How can an insurance company get away with this? Simple: they aren’t “getting away” with anything. In the case of the stolen car I mentioned above, it is the valet company—not its insurer—that left her keys in her ignition, and is thus liable for her loss. Sounds fair, doesn’t it? The arrangement between the valet company and its insurer is strictly private, and goes something like this: the valet company pays the insurer a few hundred dollars a year, and in exchange the insurer promises to pay their client’s court costs and damages in case they get sued. End of story.

In the valet example, the solution is simple: the lady reports her loss as a theft to her auto insurance company. They’ll handle the claim according to their arrangement with her… and then they’ll go after the valet company themselves in an effort to recover their loss. Once her auto insurer files suit against the valet company, they will turn to their liability insurer to cover the resulting costs. Simple.

Will the auto theft claim affect her insurance premiums in the future? Maybe, maybe not. Maybe, because—regardless of where the fault lay—she has demonstrated an increased likelihood to have a vehicle stolen. Maybe not because, in the interest of keeping a good client, her insurance company might give her a break since the theft was somebody else’s fault, and since they’ll wind up recovering their loss anyway from the valet company’s liability insurer. No harm, no foul.

What about a case where the injured party hasn’t the luxury of having an insurance company standing by to file suit on her behalf?

In another e-mail, I heard from a gentleman who took a loss on a real estate transaction due to negligence on the part of his realtor. Naturally, he’s unhappy. The realtor is clearly liable, so the gentleman wants to file a claim with the realtor’s liability insurance .

No way.

Again, the purpose of liability insurance is to pay some or all of the insured’s court costs and damages after they’ve been sued. My correspondent is on his own here. If he wants to recover his loss, he must retain an attorney—not a requirement, actually, but still a darn good idea—and haul his realtor into court. If he sues for the amount of his loss, plus court costs—and if he can get a judge (or a jury) to agree—then his realtor will be found to be legally liable for the amount of the judgment.

How he pays for it is his business. Maybe he’ll file a claim with his liability insurer. Maybe he’ll mortgage his house and get a second job. His business.

Is it unfair that the injured party must go to the added trouble and expense—and risk!—of hauling his tormentor into court before he can collect his damages and get on with his life? Nah. After all, if it’s that much of an inconvenience, the plaintiff always has the option of asking for more money… and letting the judge or the jury decide whether the demand is a reasonable one.

Consider the alternative: letting the liability insurer decide whether or not they ought to pay a claim brought by an injured party. It doesn’t take a genius to figure how that would turn out.

You can shop for Professional Liability Insurance online at e-Insure Services!

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Filing Liability Claims: A Reality Check

Don’t Forget Your Gap Auto Insurance

April 28th, 2010

If you are a buyer or lessor of a new car and you’re obtaining auto insurance, think seriously about including “Gap Insurance” in your insurance policy. Gap auto insurance in most cases, is not a requirement to obtain coverage for a vehicle, but certainly comes in handy when there is a loss on your vehicle that is greater than the valuation of your insurance company.

Gap insurance essentially covers the “gap” or difference between what you owe on a vehicle and what your insurance company says it is worth when there is a total loss to the vehicle such as when your vehicle is stolen or written-off in an accident. Make sure you read your policy paying special attention to what is covered under Gap insurance and what scenarios and circumstances will validate the pay-out of gap insurance.

Policies for gap auto insurance are not uniform in coverage and you simply cannot assume that a payout for the difference between what you owe on the vehicle and what the vehicle is worth is guaranteed. Read the terms and conditions carefully to ensure your expectations are met. Also, keep in mind that typically Gap insurance applied to new vehicles only since the rate of depreciation is far greater on a new car than on an old car.

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A Safe Driving Reminder: Driving Safely Is The Best Insurance Policy.

April 28th, 2010

From using technology such as the radio, CD player, IPod, cell phone, mapping and GPS-devices, and sending text messages, to putting on make-up, unwrapping foods and eating while driving and even reading while driving, we’re all at some point guilty in some way of multitasking and being distracted while driving. The problem is that one can easily dull ones senses and convince oneself that it’s only a quick-action or distraction and that it is not much of a concern, but in truth if we divert attention from one area of focus to another there is a definite loss of perception and concentration. One simply cannot look at buttons of a radio and still have an adequate focus on the road conditions present. Driving conditions can also change fast and in elevated risk conditions such as heavy traffic,extreme weather, or even coping with erratic behavior from other drivers, driving patterns and conditions are even more unpredictable, dangerous and deadly

Does this mean that you shouldn’t turn on your favorite tunes, or shouldn’t skip the song that annoys you so much? Off-course not. You should however limit distractions as much as possible and always make sure it is a safe and appropriate time to engage in an action other than driving. Here are some safe-driving reminders:

Wear your seat belt – even if you do not like to or think you are a safe driver. Think of it this way: Even if you do not wear your seat belt for yourself, you should wear it for your loved ones.

Never drive drunk. This includes driving after you’ve consumed smaller but unsafe amounts of alcohol, drugs or medicines that can impair your sensory perception. It is deadly.

Erratic driving is never a good idea – do not speed up, slow down, or change lanes at irregular intervals. Blend in with the traffic patterns you encounter – driving too slowly or too fast is a recipe for disaster.

Be aware of all other vehicles on the road – not just the car in front of you. Distance yourself from drivers that show erratic behavior driving patterns.

Do not participate in road-rage. If you get cut-off or inconvenienced by another vehicle, the worst thing you can do is changing your behavior to get back at or to get-even with another driver. If you must, honk your horn and move on. Let it go. Your safety is far more important that getting-even with another driver. Call the police and report dangerous drivers before you take matters into your own hand.

Even if you have the most comprehensive auto insurance coverage policy, driving safely and being alert and aware of other vehicle’s movements is the best way to stay alive and to protect your loved ones and your assets.

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A Safe Driving Reminder: Driving Safely Is The Best Insurance Policy.

California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program

April 28th, 2010

The rationale behind the California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program is to provide low-income drivers with access to economical liability insurance. California auto insurance law requires insurance coverage for all drivers of vehicles, but unfortunately lower-income drivers still remain uninsured as the higher-cost of standard premiums are not within their reach.

According to the website for the California Depart of Insurance, to qualify for the California Low Cost Insurance Program the following requirements must be met.

1) Be able to meet low-income requirements (1 person = $25,525, 2 persons = $34,225, 4 persons = $51,625, 8 persons = $86,425)

2) Meet the good driver standard (no more than one at-fault property damage only accident or more than one point for moving violation in the past three years)

3) Be at least 19 years old

4) Have been continuously licensed to drive for the past three years

5) Have a vehicle valued at less than $20,000

If you do not qualify for low-income insurance and would like to get a standard auto insurance quote right away, you can simply go to our Personal Auto Insurance pages and select an insurance carrier.

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California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program

Do I Need Auto Insurance To Rent A Car?

April 28th, 2010

When renting a car, you need insurance. If you have adequate insurance on your own car, including collision and comprehensive, this may be enough.

Before you rent a car:

1. Contact your insurance company.
Find out how much coverage you have on your own car. In most cases, the coverage and deductibles you have on your personal auto policy would apply to a rental car, providing it’s used for pleasure and not business. If you don’t have comprehensive and collision coverage on your own car, you will not be covered if your rental car is stolen or if it is damaged in an accident.

2. Call your credit card company.
Find out what insurance your card provides. Levels of coverage vary.

If you don’t have auto insurance, you have two choices: you can buy coverage at the car rental counter; or you can purchase a non-owner auto liability insurance policy .

Rental car counter insurance can provide the following coverage:

1. Collision Damage Waiver (CDW).
Sometimes called a Loss Damage Waiver (LDW), this coverage relieves you of financial responsibility if your rental car is damaged or stolen. The CDW may be void, however, if you cause an accident by speeding, driving on unpaved roads or driving while intoxicated. This coverage generally costs between $9 and $19 a day. If you have comprehensive and collision on your own car, you may not need to purchase this coverage.

2. Liability Insurance.
This provides excess liability coverage of up to $1 million for the time you rent a car. Rental companies are required by law to provide the minimum level of liability insurance required by your state. Generally, this does not offer enough protection in a serious accident. If you have adequate liability coverage on your car or an umbrella policy on your home/auto, you may consider forgoing this additional insurance. It generally costs about $9 to $14 a day. If you don’t own a car, and rent cars often, consider purchasing a non-owner liability policy. This costs approximately $200 – $300 per year. Frequent car renters sometimes find this more cost-effective than constantly paying for the extra liability coverage.

3. Personal Accident Insurance.
This provides coverage to you and your passengers for medical/ambulance bills. This type of insurance, usually costs about $1 to $5 per day, but may be unnecessary if you are covered by health insurance or have adequate medical coverage under your auto policy.

4. Personal Effects Coverage.
This provides coverage for the theft of personal items in your car. However, if you have homeowners or renters insurance, you may be covered for items stolen from the car, minus your deductible. You need to have receipts or other proof of ownership. This type of insurance usually costs about $1 to $4 per day.
Some rental car companies combine personal accident and personal effects coverage together as one type of insurance, while others sell it individually.

The cost of insurance at the rental car counter will vary depending on the rental car company, state, and location of the dealer and the type of car you rent.

Some rental car companies may check your credit and driving history and may deny coverage. Check with the rental car company to find out its policy.

Non-owned auto liability insurance can provide the following:

Instead of buying liability coverage from the car rental company each time you rent a car, you can purchase a non-owner auto liability insurance policy from an insurance company for about $300 a year which might be cheaper if you rent frequently.

In addition, if you’re thinking of buying an umbrella liability policy, a non-owner auto policy may meet the underlying auto insurance policy requirements. Umbrella liability insurance provides high limits of liability coverage above basic policies. Most insurers will not issue an umbrella liability policy unless the basic policies meet certain dollar limits of coverage.

A non-owned auto insurance policy covers you for damage you may cause to some else’s car and liability for injuries to its occupants, or to pedestrian, in the event of an accident. The policy will also provide medical payments coverage for you and your passengers, and under-insured and uninsured coverage. This pays for the cost of an accident involving a hit-and-run driver or a driver who has little or no insurance.

However, non-owned auto insurance does not provide collision coverage. Collision coverage pays for damage to the car you’re driving if you crash into another car or object or the car rolls over. You have to buy this from the car rental company. However, some credit cards provide collision coverage if the rental car is paid for with the card—so check with your credit card company first.

Note: If you’re renting a car abroad, you may need an international drivers license.

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Do I Need Auto Insurance To Rent A Car?

Is There A Difference Between Insurance Cancellation And Nonrenewal?

April 28th, 2010

There is a big difference between an insurance company canceling a policy and choosing not to renew it. Insurance companies cannot cancel a policy that has been in force for more than 60 days except when:

You fail to pay the premium

You have committed fraud or made serious misrepresentations on your application

Your driver’s license has been revoked or suspended.
Nonrenewal is a different matter. Either you or your insurance company can decide not to renew the policy when it expires. Depending on the state you live in, your insurance company must give you a certain number of days notice and explain the reason for not renewing before it drops your policy. If you think the reason is unfair or want a further explanation, call the insurance company’s consumer affairs division. If you don’t get a satisfactory explanation, call your state insurance department.

The company may have decided to drop that particular line of insurance or to write fewer policies where you live, so the nonrenewal decision may not be because of something you did. On the other hand, if you did do something that raised the insurance company’s risk considerably, like driving drunk, the premium may rise or you may not have your policy renewed.

If your insurance company did not renew your policy, you will not necessarily be charged a higher premium at another insurance company.

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Posts Tagged ‘Auto Insurance’

Finding Cheap Sports Car Insurance

Related Posts:

Insurance Considerations For Domestic Partners

Relevant Links

Related Posts:

Aliens Among Us: The Uninsurables

What People Want

What People Get

A Call to Action

Relevant Links

Related Posts:

High Auto Insurance Premiums: The Fraud Factor

Related Posts:

Filing Liability Claims: A Reality Check

Related Posts:

Don’t Forget Your Gap Auto Insurance

Related Posts:

A Safe Driving Reminder: Driving Safely Is The Best Insurance Policy.

Related Posts:

California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program

Related Posts:

Do I Need Auto Insurance To Rent A Car?

Related Posts:

Is There A Difference Between Insurance Cancellation And Nonrenewal?

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