by "AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
Published 02/08/2017 at 15:44
by "AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
Published 02/08/2017 at 15:44
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STARS: 1
Are you telling me someone can be legally insured over there yet if they hit your $500,000 new supercar with their crappy old Honda, their insurance company won’t have to pay for it to be fixed no mater what??
Over here in the old world, even if you have crappy 3rd party only insurance (ie it covers what you hit to get fixed but not to fix your own car), it’s covered no matter how expensive the car you hit costs.
Maybe that explains why our insurance is comparatively expensive when compared to yours?
"Aaron M - MasoFiST" (amarks563)
02/08/2017 at 15:49, STARS: 13
Legal minimums in most states are $20,000 per car, $40,000 per incident. If the damage is over what the person has, you have to sue them for the remainder. Of course, if you sue them into bankruptcy, you’ll almost assuredly get nothing. Therefore, underinsured motorist insurance.
"Matt Nichelson" (whoismatt)
02/08/2017 at 15:50, STARS: 1
Exactly this. I used to work as a claims adjuster and I had to deal with that from time to time.
"Rust and Dust - Oppositelock Forever" (rustanddust)
02/08/2017 at 15:51, STARS: 1
Yep, we’ve got policy limits for different types of claim (personal injury, property damage, etc). For example, I can destroy $300,000 worth of shit with my car, and my insurance carrier begrudgingly pays it out (and immediately cancels my policy). Once you hit your policy/incident max , the insurance stops paying, the driver is legally responsible, and the claimants get to sue the driver to recoup losses (or the claimants insurance carrier, in most cases).
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
02/08/2017 at 15:52, STARS: 4
America loves lawsuits. It’s a traditional American pastime. We’ll sue you for damn near anything/everything/whythehellnot.
"facw" (facw)
02/08/2017 at 15:53, STARS: 1
The insurance minimums are comically low:
I carry $300k liability (which seems to be the most offered by mainstream insurers here), so totalling that $500k supercar would be bad.
If you do more damage than you’re insured for, they can sue you for the remainder. Seems to defeat the purpose of insurance to me, but people like things cheap (apparently insurers are worried about fraud if they go much higher). You can buy an umbrella policy to cover damage and medical beyond what your plan covers (I’ve been meaning to look into that).
Most underinsured coverage also covers accidents with uninsured motorists (who are extremely common here despite the legal requirements)
"wafflesnfalafel" (wafflesnfalafel1)
02/08/2017 at 15:54, STARS: 2
yep - out in WA the state mins are only 25/50/10, $25,000 per person bodily injury (BI), $50,000 total BI per accident and only $10,000 physical damage to repair/replace the other party’s car you hit. $10,000 doesn’t replace many cars these days...
"Aaron M - MasoFiST" (amarks563)
02/08/2017 at 15:55, STARS: 3
And bodily injury is the reason that the “smart” amount of insurance is $100,000/$300,000. There may not be a huge number of $100,000 cars, but there are plenty of >$100,000 hospital bills...
"duurtlang" (duurtlang)
02/08/2017 at 15:57, STARS: 0
In my part of the old world (the Netherlands) I only have 3rd party insurance as well. €20 a month for my daily, €5 a month for the 25+ year olds. No financial limits like they have in the US, no absurd insurance costs like you guys.
"MonkeePuzzle" (monkeypuzzle)
02/08/2017 at 16:01, STARS: 1
insurance is not tied to rego in the US.
insurance is legally required.... BUT... folks sometimes will get it to get rego done and then drop the insurance.
So yes, I carry uninsured motorist protection in case some uninsured ass hits me (or in case someone hit and runs).
pretty sure the insurance company then chases the uninsured motorist in court to get their money back.
"Roadster Man" (roadsterman)
02/08/2017 at 16:07, STARS: 1
Tru Dat. Idiots running around in $1000 cars with minimum coverage and no other assets to get at are the reason that the U.S. has an entire different type of car insurance called “uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.”
It’s ass-backwards: in most situations, if some idiot crashes into you and totals your $100,000 car and only has $60,000 of coverage, your underinsured motorist coverage will cover the difference. But they always refuse to do so, which means you need to sue your own insurance company to cover the difference. Like I said, ass-backwards.
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:13, STARS: 0
Wow, that’s just insane, I would be too paranoid to drive anywhere!!
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:14, STARS: 1
Ahh yes hospital bills, we don’t have to worry about those either!
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:14, STARS: 0
That is seriously fucked up!
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:16, STARS: 1
We have issues with uninsured drives as well, is why I won’t ever have anything less than fully comprehensive cover with uninsured driver waiver (though they still bump up your premiums after a claim!).
"Aaron M - MasoFiST" (amarks563)
02/08/2017 at 16:16, STARS: 0
Yeah...that said, I just pay for the underinsured motorist coverage and don’t worry about it. The main reason to avoid the “discount” insurance providers in the US is that they cut costs mostly by refusing to pay out. GEICO refused to release my car for a month after an accident that wasn’t even my fault...I immediately switched carriers after that.
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:18, STARS: 0
I don’t think they are allowed t cancel your policy here if you make a claim, they can (and will) bump up your premiums so much that come renewal time that you will go elsewhere!
"Roadster Man" (roadsterman)
02/08/2017 at 16:20, STARS: 1
Well sometimes it works out, but in every case I’ve seen, insurance companies refuse to pay out “UM” coverage, their own customer ends up suing them, then settling for less than they should actually receive just to end the pain. It’s a racket that’s been set up by the insurance companies and facilitated by our over-burdened judicial system. It’s a very, very lucrative racket.
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:21, STARS: 0
TBH my parents and brother who live out in the sticks pay those sort of prices in the UK, mine is expensive because I live in a high risk postcode (ie almost city centre and an area with one of the highest rates of car theft).
"dropthatclutch" (dropthatclutch)
02/08/2017 at 16:23, STARS: 1
One of the very few perks of living in Syracuse, NY is that no one drives a car worth over $120k.
"Rust and Dust - Oppositelock Forever" (rustanddust)
02/08/2017 at 16:25, STARS: 0
That’s a common tactic here, as well.
I see policy cancellations more with younger (under 20) and older (over 65) drivers that have a spotty claims history. I work in collision repair, and a number of my older customers will forego a claim and pay an entire repair out of pocket as opposed to risking a rate increase or an outright cancellation.
"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse)
02/08/2017 at 16:40, STARS: 0
Rego??
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
02/08/2017 at 16:41, STARS: 2
Yeah, I’m covered up to $500k, but if I hit and total a Veyron, I’m S.O.L.
I think minimum coverage is $250k in my state.
"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish)
02/08/2017 at 16:42, STARS: 0
Holy shit, actually? The minimum liability in BC is 2 million. Most people have more like 3-5 million, but it also includes injury/loss of work costs.
"MonkeePuzzle" (monkeypuzzle)
02/08/2017 at 16:43, STARS: 0
registration.
in Aus registration is tied to insurance. AndyG appears to be in the UK, I think they would say “tax”, but are referring to the same.
"Scott" (merl3noir)
02/08/2017 at 16:43, STARS: 0
Yes, we have limits on the damage’s that the insurance will cover. But if you have something worth more than 300K, most people will have insurance on it that covers other people damages. I’m sure there are some lottery winners or something that are stupid enough to not do that, but most people with an ounce of common sense will make sure their covered no matter what.
"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse)
02/08/2017 at 16:43, STARS: 1
How does that work in a worst case scenario when a young person is made a paraplegic? Here if it went to court the award could well be €3m or more and I guess it would be much more in the US. If the culprit is underinsured as they are legally entitled to be according to your rules what happens? Do the lawyers run around and find someone with enough insurance to sue?
"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse)
02/08/2017 at 16:45, STARS: 0
Ah, the Oz thing about abbreviations ending in O!
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
02/08/2017 at 16:45, STARS: 0
Australian or British term for “registration”. I think I heard it in MCM videos.
"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish)
02/08/2017 at 16:45, STARS: 4
In my province in Canada, it’s common to get excess underinsured motorist protection added to our insurance, just in case Americans with terrible insurance come up here and crash into us.
"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse)
02/08/2017 at 16:46, STARS: 1
Aussie, I’m told now.
They do like their abbreviations Down Under!
"Aaron M - MasoFiST" (amarks563)
02/08/2017 at 16:47, STARS: 0
Yup. Even typical coverage is in the hundreds of thousands; it isn’t really worth it to buy more insurance than you have assets because almost no one who actually sues will ever get any money.
"MonkeePuzzle" (monkeypuzzle)
02/08/2017 at 16:47, STARS: 0
obfuscation is a national pastime
"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish)
02/08/2017 at 16:49, STARS: 0
Huh. Lawsuits hardly come into play up here, it’s generally only if ICBC won’t pay enough for an injury claim. Still, most people just wait them out until they pay a reasonable amount like 2+ years after the fact.
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:49, STARS: 0
Yeah I was wondering about this type of situation as well, I don’t understand how it could be legally allowed to be the way they do it!
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:52, STARS: 0
It’s not tied to registration in the UK either, you don’t need insurance to register a car (or get an MOT) but you do get road tax (and MOT if the car is other 3 years old).
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 16:52, STARS: 2
Build a wall, keep them out!!!
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 17:03, STARS: 0
One way of looking at it I guess though can they not just cream off your future earnings forever?
"Ash78, voting early and often" (ash78)
02/08/2017 at 17:03, STARS: 1
Trudeau would probably do that, but he’s too busy drawing his Doonesbury comics...
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 17:04, STARS: 0
Does this not worry you (or Veyron owners)?
"Ash78, voting early and often" (ash78)
02/08/2017 at 17:05, STARS: 0
Yes, this is the case — you can opt for more, but most policies only cover $250k-$500k of damage, plus up to $1MM of personal injury. So if you hit someone in a Veyron and they end up on life support for the next 10 years, you’re screwed.
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/08/2017 at 17:13, STARS: 0
After reading these replies I’m thinking my insurance renewal I’ve just got for the next 12 months (and I’ve added business use incase my partner needs to use my car for any meetings his new i3 can’t get him to and getting the train isn’t an option, added like £50 to my premium!) is VERY reasonable all things considered.
"facw" (facw)
02/08/2017 at 17:14, STARS: 1
I think they go to court, win a judgement, and then the responsible party declares bankruptcy and the victim doesn’t get much. They may be able to wring a larger settlement out of the insurer just to avoid a lawsuit but probably not for anywhere close to full damages. Their own health insurance (if they have it) would have to pick up the difference on medical care, but obviously there’s a lot more injury than that just the medical costs. They should qualify for Social Security disability payments, but those aren’t much.
"DrScientist" (DrScientist)
02/08/2017 at 17:22, STARS: 0
i think “underinsured” situations arise more frequenly for chronic or serious health or medical problems that are a result of an accident. i havent checked my own policy in a while, but this was my thought when they mentioned it when i last renewed.
oh yeah, we have a screwy healthcare system over here too!
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
02/08/2017 at 18:16, STARS: 1
Considering I’ve never seen one in person, not terribly so. It’s not a great system, no doubt. I am carrying double my required insurance, so odds are it won’t ever be a problem.
"AndyG_UK" (ajg1974)
02/09/2017 at 03:49, STARS: 1
Seems to be the most sensible thing to do!
"bhtooefr" (bhtooefr)
02/09/2017 at 08:14, STARS: 0
Pretty much, yes.
So, I had an accident where the other parties claimed injuries. They sued my insurance company, their insurance company, me, my mother (whose name was also on the car’s registration), John Doe (the intent being to figure out who my father is and sue him), and ABC Company (in case I was driving for work, to figure out who my employer was and sue them).
What it boiled down to was, I talked about what happened to my insurance company’s lawyer for about half an hour, and then I never heard anything about it again.
"Aaron M - MasoFiST" (amarks563)
02/09/2017 at 09:11, STARS: 0
Nope. In the US, once you declare bankruptcy it’s settled. All debts are wiped away, with a few exceptions like student loans.