Auto insurance is a major stickler with me. I feel it is nothing less than legal extortion. The dictionary says that extortion is “to obtain from a person by force, intimidation, or undue or illegal power; to gain especially by ingenuity or compelling argument.” Insurance companies and our government have teamed up to force us to pay exorbitant amounts of money against our will to provide us with “security”.
I called my insurance agent to ask about something totally unrelated to the subject of this rant. I got the secretary. I gave her my name so she could pull up my information and she said, “Are you calling about the rate increase on your auto insurance?” Right away I’m upset. “What rate increase?” I asked. “Well, “ she says, “we had a lot more claims than normal the last several months, so we are having to raise rates in order to cover them.” And she proceeds to give me the new amounts. I discover that I will be paying about 15 percent more. Why should I have to pay for some other person’s stupidity or misfortune? My next question was “How much of New York is State Farm paying for?”
The reasons for my irritation are many, but several big ones stick out in my mind.
First of all, there is absolutely no way I can be considered a major risk due to traffic violations. I have a clean driving record. I have been driving for almost 20 years, and have a total of one ticket in that entire time. 10 years ago, a state trooper decided that I should be punished for going 58 instead of 55 in a 55 zone. It was a stupid thing. I have never had an accident of any kind. I even managed to drive on the “wrong” side of the road in a foreign country without any problem. I don’t know very many other people with better records over a 20 year period. My wife also has a clean driving record. In the 10 years we have been together, she has not been in an accident or received a ticket.
Secondly, there is no way we can be charged with filing excessive claims. The only claim I have ever made was for a $400 windshield when it decided to break one day last summer. Being accident free does not mean I will never be in one, and there are those who enjoy abusing other people’s property. Therefore, I keep comprehensive and collision coverage to pay for such things. I don’t have to, but I feel it is worth it.
Third, I have been with my company for a long time. I qualify for a host of discounts. Multiple car, multiple line, 3 years accident free, 3 years violation free, etc. I’m never late on my payments, so there isn’t any problem there either.
My biggest problem, however, is the fact that that State of Oregon has decreed that all drivers must carry auto liability insurance before they can drive. And the insurance companies all stood in line behind our idiot lawmakers and said “Yes this is a great idea!” “It’s for your protection!” and “We’re here for you!!” Bullshit!!! None of these companies give a rip about you or the next person in line. They are there to make a buck. That’s it, plain and simple. You can’t get a driver’s license without insurance. You can’t register a vehicle without insurance. You can’t transfer a title without insurance. And when you go to do any of those things, the computer runs a check to see if you have insurance. (Remember that overpriced computer upgrade the DMV got a couple years ago? It’s designed to run checks with insurance companies to see if you are telling the truth when you put that policy number of your paperwork.) If you don’t have it, you’re out of luck.
Since you have to go through a state agency in order to get a license or register your car, you know they are in cahoots with insurance companies. It’s like I said in the beginning; it’s legal extortion. The state has taken steps to be sure you have it, and the insurance companies all stand in line with their greedy hands out. Insurance isn’t cheap. It costs me $80 every month for auto insurance. And I have a good driving record. Insurance for those with tickets or accidents is substantially higher. You don’t have a choice, you have to pay it. What the state has done is create an un-funded mandate on every person in this state who has a drivers license. You will have it or you don’t drive. They don’t care what it costs, and they don’t care what other financial obligations you might have that could get in the way.
Because of this “arrangement”, I feel that the actual cost of insurance is substantially inflated. If you have to pay it, why not charge an arm and a leg for it. Makes sense for the ones making the bucks. Us little people won’t be able to put up a big enough fight to protect our rights. So, we’ll grumble a little and then pay anyway. What choice do we have?
The people in California found out how much choice they have. In 1988, they passed (by a comfortable majority) a ballot measure that would limit how much insurance companies could charge for liability coverage. These companies wasted millions of dollars fighting the measure. The day after they lost the election, several lawsuits were filed to keep the measure from taking effect. A federal judge imposed an injunction in opposition of the voters. It went to court. The companies threatened they would leave the state and nobody in California would be able to purchase insurance if the court ruled against them. After several months of litigation, the court upheld the new law and set penalties if companies ceased to operate in California. The legal battles are not over. There are numerous lawsuits still in litigation between the state and insurance companies over how rates are calculated. California drivers are still paying inflated rates based on where they live and not their driving records. This practice is a violation of the new 1988 California law, but appellate courts allowed it to continue. So much for trying to fight these bastards.
Personally, I feel that if the state says you have to have liability insurance, the state should provide it. Every person with a drivers license should automatically have a basic amount of liability insurance backed by the state. If you wish to carry more insurance than basic, you can purchase it. If the state does not want to provide the basic coverage, they should repeal the law that says you have to have it.
Don’t get me wrong, in this day and age, it is stupid to not be covered. People are always happy to sue you for all kinds of things legitimate and otherwise. But as a free citizen of this country, I should have the right to decide if I want it or not. I am sick and tired of the government reaching in my back pocket and taking what they want. It’s not their money, it’s mine. I earned it, and I should have the right to spend it the way I want. I don’t need to have some self-serving, greedy, swindling legislator who’s been paid off by some rich company telling me how to use my hard-earned dollars.
All this being said, I am going to write out a check every month to my insurance company. What other choice do I have?