Archive for car insurance
December 12, 2007 at 9:53 am · Filed under car insurance
Car insurance is a must nowadays, with all this horrible traffic and lack of attention of so many drivers. But it is easy to get fooled if you don’t pay attention when you choose your insurance company.
It is OK to go for cheap car insurance, because nobody wants to spend more than necessary, but insurance is not all about the money you pay. As a first step, you could take into consideration asking for car insurance quotes from more than one company, but after you found the cheapest ones, you could drive a little investigation amongst their clients, in order to find out if there were any issues regarding non-claim payments, or if the insurer didn’t approve a solid and complete repair, but only some provisory or improper works. For example, if something happened to one of your car doors and the metal is broken, you’d like it replaced, not repaired, because the workshop cannot guarantee you that a repair will completely fix the problem.
How to research? Simple: go there, spend a few hours in front of their building, and talk with some of the clients. If the company is not OK, you’ll probably discover this in your first hour. If after one or two days you don’t hear any bad stories, you can consider buying car insurance from them.
November 16, 2007 at 8:06 am · Filed under car insurance
Getting your car insured can save you a lot of money, especially if you drive a lot, thus being more exposed to accidents. I do have my car insured, and I can tell you that every year, the cost for reparations would have been much higher than the annual insurance premium I’ve paid.
However, you need to be aware that insurance conditions are different from one insurance company to another, so you need to do a bit of research before deciding with which insurance company to close the deal:
- Ask the insurance company representative what risks they’d cover: accident, vandalism, natural catastrophes…
- In case you are using roads which are not part of the national road network, ask if the insurance covers events which may occur while driving on such roads. Some insurance companies offer this clause, for a small additional premium
- Ask about the franchise in case your car is stolen: most of the companies would not insure your car for the whole amount it is worth, the franchise being between 5% and 15%, depending on the additional fee you agree to pay with your premiums
- It is possible that even repairs due to accidents to have a franchise: you pay a fixed amount from the total cost, and the insurance company covers what’s over that amount
- Check on internet (forums, blogs) for references about the insurance companies you have shortlisted. Find out how fast they move in case of insured events occurence, if there is a possibility that they settle all financial issues directly with the car repairing shop, or how fast they give you the money, in case they don’t offer this facility
It is good to have a car insurance, at least if you live in a dangerous neighborhood, or nearby a school (from my experience, children like to play with their keys on the cars sides when they walk, so I found my car scratched repeteadly).
July 12, 2007 at 2:46 am · Filed under car insurance
INSURANCE | Your credit card may not cover that FANCY RENTAL CAR.
EVER GET TIRED of renting an oh-so-sensible sedan when you’re on vacation? Wouldn’t a brawny SUV or sporty little number better project the real you?
Before you upgrade, be aware that your credit card might not go along for the ride. Although card issuers routinely provide rental-car insurance when you decline the rental company’s collision-damage waiver (CDW), coverage doesn’t extend to all cars.
Exotic vehicles, such as the BMW M3 and Mercedes-Benz SL roadster, are usually excluded. American Express and Diners Club won’t cover big SUVs, such as the GMC Yukon or Lincoln Navigator. Smaller SUVs, including the Ford Explorer, are usually covered if they’re not taken off-road.
For the card issuers, it’s a simple matter of cost control. “We exclude exotic cars and full-size SUVs because the vehicles can be prohibitively expensive to fix,” says Monica Beaupre, a spokeswoman for American Express.
If you’re tempted to rent an out-of-the-ordinary set of wheels, check with your card issuer to see if the regular rental-car coverage will apply. If not, you may need to pay up to $21 or so a day for CDW–or settle for that sedate sedan.
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