Grit dog wrote:
dedmiston wrote:
they t-boned us as they fled the scene. My wife's head went through the window and she needed a zillion or so stitches in her forehead. There's no way to put a price tag on that, but the price would have been zero if we didn't have the uninsured coverage.
Ask your agent about your uninsured coverage and see what he/she has to say about it. A good agent will talk you out of buying unnecessary coverage. Also think about asking your agent about any hypothetical mods on your vehicles (lifts, special tires, sound equipment, fifth wheel hitch, etc.).
Dave, thank you for the very informative explanations. I am supposing they will help many who read this.
My first question was sort of rhetorical, as we typically decline under/un-insured motorist coverage for the reasons you explained.
Essentially, I'm betting the value of my deductible that I won't get in a no fault accident with an un-insured party. And as well, the other "losses" you mentioned, rental car costs, personal property in excess of the stated limits, etc.
It was good to hear it from an "un-biased" 3rd party, as we all know our insurance companies are "for profit" businesses!
Regarding your example that I quoted. Absolutley correct, save for if one has health insurance, if there is no other "insurance" to subrogate to, then health insurance covers it (again, betting the amount of your Emergency visit, ambulance coverage, deductible, co pay, etc).
I learned a long time ago how insurance companies sometimes determine "fault" and it is not always objective. Case of a bad car accident. Myself/passenger vs another car w 2 people. Other car totally at fault IMO, unless you consider turning left in front of someone going straight through a green light partial fault. In the end, I was deemed like 10% at fault. I believe the total cost of the accident exceeded the other party's limits, no other explanation considering the other driver got 2 moving violations. It affected my parents insurance rates though, ultimately.
I also don't trust subrogation or fault determination and folks look at me weird when I say, if I'm in an accident that I am certain I'm not at fault, I don't divulge my insurance info. Now, I'm sure it can be found....internet...somehow. But back in the day, it worked. No proof of insurance, my company did not get a call (wasn't my fault anyway, but not taking the chance of partial fault). No proof of insurance ticket is easy to get dismissed IF you actually have insurance!
Thanks again for the intel.
That's sound logic. Beyond the logic is where personal preference and appetite for risk come in to play.
The national average for uninsured drivers is around 13% as of 2015. It varies by state (here's the
breakdown by state), and then the numbers swing pretty wildly by region with the major metropolitan areas having much higher rates.
I don't have any data for this, but my hunch is that the uninsured drivers also have other reckless tendencies. For example, I will ALWAYS avoid the guy on the road with the dangling cable where his spare tire should be. I figure that the guy with no spare has nothing left to live for, so he'll be more likely to wipe me out.
Anyway, I don't live in a big city, but I have to drive down there all the time into a region where the numbers are closer to 1:3 uninsured drivers.
I'm not a litigious guy, but if someone wrecks into me or my family and injures us (permanently or not), someone is going to pay. If I can't sue the uninsured driver, I at least want someplace else to turn for all the damages beyond fixing the car or paying the doctor bills. My uninsured bodily injury coverage will pay for my lost wages, pain & suffering, long term care, etc.
Insurance is one of those things that you hope will be a complete waste of money. Hopefully we never need it even for the property damage, but the BI is no joke and the coverage is worth it to me. I mentioned my wife's injury to her forehead. She was pregnant at the time and it could have been worse. We didn't get an attorney because I was comfortable talking to our claim rep. The settlement was fair and it was enough for us to add a room onto the house so my wife could work from home and have a large nursery right next to her desk. Not too long later, an earthquake knocked out the roads to my office and I was able to work there for six months or so until the roads were better.
We don't live in that house anymore, but my wife still has a gnarly scar and has to wear her bangs long to cover it up.
