Insurance rates skyrocketing in California

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

I mentioned a long time ago on one of these threads that insurance is the same as gambling. You pay $1,000 a year for 10 years and hope you never have a loss. If you don't, that's Ten Grand out the window. But if you do and the loss is more than Ten Grand, you come out ahead.

On the phone with the company now and if they reduce the total coverage, I can knock almost $150 off the premium. They set the rate based on 'replacement cost' using some kind of system that comes out about 50% or more too high.

There is no way it would cost what they're estimating it would. Why? Because I probably wouldn't fully rebuild. I'd probably have a pre-made thing brought in. But I can't get any company to rate based on that.

 

[Brainonska511]

The infuriating part is the fact that the main reason we have to pay for insurance is because of other people's stupidities. I only have liability but it is a risk I'm taking because if some asshole damages my vehicle then it won't be covered. If I make a mistake then at least I can blame myself for it but I have no control over idiots who do idiot things.

I know someone who had a project car in his driveway, didn't have insurance because why pay an extra ~$100 per month on a car not being driven. Some asshole steals a Jeep and runs through a whole block of yards destroying people's property, and his car got hit too. Everyone was on the hook to deal with that, either going through insurance or out of pocket. It's BS that it works that way, we shouldn't have to be the ones responsible for damage caused by others, they should be the ones held accountable.

Wouldn't your neighbor just go after the person that caused the damage?

The reason people turn to their own insurance company first is because then they don't have to deal with a separate party, and the insurance company can handle the recovery of money from the liable party.

 

[WilliamM2]

this. you clearly don't need to won a car, OP. With what you're paying right now, it would cost you a fraction to just do a zip car once a month.

whoa, have you guys not heard of zipcar?

Instantly Book Rental Cars Near you | 24/7 Car Sharing | Zipcar

Find and unlock affordable rental cars on our app—with gas included. Car sharing membership plans start at $9.

www.zipcar.com

why all this uber recommendation? lol

From Zip Car:

Zipcars aren't in this area yet​

We don't have any cars in this area. Try searching for a different location or check out the closest locations below.


East Lansing Kettering University
Michigan State University
Milwaukee Marquette University

Closest is 450 miles away, and one is across Lake Michigan. Looks like all of them are near universities.

 

[WilliamM2]

I've always had 100/300/100 liability mins for things like this.

That's liability, for the one you hit, or riding in your car. It doesn't cover you for medical.

Seems low, mines 300/500/300 and was maybe $10 extra to step up.

 

[MrSquished]

More mass transit, less dependance on cars. I constantly meet people who live without a car just fine.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Not one of those options are available here. 20+ miles to town up and down fairly steep hills with no shoulders and very steep drop-offs just a few inches off the white edge markers doesn't lend itself to a bike with a basket to carry a month's worth of groceries.

No sharing services at all.

There is a transport service, but they need a minimum of 72 hours notice and prefer two weeks to schedule a ride. Rate is something like a dollar a mile and a round trip to the few stores I make can run 50-60 miles or more. Do that twice a month, you're looking at close to $150 which is more than my auto insurance (just to get back to the thread topic) and fuel combined, not counting the inconvenience factor. And they won't carry a few hundred pounds of lumber, concrete or other building materials.


And in the past three months, I've had a few instances of 'I gotta go to town NOW, no waiting, no time to schedule anything.'

One of those was yesterday after I broke a tooth.

There are a couple of rental services, but you still have to get there and back, no pick up or drop off service.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Wouldn't your neighbor just go after the person that caused the damage?

The reason people turn to their own insurance company first is because then they don't have to deal with a separate party, and the insurance company can handle the recovery of money from the liable party.

Thieves and criminals in general seem to be pretty much immune to having any responsibility for their actions. Basically if you don't have a physical address or any assets or money you can't get into any legal trouble here or be sued. In that particular incident the Jeep owner is the one that got in trouble for leaving the keys in it with doors unlocked.

 

[Brainonska511]

Thieves and criminals in general seem to be pretty much immune to having any responsibility for their actions. Basically if you don't have a physical address or any assets or money you can't get into any legal trouble here or be sued. In that particular incident the Jeep owner is the one that got in trouble for leaving the keys in it with doors unlocked.

So more of the story comes out: the jeep owner was negligent and didn't take even the most basic measure to secure their vehicle. And criminals often do face consequences: they go to jail when they get convicted, or they end up injur d or dead through their actions.

This is also why you carry your own insurance: to financially protect yourself and your stuff against un/underinsured people. I'm just not seeing the issue here. Is there supposed to be some sort of libertarian rural utopia message I'm supposed to learn from your story?

 

[WilliamM2]

More mass transit, less dependance on cars. I constantly meet people who live without a car just fine.

You just keep ignoring that most don't have access to RELIABLE mass transpotation. My city is around 100,000 people. No mass transit at all, and a small bus sytem with few routes. They will pick you up if you call, but they are known to be hours late.

Unreliable mass transit and American public health

Missed doctor appointments, school tardiness, air pollution—Hopkins expert Megan Latshaw unpacks a new CDC report

hub.jhu.edu

 

[MrSquished]

You just keep ignoring that most don't have access to RELIABLE mass transpotation. My city is around 100,000 people. No mass transit at all, and a small bus sytem with few routes. They will pick you up if you call, but they are known to be hours late.

Unreliable mass transit and American public health

Missed doctor appointments, school tardiness, air pollution—Hopkins expert Megan Latshaw unpacks a new CDC report

hub.jhu.edu

I'm not sure what part of the phrase 'MORE mass transit' didn't work for you because that means I'm saying we need to build MORE of it. What does the word MORE mean to you?

 

[WilliamM2]

I'm not sure what part of the phrase 'MORE mass transit' didn't work for you because that means I'm saying we need to build MORE of it. What does the word MORE mean to you?

I was reffering to this sentence:

I constantly meet people who live without a car just fine.

If we don't have it, we can't use it. So it's no solution to high insurance rates, or the cost of operating/owning a car. Which seems to be the topic of this thread.

If we need to build more, OK. But you didn't say that in the post I replied to.

 

[IronWing]

My auto went up 20% from last year. I expect the other car will be worse as parts are more expensive for that one. Oddly enough, my homeowner's insurance is cheaper now than it was 20 years ago, for much higher coverage. I think adding the umbrella liability policy on top of it helps push it down.

Well, f' me. Just got my bill for homeowner's insurance. The insurance company is jacking the rate by 34% over last year.

 

[pete6032]

I just paid in full my bi-annual auto insurance bill after posting and calling my insurance agent. He tells me all insurance categories in CA are way up. What I paid today is 45+% more than what I paid a year ago. I have had no accidents or tickets for decades. I drive way less than the lowest tier rate (under 1000 miles/year), so I'm paying around $1/mile to drive! I have liability only.

Agent tells me all carriers are doing it, there's no relief for me. My car insurance is tied to my home owner's insurance in that I get a 15% discount, so that discourages hopping to another carrier anyway.

I ride my bicycle for everything except an errand run every 3 weeks or so lately (Costco, maybe a few other places).

Ideas? TIA.

Check to see if there are any per-mile insurance providers. I used to drive very little and had insurance where I payed a base monthly rate plus a couple of cents per mile.

Where Can I Get Pay Per Mile Insurance in California?

You can get pay-per-mile insurance in California from Metromile and SmartMiles by Nationwide. Both Metromile and SmartMiles sell policies through local agents that they partner with in California, but you can't get a policy online

wallethub.com

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Well, f' me. Just got my bill for homeowner's insurance. The insurance company is jacking the rate by 34% over last year.

Call them to review coverages and limits, including deductibles.

As noted above, mine went up, but I also noticed they really hiked the coverage value (Replacement Cost). When I called, they re-ran the calculator and it gave them a new, lower number. That cut about $150 off the new rate and brought it closer to last year's rate, though still an increase.

If I had chosen to increase the deductible from $2,500 to $5,000, I could have cut another $100 or so. I may still call them back and do that, but I need to think about it some more.

 

[MrSquished]

I was reffering to this sentence:

If we don't have it, we can't use it. So it's no solution to high insurance rates, or the cost of operating/owning a car. Which seems to be the topic of this thread.

If we need to build more, OK. But you didn't say that in the post I replied to.

Right. That's why I qualified that sentence with More Mass Transit - as in when there actually IS more mass transit, it is very helpful to be less car dependent. That also means that if there is not much mass transit, I am also saying there needs to be more. MORE MASS TRANSIT!

 

[Red Squirrel]

So more of the story comes out: the jeep owner was negligent and didn't take even the most basic measure to secure their vehicle. And criminals often do face consequences: they go to jail when they get convicted, or they end up injur d or dead through their actions.

This is also why you carry your own insurance: to financially protect yourself and your stuff against un/underinsured people. I'm just not seeing the issue here. Is there supposed to be some sort of libertarian rural utopia message I'm supposed to learn from your story?

I'm saying it's rediculous that we are basically forced to pay for insurance to protect ourselves from people who when they fault us, are not held liable. They should be the ones that have to pay when something happens. And not the victim. yeah the jeep owner should have kept it locked... but maybe, just maybe, people shouldn't take stuff that's not theirs! and when people do, they should be the ones at fault.

 

[manly]

this. you clearly don't need to won a car, OP. With what you're paying right now, it would cost you a fraction to just do a zip car once a month.

whoa, have you guys not heard of zipcar?

Instantly Book Rental Cars Near you | 24/7 Car Sharing | Zipcar

Find and unlock affordable rental cars on our app—with gas included. Car sharing membership plans start at $9.

www.zipcar.com

why all this uber recommendation? lol

Car-sharing is great in theory, but generally only works in densely populated areas. Zipcar is owned by Avis, and has far from stellar reviews:

Zipcar - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Hindsight is 20/20, and past driving history doesn't indicate future driving incidents.

It also represents a total misunderstanding of what any insurance is for. It's not to file claims, but to CYA if you get into a major accident.

Check to see if there are any per-mile insurance providers. I used to drive very little and had insurance where I payed a base monthly rate plus a couple of cents per mile.

Where Can I Get Pay Per Mile Insurance in California?

You can get pay-per-mile insurance in California from Metromile and SmartMiles by Nationwide. Both Metromile and SmartMiles sell policies through local agents that they partner with in California, but you can't get a policy online

wallethub.com

OP bundles auto with his HO policy, so I think he's stuck (unless he finds a carrier with lower rates). His auto policy cost per mile sucks, but < $800 per year actually isn't even that bad. I didn't want to say this, but the real solution to his dilemma is to drive more because his auto premiums aren't going up.

As we all know, America (particularly the suburbs) is just a very car-centric society. If OP switches from operating his own car to car-sharing, he probably doesn't even save any money because of his HO+auto insurance bundling discount. Even if that wasn't the case, I don't think he'd save much money by doing his Costco runs with a Zipcar. Like I said in a previous post, what is the freedom to hop into your own car worth to you?

 

[Brainonska511]

I'm saying it's rediculous that we are basically forced to pay for insurance to protect ourselves from people who when they fault us, are not held liable. They should be the ones that have to pay when something happens. And not the victim. yeah the jeep owner should have kept it locked... but maybe, just maybe, people shouldn't take stuff that's not theirs! and when people do, they should be the ones at fault.

Um... That's the whole fucking point of insurance. It's to protect yourself, whether you are at fault or not. If you don't want the protection, don't buy the insurance. But then don't cry to us when you have to personally sue someone to get compensation or get sued in return.

Also, people shouldn't take stuff that isnt theirs, but people also need to do the bare minimum, like locking their door and not keeping the keys in the vehicle. Being negligent was a substantial contributing factor to the initial incident in your story.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Wait, I missed the actual cost of what OP is paying. If it's really only $800/year that's super cheap. That's only $67ish per month! You'd be pressed to find anything under $150/mo here now days. I shopped around during covid when all the rates went up but it turned out mine was the cheapest. I get a discount through my company as it's a group insurance plan.

 

[WilliamM2]

Also, people shouldn't take stuff that isnt theirs, but people also need to do the bare minimum, like locking their door and not keeping the keys in the vehicle. Being negligent was a substantial contributing factor to the initial incident in your story.

Sounds like victim blaming. Sometimes peole do forget, and leave the keys in the car. Mistakes happen.

But, that's why you have insurance.

 

[Brainonska511]

Sounds like victim blaming. Sometimes peole do forget, and leave the keys in the car. Mistakes happen.

But, that's why you have insurance.

Not victim blaming. Just pointing out that negligence is something that exists when you consider issues of liability. Like someone slipping on your sidewalk because you didn't de-ice it, or not locking up your gun and your kid goes and shoots someone...

 

[pete6032]

Wait, I missed the actual cost of what OP is paying. If it's really only $800/year that's super cheap. That's only $67ish per month! You'd be pressed to find anything under $150/mo here now days. I shopped around during covid when all the rates went up but it turned out mine was the cheapest. I get a discount through my company as it's a group insurance plan.

His car is from 1997.

 

[WilliamM2]

His car is from 1997.

He should check the value of that car. In his case, anything beyond PL/PD is probably a waste. Sounds like he has full coverage.

Collision is well over 1/2 my rate cost.

 

[Muse]

E bike with pedals and a side car or trailer for the goods.

That really does make a lot of sense, I'm thinking.

I'm seeing a lot of e-bikes these days.

 

[Muse]

He should check the value of that car. In his case, anything beyond PL/PD is probably a waste. Sounds like he has full coverage.

Collision is well over 1/2 my rate cost.

I have only liability. Right now it's $348.88, so about $700/year, a 45+% increase over one year ago. I'm in their lowest mileage tier, up to 3000mi/year. I haven't driven over 3000 miles in any year probably since I got the car in 2000.