Ask an insurance expert: the insurance non-bs thread

Oh hahah yeah I thought you were only paying 20 bucks a month lol. I was like holy hell that's unheard of for SoCal

 

nice!!! in ca mileage is a rating factor.

custom parts will need receipts to prove what you had, in the event of damage or a total loss.

 

still a nice discount!!!

 

Got it. Thanks!

I certainly am not complaining about an extra $20 a month, that's a few more beers to be had!

 

My Tacoma got broken into by some dirtbag who broke the passenger window and took a chunk out of the door.

My truck is a beater and I don't really care about getting the door fixed. I'm considering just fixing the window myself. Is there anyway to file a claim and cashout the insurance damage money? I got an estimate for $1850 for the door and window repair and would rather get a check then a fixed dent when my truck has plenty of those!

Edit: I own the truck outright

 

Not sure if it was mentioned yet but bundling saves quite a bit. Renters insurance for my first apartment saved me $50 every 6months off my auto. Renters for the year cost me $60. Strange but was not complaining at that time.

Also, paying in full nets me a very nice discount. Time the payment on the credit cars to gain an extra pay-period during that billing cycle and it’s paid off with no repercussions and gains me credit card points (I do have the cash to pay but want to get the reward points hahah)

 

Not an expert. But, when my neighbor hit my car years ago, I just cashed out the quote. I got a check for it. So my guess is yes, you can.

 

really depends on who the check is made out to and/or if you own the truck outright. sometimes doing this is FRAUD because the check is made out to a lien holder or specific repair shop and you’re not supposed to cash it.

even if you own the vehicle and they make out a check in your name, they are paying you for those specific damages. by not fixing it, you could be putting yourself in a bad position with your insurance company down the road. so this is one of those situations where, just because you CAN do something, that doesn’t always means you SHOULD do it.

 

@nettereo16

If you file a claim for legitimate damages covered under your policy and your insurer issues you a check, they can not legally mandate you use those funds for those specific damages.

They would, for obvious reasons, prefer you get the repairs done, but cannot make you.

In regards to lienholders, that's a different story altogether.

 

So question about self-insuring...

My wife got hit by a Metro Transit bus last December. It slid through a red light on ice and took out the rear end of her Jeep as she went through the intersection on green. Police report said it was bus driver's fault, driver said it was his fault, the MTC inspector that came to the scene said it was their fault.

Turns out Metro Transit is self-insured. To this day they have not paid on the claim. My insurance company repaired our Jeep and the case sits "open" because they won't pay.

How do they get away with this?

 

Because they are the government, and they’re here to help...

 

I was just curious if I have brand x auto insurance and theres 3 brand x insurance agents in my area and I select the same exact coverage will all 3 agents be the same price.My old agent passed away and I got doled off to a new agent with the same company .The new agents prices seem to constantly go up and nothing's changed on my end besides the new agent.
Long story short is it like buying the same exact model Tacoma but getting a better deal at one dealer vs another or is it what it is for x amount of coverage.
Thanks in advance

 

agents need to make money so they most often add on fees and commissions. these can vary from agency to agency even if they all sell brand x insurance. might be even cheaper to quote directly with brand x if you can. then you’ll skip fees and commissions.

 

Thank you , I appreciate it and I'll definitely try to call them directly. Last time I called about it going up they said there were a lot of bad drivers in my area and insurance is a shared risk so I have to pay more because of other bad drivers in my zip code or whatever B.S. Funny thing is I have another person in my household with the same company but theres never goes up. I haven't had any tickets, accidents or anything.

 

insurance is a shared risk, but nobody likes they fact. you’re. it alone.

also, your premium will never be similar or act similar to anyone else’s. there are many dozens of different rating factors for each person/policy. comparing rates is a bad thing to do because it can lead to disappointment!

 

I got rear ended somewhat, last week.

It was in slop and go traffic and I merged to the lane left of me, unfortunately for me not enough space to completely merge so I was still in the lane at a 45 degree angle roughly. The other drive made a noticible acceleration (out of frustration I can only assume I was completely in the lane) and hit me. My first accident so we only swapped information, I now know I shouldve called the cops to file a report...

USAA says since its in VA and I wasnt completely established in the lane fault lies with both of us unless he admits complete fault.

Also I have a 1k deductable and the repairs are estimated to be 4.8k. Would it be worth paying the deductable and likely the premium increase thats likely to follow or just come out of pocket? I dont think its really a 4.8k repair.

 

you’re premium can go up no matter what, unless you have any type of accident forgiveness with your company.

just so you know, when your insurance company reports this accident on your clue report, it will show as either your fault or not your fault. it’s always best to find out which to expect.

my guess is that since you were at a 45 degree angle, you were not fully in the lane and the other party did not rearend you. i’d guess it’s your fault.

 

Bumped another car in a parking lot a few days ago. No damage to my vehicle. Bent the license plate of the other cars front and maybe some scuff marks. The lady was upset. I get it. Gave her my info. Before I can get home she had called my insurance company. She’ll get her car fixed.

I have no damage and am not filing a claim. No police report that I am aware of.

Since my insurance is taking care of her damage caused by my truck, will this hit Carfax for my truck?

 

fault in an accident isn’t what determines if this will be reported to carfax. carfax obtains information from several different sources. those sources only report certain info about the vehicle history. there are a few sources which can report collision damage, but that’s not your insurance company unless it’s a total loss. that’s mainly body repair shops. but having said that, carfax is not 100% accurate by any means. things go unreported all the time because no entity out there legally has to report anything. it’s simply a vehicle history database.

your main concern is that this will be an at fault accident and your renewal premium can go up. depending on your history with your company, they can also drop you if you’ve cost them too much money. and this accident will go on your clue report so other insurance companies will know about it as well if you start shopping around.

you don’t need to file a claim, your insurance company will do that for you!

 

Thank you. I had no damage but the other driver had a bent license plate and some scuffs. They will fix her car and rightfully so.

I just wasn’t sure if anything would show up on Carfax for my vehicle, which had no damage and for which I am not filing a claim.