I just got mugged – and it’s entirely legal.
My car insurance “coverage” – which I’m forced to buy by the state, for the profit of a private company – just summarily jacked me up for another $100 annually. Not because I got a ticket or filed a claim or had one filed against me; not because of anything I’ve done to warrant an increase in the cost of the “coverage” (which doesn’t cover anything; more on that below) I’m compelled to buy.
So, why?
Because they can.
More accurately, because I cannot say no. Because the state serves as the Luca Brasi for the insurance mafia.
Luca, as fans of the Godfather movies already know, was the thug-enforcer sent by Don Corleone to “make him an offer he can’t refuse” – to people who would otherwise have nothing to do with the Don. In the movie, famously, the Don assured a victim that either his brains or his signature would be on the contract placed before him.
That’s how car insurance “works.”
No brains on the contract? Really? If you don’t sign – if you don’t pay – what will happen next?
The mafia will report your failure to agree to its “offer” to its Luca, the government. Which will then let every “Luca” it has in its crew know about you – and when you have the bad luck to find yourself dealing with one – as at a random “checkpoint,” what will happen next?
Notwithstanding you’ve not so much as scuffed anyone’s else’s fender or even gotten a traffic ticket in decades?
You will be hauled out of your vehicle and placed in manacles, then carted off to a cage.
If you object – if you attempt to leave – your brains may well be splattered as the “Luca Brasis” who dress up in strange costumes and serve as the enforcers of the government, on behalf of the insurance mafia, do not take no for an answer.
Knowing this – knowing that the insurance companies know they can trigger this chain of ugly events – it is very easy for the insurance mafiosi to simply demand more money, via the mails.
For no legitimate reason whatsoever.
They know you can’t say no – because what they’re “selling” is something they got the government to make you buy – or else.
Isn’t that neat?
These massively profitable legal mafias put the Columbos to shame. They use the government’s Luca Brasis to extort money from their hapless victims and then use that money to buy the government that forces us to “buy” the insurance mafia’s services.
Look into how much money the insurance mafia kicks over to the election campaigns of grifty office-seekers who use that money to buy themselves into office – and then return the por favor by doing the legislative bidding of their paymasters. It works just the same as regards the health insurance mafia, which is another of the “Five Families” that holds the people of this country in thrall.
Well, what reason did my “family” give for jacking up my extortion payment by $100 annually – a substantial sum, relative to what my prior extorted “payment” was as well as relative to that which is “covered” – which is, essentially, nothing.
The “adjuster” – one of those nauseating euphemisms, like “customer,” when dealing with the DMV or the IRS – read her script to me over the phone (after the requisite waste of 20 minutes of my time being prompted by a robotic-voiced Me So Horny phone tree creature) was that the grifty politicians who run the state of Virginia on behalf of the insurance mafia (and other mafias) had summarily increased the state-mandated minimum coverages for what an insurance mafia might have to pay a hypothetical claimant from $25,000 to $30,000. And that, accordingly, the cost of my six month extortion to be allowed to drive would be summarily raised about $50 – an increase equivalent to a 5 percent “adjustment.”
I pointed out to the script-reader that I’d been handing over extortion money for something like 20 years to this particular company and that during all that time have never filed a claim nor had a claim filed against me and – in spite of my heavy right foot (and blessed be my V1 radar detector and preternatural ability to smell pork in good time) have a ticket-free DM rap sheet.
I also pointed out that over those past 20-something years, the mafia has already extorted from me a sum greater than the market value of the 20-year-old truck that is “covered.”
Which isn’t, by the way.
Because I judge the likelihood of my ever being at fault in an accident – and because my truck isn’t worth much (though that is changing, thanks to the Biden Thing) and because I deeply resent being made to pay money for something I neither want nor judge necessary, I have the absolute bare minimum allowable “coverage,” which does not not cover me, at all.
So what, pray, am I paying for?
For the hypothetical damage I haven’t caused anyone . . . but might. (Notice the etiolation of this principle in the forced-wearing of “masks” despite not being sick and the presumption of sickness spreading underlying the attempt to force-Jab people who’ve not spread anything, either.)
Such “coverage” is something I’d rather not pay for, obviously. Which is why I must be forced to pay it. Which is why you are forced to pay for it, too. And that is why we are all paying much more for it – even if we want to pay for it. That being a function of insurance being a mafia whose offers one cannot refuse.
If it were possible – legally, as it used to be – to say no, I suspect I’ve be paying a great deal less for “coverage.” And so would you. I would be able to tell the Me So Horny script-reader: Look, this is outrageous; I’ve done nothing to warrant an “adjustment.” Either lower the price to a reasonable price or cancel the policy.
That power motivates a seller. That is to say, one who cannot force you to buy. Something is better than nothing – and more to the point, when market forces are allowed to operate, one gets value for value.
As opposed to being made an offer one can’t refuse.
. . .
Got a question about cars, bikes, or Sickness Psychosis? Click on the “ask Eric” link and send ’em in! Or email me at EPeters952@yahoo.com if the @!** “ask Eric” button doesn’t work!
If you like what you’ve found here please consider supporting EPautos.
We depend on you to keep the wheels turning!
Our donate button is here.
If you prefer not to use PayPal, our mailing address is:
EPautos
721 Hummingbird Lane SE
Copper Hill, VA 24079
PS: Get an EPautos magnet or sticker or coaster in return for a $20 or more one-time donation or a $10 or more monthly recurring donation. (Please be sure to tell us you want a magnet or sticker or coaster – and also, provide an address, so we know where to mail the thing!)
My eBook about car buying (new and used) is also available for your favorite price – free! Click here. If that fails, email me at EPeters952@yahoo.com and I will send you a copy directly!
Enjoy the “like kind and quality” scam for body shop repairs. Here in the Soviet of Washington the insurance lobby got the State to modify regs/laws so that you cannot demand restoration to factory built condition with factory parts.
My 1991 Silverado was backed into by a family friend taking out the grill and left fender. I took it to a trusted body shop and the insurance adjuster worked with them to build the estimate, all smooth till I saw non OEM parts – I insisted on genuine GM and got a chuckle from the body shop guy. “Sorry pal, laws been changed read this pamphlet”. You want OEM, you pay the difference.
I did win on the grill, the Chicom grill didn’t fit and since it was a small claim the insurance had paid me direct, I refused to pay unless replaced. They went back got insurance to pay for a GM grill. Chicom fender was OK but minor differences from OEM. I’m a fussy SOB for fit and fair, too many years in commercial airplane mfg. engineering.
You can save a ton of money by switching to Besureance. As in be sure an not get in an accident or pulled over, and be sure to know all back roads, an be sure all lights work and you’re all set.
Hi Rusty,
I am considering it. I’m not worried about being pulled over for some reason; I keep my vehicles tip-top and avoid Pork like the Face Diaper. The worry is those random “checkpoints.” The option then is to flee – or accept that you’ll at the very least get a massive extortion “ticket” and possible be arrested and have your car impounded. Sigh. Because why? I haven’t harmed anyone – but I haven’t got a piece of paper in my glovebox…
New Hampshire doesn’t require vehicle insurance.
Only one of my four vehicles is insured. The only reason I keep that is that the discount I get on homeowners, liability, and gun range insurance if I have a car attached makes it almost free.
That’s what happens when insurance is market-based instead of Lucia-based.
“gun range insurance”? I’ve never heard of such a thing.
Seems alien.
Now that’s an interesting take on things in DC. It’s not the Uniparty, or Dems and Republicans, or even commie rat bastards and Marxist rat bastards (though all are accurate descriptions). It’s the Bonnanos and the Genovese. Just two Families of the same Commission. And, they all have a strong arm squad of button-men torpedoes at their disposal. Just like the Corleones had the newspapers in their pocket after the Sollozzo affair, so do the “Bonnanos” in DC.
This is the same for all fascist industries. They have license via their lobbying to charge us all for things (or levels) we do not want.
Insurance is just the biggest example (through vehicle & obamacare requirments)
If one was free to choose to get a safety inspection or not; or send their kids to any school of their choice, how much could be charged on the open market?
The person would say as you have legalese speaking.
Look in “laws” for inspections aswell, NO definition of a MAN, all are for persons
A man is above legalese for man invented it(no definition of man in US rules of civil procedure) would say.
Here is my man insurance card, bonded? to whatever amount.
If a cop “arrested you” you would ask for every statement the cop said is that an order officer? The more orders the cop gives the better. Keep tract of all those orders. Go to jail. The next day either send or deliver those bills to the original cop and his superiors. Each on gets a bill for services rendered. So say $50/order. A man gets compensation for orders taken, a PERSON/slave does not. Think waitresses get paid to take an order, cops get paid to take orders from superiors, a MAN gets compensated to take orders. The end goal is NOT to collect from the poor ignorant cops individually, it would be to get them to withdraw their color of law farce. Black’s law is how the french’s book how to treat black slaves. I have yet to have courage to put this into practice, but according to the “law” it is perfectly legal. i am not a lawyer so do not take my advice
To add insult to injury, the nearby college town county is going to raise personal property taxes on used cars because their value has gone up. Insurance is likely doing the same, which may be the cause of Eric’s recent troubles.
You get a ticket and the Insurance Company can raise your premium? Is this a US/Canadian thing? What a racket! It’s like dripping piss on a toilet seat, cleaning it up and the hotel charges you a cleaning fee. Why not get a Post Box in a low tax/low insurance premium State/area and register your vehicle there?
You CAN’T do that…I tried for my daughters, when we moved from Chicago Land, to Central Wisconsin…Because the oldest daughter used a car bought under my name, and the youngest one under my wife – her mom…So…we taught that e save money with the insurance, registering the cars in Wisconsin and let our daughters to drive where they live, in Illinois…The agent from State Farm said that we can do that, but will have problems in case of an accident…I/we figured this ( what the writer of this article is saying ) after few years in the ol’ good USA…The entire system is corrupted to the core and we are slaves on the Neo-Feudal plantation…worst than those in 18th Century…You know WHY ?! Because in the past, the slaves owners had to provide/take care for those who worked for them ( like the farmers are taking care of their horses, cattle, etc. ), while today, the modern slaves are taking care of themselves ! It’s the most powerful Mafia ever: Kosher Nostra…’ Obey, or else ! ‘…
Hi Independent,
A point will come – and we’re close to it – when people simply… shrug. As in, stop complying. Because it’s become too much and because they just can’t afford to. I’ve denounced mandated insurance for years – along with the endless fear-porn that’s been used to support it and get people to believe they have to be “covered” for everything.
All of this “coverage” is a major contributor to so many people’s precarious financial state. How could it be otherwise when so many people are spending more each month on “coverage” – for the car, health, home, etc. – than they are paying in rent/mortgage? The cumulative amounts are staggering, too. I once added up how much I’ve been made to spend on “coverage” for my vehicles and it exceed what I paid for two of them. I bought my ’02 Nissan for about $7,500 (used) back in ’08. I’ve spent more than that on “coverage” since circa 1995 – and not cost the mafia a cent for it.
Responsible, competent people capable of intelligently weighing cost-benefit (and risk-reward) are far better off putting money aside than paying for “coverage.”
Hi Eric,
I don’t know who you have for insurance, but have you tried Erie, Allstate, or Travelers? I have had Erie since I started driving. We have a sports car and an SUV (full coverage on both), but our deductible is pretty high. I refuse to go to the insurance company and file a claim for anything less than $2K so that is the deductible for our cars. I think our house is about $5K.
With both cars our annual premium is $835. The house runs about $700 per year. They focus on the driving record and our credit records. The better the credit score the cheaper the policy. Also, we have no claims, and it has been about eight years since my last ticket. It would decrease if I just put liability on both, but the additional $200-300 per year for full coverage is worth it to me.
Hi RG,
Geico – a legacy of my marriage. I will try the ones you suggest and report back. I am seriously considering just paying the obnoxious “uninsured motorists” mordita as it may be cheaper and it will, at least deprive the Geico scumbags of some of my money.
Hi Eric,
If you are paying more than $500 year for the truck and sports car for liability coverage you are paying too much.
Hi RG,
I may owe you a beer! I just got a tentative quote from Erie for about 50 percent less than ScrewCo (Geico) wants… I will let you know whether the actual cost is the same as the online quote. Thanks, again!
Hi Eric,
Glad to hear. Geico (and State Farm) happen to be two of the most expensive insurance companies out there. Erie only handles the Mid-Atlantic region and the mid-West, so they don’t deal with a lot of hurricanes, tornados, floods, etc. You also have to have a very good record. I found Allstate and Travelers to be pretty competitive as well. They may be a tad higher, but usually not by much.
Hi RG,
I’m hoping the online quote pans out. It should. I don’t think it’s possible to have a better risk profile. Zero claims filed, ever. Zero claims filed against me. No tickets; five “plus” points. So – we’ll see!
It costs real money to make the lizard commercials! Gotta keep those premiums up.
Hi Eric,
Just a FYI. We went that route, once you get too many quotes, your current company will raise your rates if you don’t switch and, as an added bonus, if you DO switch, watch how fast the “Me so horny” script reader calls to tell you you’ve been “adjusted”. Wifey and I long ago, dropped any full coverage AND “uninsured” motorist coverage (another scam, right? Who’s uninsured with Luca hanging around!?) We also made all our children wait til 18 to get their permit, that way, no drug/alcohol counseling by the badged Orcs AND no State snitching on us to the Mafia that we had a new driver! $50 a month, 25 years, no tickets or accidents, only two kids left and it’s over. F*€k the grifters and the enforcers!
Beware Erie if you ever need to file a claim – esp for homeowners.
I used to have USAA & Allstate beat their rate.
You should also look into Hagerty or some other collector car insurance co for the Great Punkin’ and the bikes. Whereas I used to just insure the toys one at a time when I was going to use them (or just skip it for an occasional warm weather maintenance run), I got a very reasonable quote based on the fact that they are seldom used toys.
Re: Geico, et al, a good rule of thumb is to avoid insurers who advertise excessively. After all, who do you think ultimately pays for all those expensive commercials?
I would normally agree with you but have found my experience to be completely different.
I had Progressive (I can’t stand that they are anti-gun) for liability for years on my Miata. Was pretty cheap considering the advertising.
Then I bought an almost new truck. When I went to comprehensive coverage, they jacked up my rates through the roof. My neighbor said to go check out a local insurance company and see what they could do for me. They save me a lot of money by putting me on a “pleasure plan” for my truck and miata since neither were daily drivers.
When the term of that insurance was nearing its end, I got a call from the local insurance company saying they can save me more money by switching to, wait for it, Progressive.
I’m guessing their computer figured out that I had been paying them for years and years with no claims and that I dropped em like a bad habit when I got my truck. They came in cheaper the next time around and I didn’t have to be on a “pleasure” policy either.
My take is that when an insurance company takes you for granted, go find another.
I’m surprised you would use Geico, the origins of its name was Government Employees Insurance corporation/company. As they are all creatures of the state, it doesn’t really matter though.
Somebody put a claim in for a stolen bicycle on their house insurance, it wasn’t worth it, their premiums went way up. This is done purposely so no claims are made. Dental insurance is the worst, few people use it (scared of dentists) so the insurers just keep the money.
Some people get dental work done in Mexico because it is far cheaper. For big surgical operations some people go to Vietnam, it is far far cheaper and high quality.
The so-called ‘ credit score ‘ itself it’s a big scam…3 private agencies ( with no accountability to any State, or Federal Departments ) are controlling the lives of those who work hard and pay ( illegal/unconstitutional ) ‘ taxes ‘…The system is rigged; please watch the documentary ‘ In Debt We trust ‘…” The table is tilted, folks, the game is rigged and nobody seems to notice, nobody seems to care…” – George Carlin
I once told my business insurer agent that I thought insurance was legalized extortion. He did not like me saying that about his profession but understood where I was coming from.
If you earn 100 grand each year and pay 1200 USD per month in health insurance costs, 14.4 percent of your annual income, then a person having an income of one million dollars should be required to pay 144,000 USD in health care cost per year.
It’s only fair. CEO’s collect millions in compensation, seems somewhat hypocritical. You would think it would bother their consciences.
Any properly run mafia would see to it who pays their fair share.
My niece works in the medical field, not at a hospital, at a speech therapy clinic. She has patients that have been hospitalized and need some speech therapy/rehabilitation.
You have to ask a few questions about what is happening, part of the conversation. She did say that there are a lot of people who do not have health insurance.
The hospital work is off the charts is the gist of her information.
All because some Chinese woman went batty and ate bat soup.
You can’t make this stuff up.
Hi drumphish,
I am hoping that more and more people are seeing what a racket health insurance is. I am happy to pay for any services rendered for my family, but to pay an exorbitant amount of money each month whether one uses it or not is mind boggling. I haven’t had health insurance for about four years, but back then the cost was running around $1440/month for a family of four. Under Obamacare we went from $528 to $904 to $1440. Once it hit the thousand per month mark, I was done.
How much better off would the average person be if they took the monies that they spend on health insurance and put it toward their overall health, instead? Or just save it up for an emergency?
My family and I still get annual eye exams and 2x a year dental cleaning. If we have cavities, root canals, need new eyeglasses or contacts we buy them outright. We have to visit the ER once or twice over the last few years. I paid the bill before we left. It was nice to not have to worry about fighting with a middleman on what is covered and what isn’t. I know how much everything costs prior because to surgery, an exam, a lab, etc. The great thing there is never a surprise bill that shows us 8 months later!
It isn’t for everyone, but now that I have gotten comfortable with it, I will never go back and pay a portion of my salary to a billion-dollar corporation. My monies go directly to the people who performed the work.
I as well am “Self-Pay” (I learned to never say you don’t have insurance) since 2006. I estimate having literally saved over $100K by opting out these last 15 years.
Additionally, if most would do this I also estimate it would break the back of the health insurance cartel and force a serious paradigm shift between the patient and the provider.
Hi Obstinate,
You are correct. Self pay is the correct terminology. 😁
I’m in the same boat- insurance for self, wife, and a couple kids was over $2500/month. It made more sense to take a small chance and keep that money towards survival and the decision has saved me well over 100k in the last 13 years. Even factoring in a true emergency bill of close to 30k (which was negotiated down to $15k) we’re way ahead. It’s not like I actually saved it- we’re at a level where it would have come from needs, but not paying La Mordida has kept my family afloat and free.
Hi Ernie,
Insurance rates are unkind to the self employed and small business owners. I have clients that willingly pay the $2k+ monthly premiums for their families. That is highway robbery. I totaled what my family spent in doctors, dentists, eye care, and labs last year – $1326…less than one monthly premium.
My husband needs a dental bridge next month so some years aren’t cheap, but even if I end up spending $6k for 2022 I am still ahead of the game.
Ditto that, RG –
I’m self-employed, too – and the cost for “coverage” is absurd as well as worthless since it “covers” very little. I realized long ago that it makes much more sense to be healthy – largely under one’s control – and pay out of pocket as needed, which is feasible when your pockets aren’t constantly being picked for “coverage” by the insurance mafia.
Also, this business os using “insurance” to “cover” anything other than catastrophic/unforeseen events such as injury in a car wreck or a heart attack is exactly why “insurance” is a mulcting operation. I ask people to try to imagine what it would cost to get their car’s oil changed if they used “insurance” to “cover” the cost…
RG
Forget bridges have you considered an implant? I’m back down in the Dominican Republic to check out some farmland and will have a few old crowns replaced. Dr Juan Cestero in Santiago has a practice that will make you all smiles at half price compared to the USA . My logistics are simply Ft Lauderdale to Santiago, 1 hr and 40 minute flight on Spirit.
I’ve read a lot of of your comments on “Tesla autos.com “😂😂and you sound kind of “Farmgirl” .
If you are looking for a back to basics kind of lifestyle this place rocks!
My GF and I are ripping all over this country in an EPautos approved “off road “ Toyota Yaris.😂
In the last 7 days we’ve dodged herds of:
Goat’s
Cattle
Turkeys
And the ubiquitous Asian jungle fowl.
Santiago is located in the heart of the Cibao valley home to the largest Organic cocoa farms…..No Monsanto!
The place is a third world garden of Eden NO SHIT👍
Furthermore the scenery is World Class..just avoid Punta Cana
If interested I can get you the contact number…Heck you guys should consider dental tourism.
BTW we had to gingerly skirt a black and white “vaca “ plopped down on the road to our hotel yesterday. Good luck with whatever you do.
Semper Fi
Vaca – had to look that one up.
https://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaca
Do you have a blog? I imagine you have some magnificent photos.
helot,
No blog yet but we’re applying for a retiree visa when we get back in February. If approved we will do a few YouTubes probably called “Pete and Luisa do the DR”.
If not approved, we’re just going to plant ourselves down here and disappear into the countryside . Very easy to do since most expats are doing it presently 👍
Hi Licknickel,
Before 2020 hit I traveled the Caribbean pretty extensively. I have been to Turks and Caicos, St. John, Cayman, Anguilla, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, etc. There were only a few I was unable to hit before they made flying impossible…the Dominican Republic happened to be one of them.
Unfortunately, until the restrictions lessen in the Caribbean…no masks, no vax, no tests, etc. I will have to make do with Florida or sneak in via private yacht. 😊
RG
At present, the only place you run into Maskholes is in the USA. That is, Uber to the airport at the airport and during the flight.
Once you’re here ,only the big box stores and national grocery chains require a speedo .You will have to get a -bogus cold and flu test- before you fly back to the US..but that’s about it.
This place is chock full of “manana Libertarians “ and I LOVE IT!
RG,
I do the same. After I retired, I had COBRA for a few months. I discontinued it, because it doesn’t make financial sense. O’care so changed health insurance that many things formerly covered no longer are. My premiums went up, as did my deductibles, while the overall coverage went down. I was paying for “coverage” that was de facto SELF PAY! Why should I pay a few hundred a month to the Insurance Mafia when I’m going to be paying for things myself anyway? Why not just cut out the expense? So, I did.
Oh, and Uncle Sam can’t extract a “shared responsibility payment” from me, either. The VA informed me that, since I was part of the VA system, that satisfied my Obamacare requirement. I get some care through the VA, and I self pay for some of it. Thankfully, I don’t have the penalty, er tax, thanks to being in the VA… 🙂
Hi Mark,
There is no longer a penalty for not having insurance, that ended in 2018 when the Republican Congress and Trump signed the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act into law.
When Obamacare started charging men for maternity leave and all of us for alcohol and drug rehabilitation, mental health screenings, pediatric care (even those that don’t have children) it became a bit much.
I have yet to meet anyone that finds it affordable. I ditched Anthem when I found out they would only cover 50% of my care…that was after I maxed the $13k deductible! What is the point of insurance if one is going to be bankrupt anyway.
EXACTLY! Why pay hundreds or thousands a month for de facto self pay when you can just do self pay alone and be done with it?
I end up changing insurance companies every year. I don’t want to, but they keep trying to jack my price. Loyalty counts for nothing with these companies, so they don’t get mine. So far, I just go back and forth between progressive and geico every year. On my boat I go between geico and some other obscure little company, because progressive has overpriced boat insurance always. My boat is the only thing I insure voluntarily. I don’t even insure my house.
Here in Taxachusetts the insurance mafia has a great catch-22. Everyone is required to buy compulsory insurance, and one of the compulsory categories is “uninsured motorist” coverage. WTF?? Even the Mafia wouldn’t be that ridiculous.
Learn the difference between a man and a person. They are entirely different in the eyes of the “law” and the “courts”. What you speak of is entirely done under color of law, as no law can be broken if one or both of these things is not done. Harm to one’s person or one’s property
Most cops do not even realize they are enforcing color of law, according to the “US” the maximum penalty for enforcing it is the death penalty
20-some years ago I got hit by a young gal. It wasn’t her car. She didn’t have a drivers license. And she didn’t have insurance. You think she gave a shit? Not even a cursory apology.
The damage to the drivers side door of the ol’ GMC that I often speak about here has never been right. Oh it was fixed cosmetically but no about of adjustment could keep it from leaking air.
It cost me the deductible and state farm several thousand dollars. State farm then increased my rates. I dropped them immediately and refuse to ever do buisness with that particular cartel again.
Back in the day (50’s thru late 80’s) my grandfather started and ran a very successful insurance associate business in CA. This was when insurance was voluntary and a competitive business. An Insurance Associate was a key figure in not only taking bids from various insurance firms but to make sure you not only got enough coverage you did over buy and have coverage you didn’t need. My Grandfather retired in the early 90’s just about the time things started to change in the insurance industry for the worse. These insurance corps became tyrants as they became mandated by state statute then could start denying claims at whim.
Next story: My Grandfather’s house burned down in the Oakland Hills fire of 93. My Grandfather had the most premium homeowner’s insurance you could buy at the time. The adjuster met with my grandfather and Father and told them the insurance company is going to create a set of construction blueprints of the old house from the interview with my grandfather, then but these blueprints out to *bid* to determine the cost of the home replacement. My Father (who is in the wholesale food business) demonstrated a knowledge and timing of an expert construction lawyer and stated; that if that is their method then the specifications for this old house must include: lathe and plaster not Gyp, true dimensional lumber not nominal (a real 2X4 not 1.5 X 3.5), and old growth timber as the wood source. Then my Father called his attorney and followed with a letter. At that point they started to negotiate reasonably.
Moral of the story…it’s good to know a lot about everything, you never know when you’ll need it. That is why you youngin’s need to take history classes you insist you don’t need to become a computer game writer.
NEVER buy insurance of any kind from a company agent. NEVER buy it on line. I use an independent agent, and if the costs get out of line, I go talk to them, modestly threatening them with the loss of my business. Since they sell insurance from several companies, they can shop around for you, using their experience, that you don’t have. A few years ago, I got my homeowners rate cut more than 25% by so doing. It is a Mafia, but you can pick which family you suffer. I was briefly a licensed health and life agent. Actually having a moral foundation, and ethical standards, I did not renew. Because the insurance industry has neither. Neither do your State insurance regulators. There is no more glaring example than the fact you cannot buy health insurance across State lines. Because “required” coverage differs. Agents receive a ridiculously high commission on policies, and are NOT ALLOWED to reduce it to gain your business.
How do you find an independent agent? I’ve never even heard of that but I’m (now) interested!
I had no idea they were hard to find. They certainly aren’t in Missouri. Perhaps your State regulates them out of business.
Hi EM,
They are all over MD, but they are being reduced since the larger insurance agencies seem to plucking them off one by one.
Just type in independent insurance agent in (name of your county, example St Mary’s County, MD) and several will show up. If I have a problem I have always dealt with my agent. It is nice to have someone to yell at who actually answers the phone and is in your zip code. 😁
Opaque pricing is another feature of the insurance mafia.
When I had both homeowners and motorcycle coverage with one company, I called to cancel the motorcycle policy after finding a lower rate with another company.
The response? ‘Your homeowners premium is going up — by MORE than the premium on the canceled motorcycle policy.’
Outraged, I demanded to know why. ‘Because you were getting a homeowners discount for having vehicle coverage with us too.’
What this means is that comparison shopping for insurance is not possible, when the internal rules and discounts aren’t disclosed.
Once when my homeowners premium was hiked too high, I switched to another company … which in turn ceded the policy to the very same company it was with before, but at a 30 percent lower premium thanks to the middleman’s arrangement with them.
Opacity is the handmaiden of corruption.
Another outrageous thing about “car” insurance is that a car cannot harm anyone by itself. Neither can it drive by itself. The car isn’t on the hook for damages ever. It won’t have to appear in court or be the respondent/defendant in a legal suit.
Correspondingly, I can only drive one car at a time. I own three but my wife drives one. So one of them at any given moment will necessarily not be driven.
I even had one of the thugs send me a demand for proof of insurance for a car about a month *after* I sold it to the junk yard. I wrote back to them and told them that I have no requirement to produce proof of insurance for a car that I do not own.
They wrote back to me and changed the demand to show proof of insurance through the day that I sold it. I had such proof but the idea of them threatening me with a “fine” for an arbitrary period if I didn’t respond to that demand was infuriating!
The insurance mafia, as you pointed out, is already reporting on me continually to their capos. I should never have been threatened in that manner in the first place — never mind outside of no harm caused to anyone.
These freaking people are insane.
I could never understand why I had to buy liability insurance on the vehicle. The vehicle is not liable, I am. So why can I not buy liability insurance on me instead? As you say, I can only drive one at a time, though I have two, and pay for liability on both. Simply pick the one with the highest liability risk, and charge me for that one. The other should require none.
It’s a good to read that others have had this perspective. So many other subjects are so similar: the war against some drugs, the war against fathers & the family unit, seatbelt laws, … the list goes on & on, doesn’t it.
As I read, I had the thought: you’ll know when the revolution is over when a person can decline to buy insurance of any sort & still drive & work without risking a boot on the neck.
That seems like a long road.
Step One, a Thursday nite club:
https://www.lewrockwell.com/2022/01/joseph-mercola/how-to-win-the-war-against-tyranny/
Step Two, build:
https://survivalblog.com/2022/01/14/economics-investing-preppers-570/
I don’t know about your state but mine forces you to prove you were insured after any accident.
I got rear-ended once, not my fault, no ticket, tge other insurance paid to fix it. But I got a nasty gram in the mail from the state, and if I couldn’t prove that I was insured at the time by such-and-such date (my insurance had to send the state a form), I would automatically be on the hook for driving without insurance.
Basically they set it up so you are guilty until you prove yourself innocent.
I was furious, but also powerless to do much.
Sure I could have hired an attorney, but that’s most likely not a winnable fight, or worth the time and expense.
Yeah, I live in the People’s Republic of Maryland. And, if I didn’t answer their demand (despite no accident), they were going to fine me for every day for which I failed to provide proof of insurance and I had a limited time to provide the proof.
After I got the second letter, I called my agent and they sent whatever state-required form, similar to what you mentioned. If I were to dare allow my insurance expire, the agent would immediately inform the state in the first place.
That after the fact or secondary requirement to provide proof is just complete bullshit. I thought about suing them but it probably would’ve been just a waste of money.