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Higher Gas Prices May Equal Lower Roadway Fatalities

Automobile Insurance

Ron Barnett of “The Greenville News” reported that:

If there was an upside to spike in gas prices, it could be that it helped save more than 150 lives by reducing the number of miles driven on South Carolina highways…..

The ups and down of the economic woes we have faced over the past year or more continue to have their far reaching impact.  Likewise, I indicated that drivers were forgoing their insurance premiums as another way to cut costs.

As Mr. Barnett indicated in his article:

Greenville, the state’s most populous county, had the most traffic fatalities in 2008, 70, a decrease from 88 the year before.

The number of roadway fatalities in Pickens County fell from 26 to 17, while Oconee dropped from 24 to 14, Anderson went from 49 to 27 and Laurens was down from 17 to 15, according to the preliminary numbers.

The increase in highway patrolman was also credited as a potential factor in the decrease in fatalities.  As prior articles have indicated:

  1. Biker Deaths were on the rise;
  2. November is the peak month for deer collisions; and
  3. Nobody plans on dying in a freak accident.

Keep driving safely!

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Bad Economy Leads More Drivers to Drop Insurance

Automobile Insurance , , , , , ,

M.P. McQueen of “The Wall Street Journal” reports that:

More drivers are letting their car insurance lapse because of the sour economy, putting themselves and others at risk……..

Ms. McQueen quoted Robert Hartwig, president of the Insurance Information Institute, as saying:

“A good proportion of people on the road are either uninsured or underinsured, and so you have to protect yourself… “

“Your odds of being in an accident with an uninsured driver are substantial.”

As I reported in my “Full Coverage”  article:

Minimum insurance limits in the South Carolina are mandated by S.C. Code Ann. § 38-77-140 and at the present time are 25,000/50,000/25,000. Likewise, UM, or uninsured coverage is mandatory but you should carry higher than the minimum limits.

Insurance coverages that protect you when someone is uninsured, underinsured, or is covered with Allstate are below: (insurance companies don’t want you to know about them because it costs them money in the long run):

  1. UIM–In accordance with C. Code Ann. § 38-77–160, this is optional coverage you can purchase in the event that damages are sustained in excess of the liability limits carried by an at-fault insured (driver) or underinsured motorist. Remember minimum coverage is $25,000.00 per one person.
  2. UM–This is uninsured coverage and essentially your insurance company will defend the at fault person against you. HUH? Read it again. That’s right! You’re own insurance company defends the uninsured person against you. Why? Insurance companies don’t make money paying you money, that includes your insurance company. Call and ask them if you think I am being untruthful.
  3. PIP/MEDPAY– This is the greatest insurance ever. If you do not have it, you’re an idiot. It’s cheap, too.

GAP Coverage-Gap insurance covers the difference between what the insurance company says your car is worth versus what’s left on your car loan, or note.

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Insurance Companies And Whiplash Injuries

Automobile Insurance, Motor Vehicle Law & Statistics , , , ,

Insurance Companies Admit Whiplash Injuries Occur in Minor, or Low, Impact Wrecks! The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is an organization dedicated to reducing the losses — deaths, injuries, and property damage — from crashes on the nation’s highways and is wholly supported by auto insurers (read insurance companies).

In a news release dated December 17, 2008, the IIHS reports (important parts underlined):

Rear crashworthiness needs improving:  Many automakers haven’t paid as much attention to protection in rear crashes, compared with front and side, Nolan points out. Good seat/head restraints are key to preventing whiplash injuries. Neck sprain or strain is the most frequently reported crash injury in US insurance claims. When a vehicle is struck in the rear and driven forward, its seats accelerate occupants’ torsos forward. Unsupported, the head will lag behind the forward torso movement, and the differential motion causes the neck to bend and stretch. The higher the torso acceleration, the more sudden the motion, the higher the forces on the neck, and the more likely a neck injury is to occur. Keeping the head and torso moving together is crucial to reducing whiplash injury risk. To accomplish this, the geometry of a head restraint has to be adequate — high enough to be near the back of the head. Then the seat structure and stiffness characteristics must be designed to work in concert with the head restraint to support an occupant’s neck and head, accelerating them with the torso as the vehicle is pushed forward.

“In stop and go commuter traffic, you’re more likely to get in a rear-end collision than any other kind of crash,” Nolan says. “It’s not a major engineering feat to design seats and head restraints that afford good protection in these common crashes.”

In these whiplash tests and throughout the article no mention was given to the amount of property damage done to the car. Can you believe that? This was testing done by insurance companies and they didn’t mention a single word about the amount of property damage done to the rear of the vehicle as an indicator of personal injury.  This article mentioned “acceleration”, “sudden motion”, and “higher forces to the neck.”  Well surely these vehicle tested impact at a high speed?

Rear crash protection is rated according to a two-step procedure. Starting points for the ratings are measurements of head restraint geometry — the height of a restraint and its horizontal distance behind the back of the head of an average-size man. Seat/ head restraints with good or acceptable geometry are tested dynamically using a dummy that measures forces on the neck. This test simulates a collision in which a stationary vehicle is struck in the rear at 20 mph. Seats without good or acceptable geometry are rated poor overall because they can’t be positioned to protect many people.

If you are currently dealing with an insurance adjuster or company on a wreck claim, print this article out from IIHS’ website and send it to them.  Make sure you highlight the portions above if you have been in a rear end collision. It may not matter because they only do what their computer tells them but it will make you feel better.

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Allstate Insurance Sucks

Automobile Insurance , , , , , ,

Dealing with Allstate on a routine basis for personal injury claims, I know how they frustrate me to no end.  However, I was interested to see the amount of Google entries for this title.

Are you really in good hands? Or should you consult an attorney anytime you see a name followed by the word “insurance”?

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“Full Coverage” Automobile Insurance

Automobile Insurance , , , , , , ,

When I turn to my clients and ask them about their automobile coverage, they quickly respond back that they have “Full Coverage”.  Full coverage to them and full coverage to me are two different things. My idea of full coverage is below:

  1. $100,000/$300,000/$100,000 Liability and Property Coverage (Minimum insurance limits in the South Carolina are mandated by C. Code Ann. § 38-77-140 and at the present time are 25,000/50,000/25,000. Likewise, UM, or uninsured coverage is mandatory but you should carry higher than the minimum limits).
  2. Personal Injury Protection/Medical Payments (PIP/Medpay)– $25,000.00.  This is no fault insurance that protects you and other occupants of the car. This is optional coverage you can request that is very inexpensive.
  3. Underinsured Motorist Coverage (UIM)- $100,000.00. In accordance with C. Code Ann. § 38-77–160, this is optional coverage you can purchase in the event that damages are sustained in excess of the liability limits carried by an at-fault insured (driver) or underinsured motorist. Remember minimum coverage is $25,000.00 per one person.
  4. Comprehensive/Collision Coverage-Again these are optional coverages you can get that provide deductibles you pay to have your automobile repaired if it is in a collision or damaged as a result of something other than collision, ie fire, theft, weather, vandalism, etc (comprehensive). Often times collision coverage is required if you finance your vehicle through a bank, or lender.
  5. GAP Coverage-Gap insurancecovers the difference between what the insurance company says your car is worth versus what’s left on your car loan, or note. I was not going to include this in my “Full Coverage” but in the past few weeks I have had 3 clients that would pay triple their premium in exchange for GAP coverage.

Full coverage to my clients usually means the bare minimum it takes to drive on the roadways of the state of South Carolina. As stated above, that would be liability coverage if you cause injury or property damage to someone else at $25,000/$50,000/$25,000 and Uninsured Motorist Coverage for incidents where you are injured by someone that failed to follow the law and carry the minimum insurance coverage. The amounts I use above can be adjusted to fit in each individuals budget. If you carry the bare minimum required by law, just remember the old adage that “You get what you pay for!”

INSURANCE is just that, coverage and protection when losses are injuries occur to you or your family as a result of the negligence or lack of responsibility of another party.  Be prepared when that time comes. The South Carolina Department of Public Safety put out a report a few years ago that indicated a traffic wreck occurred every 4.7 minutes.

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