Romanov Report 49 - Sept 27, 2006
Assemble Your Own Car
This assembly of car parts took 606 takes, $6 million to shoot, and 3 months to make.
You can make your own assembly of car parts to create the exact vehicle you desire, in a lot less time, at the price you can afford. To see how easy it is, click on the link below:
http://driving.canada.com/research/specs/factoryspecs.spy
Pick, Choose or Refuse
Insurance companies can "pick", "choose" or "refuse" to insure you. Here's how they do it.
PICK
The biggest screening of who gets "picked" or "insured" is by the quote you're given. If you do not have the right "profile" the insurance company wants to insure, you can be quoted a rate 100's of dollars higher than what's available to you.
CHOOSE
Interestingly, insurance companies "choose" different types of "driving profiles" to insure.
Bad Drivers: Many people believe that if they have a less than perfect driving record they are going to "pay" for it. But there are insurance companies that provide good rates for these profiles. All you have to do is find them.
Drivers With Kids: Many parents feel discriminated against by high rates. The trick is to look for the insurance company that has the lowest rate for the youngest driver, and ensure they drive the least expensive vehicle.
Proof: Here's a chart showing the spread between 30 insurance company rates from lowest to highest.
Here's how an insurance company would "screen out" a Honda driver they don't want, who has a ticket and accident. The company quoted a whopping $11,271 rate. The company that wanted to insure this driver quoted $3,182. Which would you pick?
Clean Record One Ticket & Accident Vehicle Lowest Highest Lowest Highest Hummer $1,651 $3,138 $2,812 $8,769 Honda Civic $1,602 $3,125 $3,182 $11,271
Help Is Here: To see if your company is trying to price itself out of insuring you, click on the link below to do a quick rate search for the lowest rate:
REFUSE
The information you give on your insurance application must be correct or your insurance company can cancel your policy immediately.
No Such Thing As An Honest Mistake: If the information you gave on the application is "incorrect" and it's discovered at the time of a claim, your claim could be denied. This is generally not the practice, but is has happened.
When applying for insurance, you're expected to know what your "driving record" and "driving history" are.
Your Driving Record: If you're unsure about the tickets you have, you can order your Driver Abstract from the Ministry of Transportation by clicking on the link below:
Your insurance broker or agent can request your Driver Abstract for you, but it will cost them money to do that, and they may be reluctant if they're unsure it's going to turn into business for them.
Your Driving History: You are also expected to know your claims history. Your Driving History Claims Report lists your entire insurance history from the day you received your licence.
Both your Driving Abstract and Driving History Claims Report are ordered and reviewed with every new insurance application you make, so be sure you give the correct information to avoid being "refused", or even worse, "cancelled".
Material Change in Risk: Material changes in your policy are often discovered by your insurance company when they are investigating a claim. They may discover that someone who hasn't been added to your policy is driving your car, or you've moved, have changed the distance you commute to work, and so forth.
Not notifying your insurance company of a "material change" can result in an insurance cancellation. You will be sent a notice by registered mail that your policy will be cancelled in 15 days. If hand-delivered, you'll only get 5 days notice.
Oops... I Forgot To Pay: If your cheque bounces or your pre-authorized monthly payment does not go through to pay for your insurance premium, you'll be notified by registered mail and have 30 days to pay. You'll only be allowed 2 missed payments in one year, without being cancelled.
Warning: If your policy gets cancelled for non-payment, you'll get thrown into the high-risk, high-rated market for 3 years which can cause a doubling, or tripling of what you pay now. For example, if your rate is $1,052, and your policy is cancelled for non-payment, your rate could increase to $3,229.
Bad Credit Rating: If an insurance company no longer wants to insure you, they are allowed to check for a bad credit rating as a reason to non-renew your policy. They can only order your credit score if you have your home insurance with them, not your auto. This is usually ordered if there have been multiple claims.
If your credit rating is not good, the insurance company can increase your home insurance rate, or reduce your coverage in an attempt to make you go away. They can even set your policy for non-renewal.
Note: If you have a bad credit rating and have both home and auto insurance with the same insurance company you may want to consider switching insurance companies if you feel you're getting the gears.
Your Insurance Company Cancellation Rules: Each insurance company has set their own guidelines to non-renew your policy. Some of these reasons include, but are not limited to:
- Two accidents, even if you are partially at-fault in minor accidents.
- One accident and two minor tickets, even if the accident is a parking lot fender bender.
- Two cancellations for non-payment of premium.
- If you move out-of-province and are no longer a resident.
- If you've modified your vehicle for racing or enhanced speed.
- If your insurance company finds out that you're using your car for commercial purposes (ie. delivering stuff).
- If you've been convicted of auto insurance fraud.
Need To Know: You need to know what conditions your insurance company has set up to non-renew your policy.
What if it's for 3 minor tickets? Say you get pulled over and ticketed for speeding, not wearing your seatbelt and not carrying your driver's licence. You could be cancelled by your insurance company for getting these 3 tickets. Ask your broker how many accidents or tickets will cause your insurance company to dump you.
Take Action Fast: If you get into that situation, switch insurance companies before your get a notice of cancellation on your Driving History Claims Report. If you don't, you will be quoted rates with a "company cancellation" on your record.
We'll Increase Your Rate & Make You Go Away
Not Your Accident: Your insurance company will increase your insurance rate if you lend your car and the person driving it has an accident.
Rule: When you lend your car, you lend your insurance. A girlfriend of mine lent her car to her ex-boyfriend, he had an accident, now she gets to pay for it for 6 years.
Tickets: Many drivers don't realize that even a seatbelt ticket carries as much weight as a speeding ticket. While the accompanying fine is a mere $110, your insurance rate could increase by $500 annually for 3 years.
For each passenger in your car under the age of 16 caught not wearing their seatbelt, the driver will be ticketed, and it will show up on their driver's abstract.
Two tickets could increase your insurance rate by $1,500 annually for 3 years.
Here's what type of tickets will increase your insurance rate:
Police Alert: The OPP are doing a seat belt ticketing blitz on Ontario roads until October 8, 2006.
Accidents: This one's nasty. If you have a minor fender bender and don't report it, pay for it yourself, and your insurance company finds out about it, they could cancel your policy or increase your rate.
Partially At-Fault: If your insurance company deems you to be even "partially at-fault" for the accident, it will hold as much weight when it comes to your insurance rates increasing, as if you were completely at-fault.
Your Options: Many drivers feel that once they have an accident they have to stay with the insurance company they're with because no other company would want them.
Given the rate increase you receive as a result of the accident, you may consider switching to another insurance company that caters their rates to your "new" profile. Some companies with great rates for drivers with no accidents have lousy rates for drivers with an accident.
Go to InsuranceHotline.com to find which insurance company has the best rate for your current driving profile.
