Insurance (Rant)

[Rok]

Car insurance rates increased 23 to 43% in 2023. Homeowners insurance rates also increased dramatically depending on where you lived in 2023. This is nothing more than legal robbery. The government says you must have car insurance to get a legal tag for your ride, so these companies can pretty much set pricing as they like and if you want to drive a vehicle you pay to conform.

Yes, I know there is government regulators that are suppose to keep these prices in check and protect us. When asked about the huge increases last year the office of insurance regulation stated that all of these increases where necessary for the insurance companies to continue making a profit.

Increased prices for car parts and repairs had severely hurt the insurance industry. Really? they must truly believe we are all incapable of thinking. I am sure most of you probably watched the recent Superbowl. A show that has the most expensive tv commercial rates of the year. Did you notice every tv break had 1 or 2 insurance commercials? Not only are these extremely expensive adds, but many pay millions to their spokes people including players who were in the big game. If these companies are hurting so bad why pay so much on ads? Have you ever traveled through some of Americas larger cities that are home to insurance companies.

The largest, most beautiful, expensive buildings in each city are normally insurance companies. I really cannot see these companies having any shortage of assets. Car insurance has become so expensive that many people simply can't afford it. Food and rent take priority. Many cancel their policies soon after renewing their tags. It is currently estimated that 1 out of every 4 cars on the road has no insurance. So look around your vehicle next time you sit if traffic and know 1 of those vehicles around you is uninsured. I think it is time to let our elected officials know that this type of unfair pricing will not be tolerated. I believe the insurance regulators should all be locked up for fraud. They must be collecting bribes to continue to let insurance companies rape the American public. On top of some of the highest inflation we all saw last year, the insurance companies greed is criminal.
(Rant Over) - Please let me know your thoughts on this.

 

[Rok]

Worst part is after paying your ungodly premium, the company will fight you tooth and nail before they pay out anything for your claim.

 

[Pegasus]

You live in the US right ?
Tell me about medical insurance .

 

[Johnny D]

Claims and cost of claims have risen dramatically. Most insurance companies are seeing increasing loss ratios in recent years. Road fatalities are up, cost of repairs is up, claims from natural disasters is up, and I believe that theft might even be up (that one I'd have to confirm but was just reading about the Kia/Hyundai vulnerability on Sat and how theft of those cars is up some 1000% or something). Insurance profits from underwriting (which isn't how they make their money, btw, are down year over year for the past few years. You're not being gouged - it's economics.

 

[CUSP82]

Don't worry Biden will fix it.

 

[Rok]

Don't worry Biden will fix it.

I am not going to hold my breath

 

[CUSP82]

The rise in rates are a problem but no one wants to do anything about it do they? Insurance companies pay millions to dem candidates so don't look there.

 

[Johnny D]

The rise in rates are a result of economics (again, more claims at higher prices to resolve). Not something for a politician to do anything about.

The fact that we've allowed the government to, yet again, regulate another private industry is going to make all services provide by that industry more expensive. Not from a sudden rise in rates, just in general. But, for that, we have to point the finger at both sides of the aisle, as well as the choices we make in the voting booth.

 

[Rok]

I am sorry, but insurance companies are not hurting by any stretch of the imagination. You can't blame economics on everything. There is right and wrong. When will their greed be enough? The law says we have to carry auto insurance, so we can't boycott them like you would anyone else who raises their prices too high. The insurance regulators have to stop taking bribes and get back to helping the public, which is their job description. Our premiums are too high because we have to cover ourselves for others who simply can't afford insurance. All I am saying is insurance is unfortunately kind of a nessessity, so it should be affordable for all.

 

[not2big]

You live in the US right ?
Tell me about medical insurance .

If you are 65 or older, Medicare covers a lot Of basic needs In excess of a smalldeductsble However supplementary insurance for more complicated/unusual needs is expensive

 

[akaTrex]

Add Gas and Electricity! It's insane the increases have been huge!
You need to shop around for Insurance etc.
We live Debt-Free as we paid off our house and cars.
Our Financial Advisor recommended folks to shop for us for Insurance, etc.
It's been an Eye Opener.

 

[Pegasus]

The US seems to get bad bang for buck on a lot of fronts .

How is the eletric car thing going to affect all this ?

 

[Johnny D]

I am sorry, but insurance companies are not hurting by any stretch of the imagination. You can't blame economics on everything. There is right and wrong. When will their greed be enough? The law says we have to carry auto insurance, so we can't boycott them like you would anyone else who raises their prices too high. The insurance regulators have to stop taking bribes and get back to helping the public, which is their job description. Our premiums are too high because we have to cover ourselves for others who simply can't afford insurance. All I am saying is insurance is unfortunately kind of a nessessity, so it should be affordable for all.

The facts don't support your assertion. Insurance company profits from underwriting are down. Way down. They're almost always negative - they make money by investing premiums, not by profiting from them - and they've fallen the last few years. Sorry, but it's the economics of increasing claims and cost of claims that's causing rates to rise. The data supports that despite how you feel.

 

[Party]

The US seems to get bad bang for buck on a lot of fronts .

How is the eletric car thing going to affect all this ?

We had a very long cold snap in January. Did you know those quick charge stations don’t work that well in the cold? A lot of tow truck companies did.

 

[not2big]

I just received notice from State Farm insurance that the premium will be increasing by 26% at my next renewal.

I also read that insurance on electric vehicles averages about 25% higher than gas cars.

 

[akaTrex]

I just received notice from State Farm insurance that the premium will be increasing by 26% at my next renewal.

I also read that insurance on electric vehicles averages about 25% higher than gas cars.

Those EV Batteries are very Expensive.
JD Power quotes the following battery replacement estimates for Tesla models, including labor:

• Model 3: At least $13,000
• Model S: $13,000-$15,000
• Model X: At least $14,000

That does not include repairing damage to the car!

 

[CUSP82]

Doesn't look like theres much we can do about it.

 

[not2big]

You have to have insurance. However, you need to do some research to find the best insurance that meets your needs. I saw a comparison of general auto insurance costs and surprisingly, Progressive was the highest and State Farm was the lowest; however, no details were supplied.