[Shotimes] Re: Semi OT - Insurance rates/Credit Rating

[Mike Wojton]

Sounds like when I called State Farm to ask if our van, which is now four
years old, is eligible for lower rates because the value is nowhere near
what it was when we bought it new.  Logic would dictate that the rates
should go down some.  I was told (or at least the way I understood it was)
that the rates were higher to begin with so it should even out over time.
So I said "So you're overcharging me from the start, hoping I won't
notice."  There was an uncomfortable pause, and I said "That's what I
thought" and hung up.  What a racket!


--
Mike Wojton
Dover, PA

   -'95 White MTX
      '96 Brake Upgrade
      Eibachs (front)
      Dynomax catback

"Avoid the clap." - Jimmy Dugan



On 4/26/06, G Kerby Haltom <g.kerby@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
> It all comes down to the thing that insurance companies do better
> than  most anybody else, make money.  If they can use the credit score  as
> an excuse to stick it to you more, they will.  Back in the  early 90s I had
> car insurance with Aetna.  they decided they  wweren't making enough money
> in Texas, so they pulled out of the  market.  Now, all of their former
> policy holders were immediately  put into the high risk category because
> their policies had been  cancelled.  Didn't matter why they had been
> cancelled.  And  yes, I'm still bitter about that one...
>
> Kerby
>
> Mark Nunnally <marknunnally@joimail.com> wrote:  >You about always get
> better rates when you carry multiple lines (car & home)
> >with one company.
>
> We had a multi-line with State Farm to, LM's multi-line quote was roughly
> 1/2 what SF was
>
> >Well, except I would NEVER get Geico, nor would I get Progressive again.
> On
> >had Progressive on motorcycles years ago, and had no issues, but others
> >have.
>
> Had  a buddy in NY who had a few bike mishaps with progressive, and
> had  nothing but praise with their service. Like most things, it's
> probably  the actual person (with insurance, your agent) who you deal with.
>
> Back  to the credit thing, it's probably just a statistics things. They
> base  just about everything on that, anything that doesn't line up,
> they  transfer the risk ($$) to you. I recently did a term life policy
> and  got bumped from super preffered rates, to prefferred rates,
> simply  because of a past cancer history in my dad from 15 yrs ago (he
> was  treated successfully). they look for stuff like that under age 60.
> what  irks me about that, is my sister's husband just got super
> preffered  even though his dad died at 62. So I've got a healthy father
> who's  alive, and I get bumped down a column. Beyond that, I don't buy
> too  much into the family history gig, it's mostly your lifestyle and
> how  you treat your body, stuff my dad did early on in contributed to
> that.  but, they still look at statistics and transfer the risk to you...
>
> mark