Credit and Car Insurance - URGENT!

KIND OF A SIDE TRACK...BUT IT IS RELATED...FIRST USA JACKS UP MY INTEREST RATE to 22.49% from about 10% because I owe too much money (so they say)...

They totally lost the account...made $0.00 @ 22.49%!!!
If they had said I owe too much money..."LET'S REDUCE YOUR INTEREST RATE TO 5.99% FIXED...THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE LOGICAL"!!!!

I made all my payments on time @ 10%...but @ 22.49%...WHO KNOWS???


IF MY RATES FOR MY CAR ARE $1,000/YEAR...THEN MY CREDIT GOES IN THE CRAPPER...I HAVE TO PAY $3,000/YEAR...HOW IS THAT FAIR...

I would still have...
NO accidents
NO claims
NO parking tickets
1 speeding ticket (7 mph+)...way back in the 80's (for you kids...yes I'm old)...

 

Felice
you could say the same thing about credit cards!!
LOL. You are right, it does seem predatory, but there is an alternative: you can take out a bond instead of purchasing liability insurance, if you've got enough money in the bank to satisfy your state's minimum required liability limits.

 

George,

as I've said several times:

we'll take your score NOW, & if the credit "goes in the crapper" you'll STILL get your rate based on your score NOW. We're not going to penalize you if it goes in the crapper.

Now, if your credit is "in the crapper" NOW, (like mine!!) but climbs OUT of the crapper, your rate will improve (which we're working on!!!)

And, I believe you deserve recognition for having great marks on your credit!!

 

Insurance Bond? Very Dangerous thing to do, you better either be judgement proof or have alot more money in the bank, than what your state insurance limits are.

In my state it is also mandatory to carry "uninsured" motorist insurance, which is recommended to be equal to your own policy. If insurance is mandatory why do I need to carry this additional policy? Just another rip-off!

tml

 

Felice,

I was just being facetious about the credit cards, that statement applies to how I USED to think about them (fear of not having money to purchase things-- go ahead, buy it now!!! Pay for it at 20% over the next five years.LOL that's how they advertise... like you need everything NOW NOW NOW)

You'd have to find out the details about the bond from your motor vehicle department, some states with compulsory liability laws will allow you to do this as an alternative. This is not something your insurance company would do for you.

 

The biggest problem I have with this isn't the use of credit by insurance companies, it's the fact that it means they'll be putting a hard inquiry on my report when they aren't in fact extending me credit and therefore have no good reason to do so.

Of course, living in New Jersey, I'm used to barely having a choice of insurance companies anyway. None of the ones that advertise on TV (Geico, Progressive) sell insurance here, for example.

 

big question.....so now they check our credit....are they going to post our post our paying pattern with c/b??????????........ credit need to be defrag.....

 

tml,

Very good point you brought up. I was going to elaborate on the fact that the ins. co also pays the costs to defend you - what if you get a bond for 30k, but you've got a judgement for 100k. Not only do you have to pay your 30k to the injured party, you've got to pay your lawyer & court fees, but then you've got your check garnished for the rest of your life. I guess the point is, yes, insurance companies may use fear as a selling point, but the fear is real. I see it every day.

I would NEVER recommend that someone get a bond, I sure as hell wouldnt, I was just pointing out that there IS an alternative which is self-insurance. Hell, if you're filthy rich, go for it. But if you're the average Joe (I believe he made an appearance earlier.. hitting a deer, LOL) better get insurance. That or take the bus. LOL

I understand what you're saying about uninsured motorist coverage. Yes, people are SUPPOSED to have it, but we both know that not everyone has it. I've been hit TWICE by someone without insurance, no registration & one was drunk, & didn't have a license. Laws aren't going to make irresponsible parties responsible.

 

DISPUTE THE "HARD" INQUIRY...THEY ARE NOT EXTENDING YOU CREDIT!!!
I CAN'T EVEN SEE HOW THEY CAN JUSTIFY A "SOFT"...

MAYBE EVERY 16 YEAR OLD SHOULD GET THEIR OWN INSURANCE...SO THE FIRST AND HOPEFULLY ONLY INQUIRY WOULD BE "NO FILE"...THEN APPLY FOR A CREDIT CARD OR TWO, WHEN THEY ARE 18...

 

tony,

I don't see this going as far as reporting your payments to the credit bureaus. As I mentioned in an earlier post, insurance companies ARE NOT extending you credit, therefore, no reason to report your payment history.

Yes, I also have a problem with a hard inquiry on my report. That is the biggest problem with this. Especially since you're not applying for credit. I hope that something is done about this in our industry because most people shop around for insurance at least once a year, and usually check with a few different companies.

Thank you to whoever brought attention to this topic, this is very important for consumers to know.

 

Well, people can just holler all they want to about high insurance rates. You don't have to put up with that BS.

$2500 tp $3000 per year is absolutely nothing more or less than highway robbery. Pure, plain and simple.

Now look at what you can get over at the PSASL insurance company I have talked about for so long and few seem to want to pay any attention.

1st year of coverage.

$500 lifetime membership fee payable in 10 monthly installments of $50 per month.

$250 "membership" for your car for as long as you own the vehicle. Also payable at $50 per month for 5 months.

Quarterly assessment for liability only usually runs about $75.00 Depends on how many accidents the total membership pool has during the quarter. I've seen the quarterly assessment be as low as $50 and as high as $80

Quarterly assesment for full coverage comprehensive.is about the same. So you might pay as much as $150 every 3 months if you get both liability and full coverage on the vehicle. They will provide full coverage for any vehicle regardless of age.

Kids get insured at the same rate as the old folks and old folks the same as kids. No drivers license don't make any difference.

The membership must be paid for each driving member of the family. That does make it hurt a bit at first, but after you get the membership paid for, it's like riding a gravy train compared to the rest of the insurance companies. No credit checks, no nothing.

And they don't ever send out any insurance adjusters after the accident. You provide them with photos of the car when you insure it and you provide them with photos after the accident and tell them what it cost and you get paid what you claim you lost. They don't haggle over the value of the car and beat you out of big money that way. If you got full coverage, the value of the car is the value of what you paid for the car, especially if you owe money on the car.

And no, I'm not selling insurance for the company. They don't use any salesmen and they don't pay any commissions either. That cuts their costs of doing business.

http://www.psasl.org

Go check it out and save yourselves a bundle and tell these rip-off artists like All State and the rest to stick it where the sun don't shine.

 

What does PSASL stand for? I can't find their financial rating on A.M. Best's website. Nothing under Standard & Poor's either. Their website looks very unprofessional... indicator that perhaps they don't have a great financial position.

 

SAYS UNDER CONSTRUCTION...NO OPINION EITHER WAY...

 

do you know how many members they insure? And where?

I understand wanting to save money on car insurance, but I don't want to gamble my financial future on a company that's barely solvent. Are you insured with this company?

 

Their financial position is maintained by their 15000 person membership base. The costs of the accidents are spread out over about 15,000 people.

If you check, they are licensed to do business in all 50 states.

If you have 15000 people helping to pay for your accident then you are not going to have much problems.

The are an insurance pool. Just like the life insurance pool that are put up by some of the religious organizations, and that's what they are. They are a religious organization that has an insurance pool set up among their members.

If you have 15,000 members who paid you $500 each plus $250 per each car in the pool, that's well over 10 million dollars just for their operating expenses with no premiums to pay out because the members all help pay for the claims against the pool. How much more financial backing does one need than that?

 

Yes. I am insured with this company. I have full coverage with them and so does my 19 year old son with his car.

I know at least 5 or 6 other people that are insured with them too.

That's not many, but I don't go actively peddling the insurance either because I don't get paid a crying dime to peddle their insurance for them

 

I am in PA right now and that was alittle expensive. But still less than NYC once I went to state farms...I pay about $900 less than NYC rates. I am moving to Southern NJ which I am banking on rates being even lower.......

 

This practice is coming under more and more scrutiny by the NAIC and individual state's insurance commissioners. Why not contact your state's insurance commission, bureau or whatever it's called in your state, and voice your objections.

Incidentally, I believe the practice began a few years ago, as a result of the CRA's marketing their services to the insurance companies. It's all about money. There are no statistics to back up the ins co's statement that people with more credit file more, or fraudlulent claims.

And there is no correlation between income and negative credit. Plenty of folks who are readin this right now have good incomes and bad credit reports, for various reasons.

breeze