Driving without insurance?!?!?!?!

[MrMarv]

My two-word answer would be indefensibly asinine!!!

 

[pweyl36]

Here in NY the ins co's have to notify the DMV if you're coverage is cancelled; and you HAVE to turn in your plates and for each day you don't it's an $8 per day fine- you're only allowed 1 lapse in 3 years and you have to pay the fine and reinstate your ins. before they'll lift the license suspension which occurs 2 weeks after an ins. lapse. I thought all states were like this? I used to work in an ins. office.

same here in delaware.

 

[paladin]

I recently moved to NH, and this lack of law bewildered me. In MA, you can't register your car without insurance. And you cannot cancel your insurance without proof that the plates have been returned. In NH, I couldn't GET insurance until my car was registered. I was not happy about driving around for even 2 hours in a non-insured car.

My Dad lives in NH and we were visiting him over Christmas when we were hit by an uninsured driver. The state trooper told us that in NH you don't have to have insurance unless you have had an accident! Isn't that a bit like locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen???? Crazy!

 

[faindrops27]

I agree this is unfair and wrong. But this is an illegal alien issue and not so much of a state of NY insurance issue. If they were legal citizens, your NY laws would have kicked in. It is very unfortunate. You can't claim repair from your own insurance company ? We had an incident back in 1998. Came back from WDW and our car had been parked in a hotel parking lot by the airport (park and fly package). Anyway.....car was not there when the shuttle took us to the lot. Here, it turns out, a 90 yo man had crashed through the fence of the parking lot and destroyed 6 cars (ours included). His lawyer was fighting it tooth and nail---saying he had a medical condition and shouldn't be held responsible for the damages. Two to three months went by and we complained to our ins company that we had no car and had been renting vehicles. They ended up cutting us a check for $8,000 (the fair market value of our car which had been totaled) plus reimbursed us for all our car rentals. My dh asked them why the elderly man's ins didn't pay. They said something about loop holes and that our insurance provided coverage for conditions like this as well as uninsured drivers.

It was totalled, and I did get the value of my truck. But, since I was still paying for it. The check went straight to the bank. I get the bonus of two wrecked vehicles. Plus, higher premiums. Whilst, they get off scott free.

As for the NY immigration laws? What laws??

 

[penguinfun98]

I agree with you. If I had to choose between gas to go to work and support my family, food to feed my family and insurance....

For me the fear of getting sued and losing all that DH and I have worked for would make me find another way to pay my insurance. I am glad i do not have to make that decision.

 

[cats mom]

I agree that we will probably see more and more people driving without insurance as they have to make tough choices about where limited funds will be allocated.
The economy is really starting to squeeze a lot of folks... much more than many realize I think.

That I somewhat understand actually.

But what about the teenager who hit my DD on the way into the high school parking lot?
She was uninsured but was driving a $30,000+ Audi convertible for heavens' sake!
I have no idea what her parents were thinking, but they sure came up with the $800 for damages to DD's car in a hurry.

In New Hampshire there is no law requiring insurance. It is perfectly legal to drive around with no insurance. I would never do it, and it makes me insane that they allow this, but insurance is not required by all states...

I recently moved to NH, and this lack of law bewildered me. In MA, you can't register your car without insurance. And you cannot cancel your insurance without proof that the plates have been returned. In NH, I couldn't GET insurance until my car was registered. I was not happy about driving around for even 2 hours in a non-insured car.

My Dad lives in NH and we were visiting him over Christmas when we were hit by an uninsured driver. The state trooper told us that in NH you don't have to have insurance unless you have had an accident! Isn't that a bit like locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen???? Crazy!

I'm normally all about minimal gov regulation, but even I think that is just crazy!

According to this site there are requirements in NH:

http://personalinsure.about.com/cs/vehicleratings/a/blautominimum.htm

Are they just the post accident requirements for high risk drivers then?

 

[faindrops27]

My DH has been in three hit and run accidents with what are likely (might I say obviously) illegal aliens in the past 15 years. Last month's accident left him with a fracture and some physical therapy. It's all part of living in Texas. Of course, OUR under-insured motorist coverage has to foot the bill again. These illegals from South America know they can't be questioned about the accident so they take off, before they can be held accountable in any way. I am not sure what the answer is. We must address the illegal alien problem!

You just reminded me. Of the time my grandmother, was coming over for a visit turning into my driveway. When a 15 passenger van full of people smashed into her car. Yelled out the window to her. No habla, no habla ingles, backed up, and sped off. I have no solutions either.

 

[penguinfun98]

In PA I believe if you are pulled over w/o PROOF (yes, even if you just forgot your card!) your car will be impounded. I think this is a good practice, even though I'm sure people still do it, at least there are severe consequences to it. If you have to pay 300$ to get your car out of impound you might as well have paid insurance for 3 months.

Not true. The two uninsured motorist who hit me had nothing happen to them, other than not being able to repair their cars. Both times my unisured motorist paid, and I paid my deductible.

 

[penguinfun98]

Wow akamad4themouse.........
I guess they just drive around illegal until the cops spot them. Heck...I got spotted last year because I had forgotten to put my updated registration sticker on my license plate. I was stopped at a red light and the police officer wanted to verify I had current registration ! So here I am......a legal, law abiding citizen, and I got stopped because I forgot to put the new little 1x1 inch sticker on my plate !
Our insurance is $2,400 but only 1 car has comp and collision. The other three cars only have full liability. We purposely dropped the comp and collision on the other three because the insurance rates would have been WAY more than $2,400. We had to keep the comp and collision on the one car because we are still making payments on that one. Also, dh went online and did a search for the lowest insurance (that had a decent reputation). AIG was that one. We dropped Nationwide because it was too high despite our clean driving records. So we really shopped around and dropped collision coverage to get that rate. Sure I'd prefer to have collision, but it's not required by law and we couldn't afford it.

They get those stickers by stealing plates. We had our stolen on a foggy night at the mall. When we called the police and told them there was a full had mark on our back window that was not there a short time before they did not want to do anything. The place we went to for the new plate said they steal the plate for the valid stickers and that night we were on of many that were taken at the mall. They reported it as stolen to the state, even though the police would not. We wanted our name to not be associated with that plate, just incase they used it for a get away car.

Again we pay and they play.

 

[MiaSRN62]

Muushka : In RI we paid extra annually for uninsured motorists insurance.

penguinfun98 : Again we pay and they play.

Hey back to gf's eliza and Muushka !
I did just go and check my policy. Yep....we're paying approx $46/per car/year for an extra $184 year. Nice

 

[Shannon G]

Then there are people like my idiot ex-DH who have their priorities messed up...when we were separated (but not yet divorced) he let the insurance on his truck lapse, because he "didn't have the $$$." Yet he managed to come up with money to go out drinking, and then drove drunk, passed out and hit a tree and got a DUI. So we (I say we because I co-signed on his truck loan) were left with a truck with an outstanding loan of almost $20,000, and no insurance money! Guess where his "share" of the equity in our house went? Yup - the terms of the divorce were that instead of paying him anything for the house I would pay off the loan.

I was just so grateful that he had not hit anyone else, especially seeing as his name was still on my house at that time. As soon as I found out about the accident, Igot him to signed the house over to me, so that the next time he did something stupid I wouldn't have to worry about losing my house!

While I understand that some people may truly not have the $$$, but in so many cases it is purely a matter of people being irresponsible and not caring what happens to other people as a result. And I simply don't understand that kind of mentality.

 

[eliza61]

I absolutely understand choosing food over insurance----I would too. Don't want to be misunderstood for being insensitive or anything. That wasn't my point. I was just curious how they got away with it----you know.....still able to drive their cars. I saw how the PA Bureau of Trans jumped on us real fast with the issue of my dd's car for suspicion of 2 weeks with no insurance. They had a court date and all for us until I was able to prove coverage for those 14 days. So sorry if my question/post was misunderstood. I used to volunteer with Meals ON Wheels.......and always give to the PECO fund for those who can't pay their utility bills etc.

Maria,
My kindred spirit, I don't think you could be unkind if you gave it a serious try. You're too much of a sweetie.

For me the fear of getting sued and losing all that DH and I have worked for would make me find another way to pay my insurance. I am glad i do not have to make that decision.

It is absolutely scary. The 2 senior ladies that I know, are seriously stressed. I feel so sorry for them. Myself and others have offered to drive them to appointments (doctors, food, church) etc but they don't want to be a burden. They are so scared. I visited one this morning on the way to work and she is sitting in a 100 degree house (we're having a heat wave in Philly area) because she doesn't want to run her air since she is saving up her money to get car insurance.
Some thing has to give with this economy, I'm not a bleeding heart liberal by any means but a 60 year old women hard working retiree, should not have to choose between eating, driving or killing yourself from heat stroke.

Sorry, I'll go get caffeinated now.

 

[EMom]

You just reminded me. Of the time my grandmother, was coming over for a visit turning into my driveway. When a 15 passenger van full of people smashed into her car. Yelled out the window to her. No habla, no habla ingles, backed up, and sped off. I have no solutions either.

There are plenty of solutions. The federal government just doesn't have the cajones to do anything about the problemo. It simply sits back while Mr. and Mrs. John Q. Public get hit with the fallout....and by the cars driven by uninsured illegal aliens, who very likely cannot even read , let alone obey, the freaking traffic signs. It would be laughable if it didn't have such a devasating impact.

In case it isn't obvious, I was hit by an illegal driving a Mack truck (literally) and it's a miracle I'm not dead. The trunk of my car wound up in my back seat and I still have pain from it today. Funny how everyone else understood the road signs that day, except him. I have no doubt that the chances of that accident happening would have decreased greatly had he been able to comprehend the traffic signs written in English while he was driving a massive truck at 70 mph. I'm one of the few who actually had some recourse, as the truck belonged to his employer, who did have insurance.

If Texans sound beyond peeved, it's because we are. Probably every single one of us knows someone who has been in an accident of this sort and has gotten no reimbursement because you can't track down an uninsured illegal alien. And the vast majority are uninsured. If they hang around for the police report, they give a false name/address and just never show up for court. If it's a bad wreck, they hotfoot it back to wherever they came from if they might face jail time. Such is life in Texas these days.

 

[EMom]

BTW, the latest statistic I heard just last week was that 25% of all Texas drivers are uninsured. Never mind that it's the law that you must be insured.

 

[polineedyan]

Here in ohio, we do it like a lottery. The BMV sends out letters to people with plates registered, and demand proof of insurance for the vehicle. (even if the vehicle is not being driven..)
Not everyone gets the letter. I did, on a broken down car. No insurance (the car had no engine)..didnt matter..
as far as the police goes, he can ask me to provide proof, but if I cant, and am still sited for the violation, I can show proof at court.

 

[MrsPete]

I am not surprised. Although it is obviously irresponsible and it drives up the rates of those of us who follow the law and pay, those who find themselves struggling to make it through the month just might decide that they will "risk" it to save that $$$. After all, it only becomes an issue if you get pulled over (or worse, in an accident) and how often does that happen? I think that as our economy gets tighter and the gas prices soar, we are going to see people cutting all kinds of corners they never would have considered before. Is it right? Of course not. Fair? Nope. But I am sure it is more common than we wold imagine.....

I believe you've hit the nail on the head. They MIGHT be caught, and then again they might get away with it.

To make it even worse, lots of people are driving without licenses! I know for a fact that a couple kids at our high school are doing it. I know for a fact it's been reported, yet nothing happens! Perhaps they haven't been able to catch them "in the act" yet. A license and insurance are pretty expensive these days, and everyone simply can't afford them -- but many of them figure that doesn't prevent them from getting behind the wheel.

The rest of us had better keep our uninisured motorist insurance paid up!

 

[Tissa]

If Texans sound beyond peeved, it's because we are. Probably every single one of us knows someone who has been in an accident of this sort and has gotten no reimbursement because you can't track down an uninsured illegal alien. And the vast majority are uninsured. If they hang around for the police report, they give a false name/address and just never show up for court. If it's a bad wreck, they hotfoot it back to wherever they came from if they might face jail time. Such is life in Texas these days.

It's been this way for a long time. I can remember back in the 70's riding with my mom and someone running a light and smashing into us. They had no insurance or green card. That's why it's such a necessity to have uninsured motorist coverage. My insurance just jumped 12 dollars a month. Now that might not sound like a lot but I'm already paying a fortune as it is.

 

[nunzia]

So, all the citizens are exemplary drivers? Where do documented immigrants {ie green card holders} fall in that category?

No..the citizens are sucky drivers too..I didn't mean someone who hits you falls into ALL these areas, but some combination thereof.

 

[mamalle]

not really a surprise to me- down here in south fla alot of people dont even have driver's licenses and they still are driving..

 

[penguinfun98]

Some thing has to give with this economy, I'm not a bleeding heart liberal by any means but a 60 year old women hard working retiree, should not have to choose between eating, driving or killing yourself from heat stroke.

Why are they retired at 60 and not working a part time job to get extra money. They cannot even get SS or medicare yet. How do they pay their insurance?

If they can drive, then there must be a job they can do.

I feel for them, but I know many 60 year olds who work. Some retired because they had to (downsizing etc.) and then got additional employment to make up for the income loss.

Are they disabled? Could they sell their home and move to a cheaper place. Could they rent out a room in their home? I am surmizing that they are single and living alone.