[ecport]

I didn't want to hijack the theme of the airbag recall thread currently underway but I did want to bring up an airbag related issue. I just got my insurance bill and the cost of the Liability and Personal protection jumped 17%. Collision and comprehensive both went down as you would expect since the RL is older. I got the letter from Honda indicating my RL is on the list to be recalled. Is it possible insurance rates are being jacked up due to the faulty airbag?

Has this happened to anyone else's rates?

 

[zroger73]

I'm with State Farm. My current policy ends and my new policy begins in three weeks. The prices of individual coverages and my discounts changed slightly per usual, but my total premium went down a little over 1%. That's pretty rare. There were no changes to my coverage.

Liability went down.
PIP went up.
Collision went down.
Comprehensive went down.

You don't have any tickets or accidents that went on your record that you "forgot" about, do you?

 

[Flyboy]

Just got my insurance renewal, mine went down about 10% overall. I haven't looked at the details, just the bill amount.

 

[ecport]

Nope, no accidents, I'll still have the accident free discount. I'll contact my agent but I'm fairly certain I'll get the company line about claims in my area were high but 17% seems extremely high.

I know the insurance company has access to the lists of recalled vehicles and it wouldn't take a genius to match the VIN numbers on the lists to their subscribers vehicles. Given the airbags can't be replaced right away, it just got me thinking. I'll get back to you if it turns out the size of the increase was a mistake.

 

[tunafish]

i don't shop with just any price increase, but 17% and i would shop! i shopped my worker's comp this past fall, after a price increase and saved several thousand $s. i had been with the other provider for about 15 years and no, i repeat no claims.

 

[speedlever]

I think it's time to shop for a new insurance company myself. I just did that recently when I added an inexperienced driver. I ended up staying with my present insurer (Erie) and paid the penalty.

 

[chiph]

I didn't want to hijack the theme of the airbag recall thread currently underway but I did want to bring up an airbag related issue. I just got my insurance bill and the cost of the Liability and Personal protection jumped 17%. Collision and comprehensive both went down as you would expect since the RL is older. I got the letter from Honda indicating my RL is on the list to be recalled. Is it possible insurance rates are being jacked up due to the faulty airbag?

Has this happened to anyone else's rates?

How long have you been a customer?
Some insurance companies will raise the rates of long-time customers in the assumption that they won't leave.

Chip H.

 

[ecport]

My agent just got back to me. Our state legislature passed a law last year increasing liability coverage in certain circumstances so they're just adjusting their rates to reflect that change. He said he's getting a lot of calls about the increase and the law affects all vehicle insurers in the state.

Since the Honda letter and the insurance bill arrived the same day, I put two and two together and got paranoid. My bad.

 

[ecport]

Chip, I've been with them 52 years.

 

[Carsmak]

Still may be a good time to shop insurance...

 

[speedlever]

I suppose 52 years is an admirable record. But in today's world, I'd have to know what you're doing for me today, not just what you did for me yesterday. Ergo, shop around... just for your own benefit. You may well find your current insurer to still be tops in regards to value (price vs performance and service). Or not. But at least you'd know.

 

[feetdry]

Just over 50 years with USAA. I now receive a senior subscriber check along with a subscriber check every year. They are ALMOST paying me to be a member.

 

[Len]

My ex-wife was an insurance agent. The worst part of her job was cancelling policies of long-time customers without any claims. According to the computers, these drivers are the most likely to make a claim, so cancel them before it happens. Crazy!

 

[tunafish]

when a company says that there was an increase for everyone, then it is time to shop. that is exactly what my ex-worker's comp provider said.

 

[zroger73]

I used to shop around periodically, but never could find anything cheaper than State Farm for me (I get lots of discounts - mainly due to having been with State Farm since I was old enough to buy insurance). Those "save 15% or more" type places were actually higher for equal coverage. I don't shop around anymore due to those findings, my insurance is relatively reasonable, and I don't like having my credit score affected by unnecessary inquiries.

 

[RidgeDawg88]

I used to shop around periodically, but never could find anything cheaper than State Farm for me (I get lots of discounts - mainly due to having been with State Farm since I was old enough to buy insurance). Those "save 15% or more" type places were actually higher for equal coverage. I don't shop around anymore due to those findings, my insurance is relatively reasonable, and I don't like having my credit score affected by unnecessary inquiries.

I had the exact opposite experience with State Farm. My parents and grandparents were all longtime SF customers so it was only natural for me to follow suit. After 10 years of my vehicles getting older and my rates going up for no explainable reason, I switched to Erie and saved almost 50%. Been with Erie ever since. I shopped around recently and found that Erie was still considerably cheaper than any other.

 

[ecport]

Zroger it's a similar situation with me. I have 3 vehicles plus a home and umbrella with them so I get a bunch of discounts. They even sent me a letter once saying I couldn't be cancelled. I don't know if I believe it, but I've held onto it. No accidents and no tickets since the 80's so even with the discounts they are still making pretty good money off me.

About 3 years ago I found out they assigned the ex my original policy number when we divorced 17 years earlier and they had issued me a new one so I had lost the continuity. I worked with my broker and got that corrected.

I still may shop around to satisfy my curiosity.

 

[shamrockshooter]

Since our recalled ridgeline's are parked, for possibly several months, can you, or should you remove collision insurance? you certainly have a 0% chance of an accident if is parked in your driveway. no since paying for it, if you signed a form that you wont drive the vehicle.

 

[speedlever]

Here's the problem with that. If there's incidental damage and you don't have collision, insurance won't pay for it. While that may be unlikely, stuff happens. As an example, my oldest daughter doesn't have collision on her 150,000 mile Maxima. Some unknown kind soul ran into her rear bumper while it was parked destroying her backup sensors. She was on the hook for the repairs because she didn't have collision. At least that's the way it works in NC.

YMMV.

 

[zroger73]

Unless there is a lien holder on the vehicle that requires "full coverage", you're free to remove collision insurance. How much it will save you depends on your insurance company. I've found that removing an individual coverage can have a negative effect on policy discounts, so you might consider that before dropping it.