Well I can't get back those 9 years that are already past Holly, so I just had to go for the next nine.
I went for literally years without having auto or motorcycle insurance in Southern California. During that time, it was not a requirement to have it, but a person was suppose to have "financial means" to pay for an accident, of which I did not. I took a real chance not having any, but with the salaries I was getting, I just couldn't afford it. We have two vehicles and have both insured. Have our boat and apartment insured as well.
That's what to many people have are and have been doing over here @Cody Fousnaugh and that's a big part of the reason those who do have insurance are paying higher premiums. My Insurer told me yesterday that many states are really cracking down on the uninsured now and not only are they getting fined for the whole time they didn't have insurance but because they went without insurance for so long...most insurance companies do not want to insure them now....or if they do....it will cost them an arm and a leg as they say. That still doesn't help the ones who have always kept their vehicles insured though have lower premiums...so we are still getting "punished" for someone else's "sins".
Today my auto Insurer called and told me about two ways I could lower my monthly premiums. Plugging in a little gadget that would monitor how many times I "stomped" on the brakes, etc. would save me about $4 per month. They can forget about that one...it's none of their business how many times I stomp on my brakes! Then I can take the AARP Smart Driver Refresher Course which would save me $10 or $11 per month on premiums. My Agent told me the Course was free but that's not what AARP says when I looked this Course up...and I am a member too. The Course itself sounds like a good thing though and you can take it online for a reasonable price. But they don't tell you whether you will be taking a lot of tests though. I hate tests and always get nervous when it's time to take them...and then I forget everything I learned because of my nervousness. But on the other hand I do love learning and there are some interesting things I'm sure I could learn from taking this Course since I've been driving since I was 14 years old and there are many things that are different now days. So I'm going to send AARP an email and ask them if there are tests I have to pass for this Course before I go any further in my consideration of taking it.
I am happy to say that I took the AARP Driver's Refresher Course online and now I will save 10% on my monthly auto insurance premiums.
Our policy is paid with automatic deduction also, @Chrissy Cross ; but every six month, the policy is renewed, and if there are changes, that is when they take place. We cat an online dctment that explains the changes, and this one has not gone up much since I got it. Before that, I had Liberty Mutual, but each renewal, the price kept increasing; so I went online and started doing price quotes. About the eyelashes, @Babs Hunt , I LOVE those too, and if we had a cute little car like yours, I would want eyelashes, too. Like Holly said, I have mostly seen them on the cute little cars, like VW or a Mini, and I think that they look adorable on those cars. Since we see them on so many vehicles, I would think that they must be legal, or people would not have them if they thought they would be stopped and ticketed for having decorative eyelashes on the car. We have one of those gadgets that records information, and this one does a lot more than just tell you that you stepped on the brakes too hard, or accelerated too fast. It also gives me a running account of what my gas mileage is, and can do a whole diagnostic check on my car, just like they can do with those bigger ones they plug in at the car shops. It works with an app on my phone, and I really like having it. I will have to check with my insurance company and see if I can get a discount from having it...... I like that idea ! This is what we have, and it is called “Automatic”.
There were quizzes and a final test on the Driver's Refresher Course and I am also happy to say I got 100% correct on all the quizzes but one...and a 92 on the final test. And I actually learned a few things I didn't know too.
After all that time with no-claims you should be paying a lot less than at the beginning ... always use an insurance 'broker' ... don't deal direct with the insurance company. Brokers make their living by getting YOU the best deal available out of all of them not just at the beginning but at each renewal. I have been using a car insurance broker for nearly fifty years and they are always chopping and changing the people I am insured with so that I get the best deal.
A few weeks ago I got another letter from our Auto Insurance Carrier. We have been with them 3 years now and I took the Drivers Refresher course...and this six month renewal my rate increase was double what it has been every six months in the past. I just cannot tell you how frustrated I was at seeing this when my Agent told me we would be getting a discount for being with them for 3 years now and that discount would be added to the one I got for taking the Driver's refresher course. Instead they doubled the rate increase! When I called my Agent she gave me the run around and I decided I have had enough of this. So I have been doing research and today I switched our Auto Insurance. Our premiums that were going to be about $133.00 per month starting April 20th...will now be $108.00 for the exact same coverage. And the Company I switched to is the same one we used when we lived in Florida. In six months I may see a rate increase with our new Company. But I have had 3 years of rate increases with our old Company and when the rate doubled this time in spite of all I have done and my husband not driving anymore...I knew I could not stay with the Company any longer. We have no accident's, drive less than 5,000 miles a year, have had no tickets, etc. and I'm tired of paying extra for my premiums because others do not insure their autos, do get tickets, etc...or the Company just feels like raising their rates. Today I took a stand and I feel really good that I finally did.
I had to change insurance companies a while ago for the same reason. It just makes no sense. Part of it is getting penalized for getting old, I guess, but the same thing seems to happen with homeowners insurance. The rates go up for no apparent reason; I had one insurance company refuse to insure our home if we didn't raise our coverage and double our premium, so we switched companies and have lower premiums for the same coverage now. I would think that insurance companies would want to keep low-risk folks on the rolls, but that doesn't seem to be the case.