davidv

iTrader: (2)

Insurance companies have unique guidelines concerning claims and cost. The guidelines take into consideration cost of claims and time. You may be able to get away with, say, two $500 claims in 36 months. On the other hand, a $25,000 claim (totaling your car) will certainly raise your premium). The mathematics behind premium cost is so complicated that often agents are in the dark.

Reading between the lines your question might be Is it worthwhile to file a claim or should I pay out of pocket? My answer is always yes file a claim: You pay for insurance - use it.

Nucleus

iTrader: (17)

True. I dont know much about insurance. All I do know is, when I talked with the agent face to face, she made me think I now have a zero dollar deductable for vandalism for less than $10 bucks a month. Once I recieve my new insurance statement (which should be in the mail), I will look into it. I never claimed a huge discovery....just an option I thought might be interesting to others.

Do with it what you want.

Merry Christmas

ksj

Notwithstanding David's answer (and he sounds like someone who works in the insurance industry...), only file a claim if the claim is significant. If it's less than double your deductable (my number anyway), then don't file. DO NOT let them know there has been an accident or that you're thinking of filing a claim.

Yes, they raise your rates if you file claims. They will raise your rates if you tell them of issues even if you didn't file a claim. DO NOT volunteer ANY information to an insurance company. EVER.

You know how anything you say can be used against you? Insurance companies take that to heart.

davidv

iTrader: (2)

Its all good. We all learn from posts like yours.

TSG-Z

iTrader: (34)

I got a 0% deductable from USAA! I asked my buddy how much his deductable was and he said 0, I said from where and he told me that USAA has a 0% deductable, but you have to ask for it! I didnt believe him, but I called and got my **** changed. I suggest it to all USAA members.

MustGoFastR

iTrader: (13)

Hmm, gonna have to look into having my comprehensive deductible decreased with Geico... no worries here, as my car is pretty much a garage queen, but will be moving to SoCal soon, where it will be driven much more regularly. Then again, I may not stay with Gieco once there; may switch to Wawanesa (sp?), as they have decent rates on sports cars out there.

davidv

iTrader: (2)

Zero deductible for either collision or comprehensive insurance is a expensive option. As the deductible decreases, premiums increase.

Here is some simple advice: pick a deductible that you are comfortable with. Say $500. Put $500 in a savings account. If your car is damaged (with or without a claim) you have money for repairs and your portion of the deductible. You will save in the long run.

marathonhunter

I have a $50 ded. on 21century insurance. In calf. comprehensive claims do not increase your premium its a state law. I found this out when my car was vandalized at 1200miles, damn that sucked. The bodyshop billed the insurance $1200 for damage. I guess you can say that my insurance premium paid off for the year.

usaa i hear is good, i'm going to take alook.

kyoeyes

iTrader: (1)

i have geico, will they cover vandilism lol i havent called

onedirtyz

iTrader: (3)

gieco doesnt consider the z a sports car. the geico rep i spoke to was as surprised about that as i was.

i hope she's right though. i feel like i'm paying an insane amt for insurance.

Zmazing03

iTrader: (9)

I've got Geico as well. Decent price, and honestly less than I thought it would be. I have $500 collision and $1000 comprehensive.

350z_Stripes

Sorry to beat a dead horse, but I'm pretty much new here and figured I work in the insurance industry so I might as well speak up. I'm not sure what company davidv works with, but as far as the company I'm with yes, vandalism would be covered under comprehensive - and a hit and run is covered by collision. Anytime you lower the deductible your premium will increase, it's just a matter of how much of the risk you're willing to take.

And ksj, not all insurance agents are the same...yes, agents in EVERY company work off some sort of commission base, so in the end it would be their gain for everyone to pay more... but there is still something to be said for customer service and giving them what they need. That said, I know several insureds with hopped up rides, even showed a couple of them what's what with my old stang. Spoke with a lady yesterday who called in all worried that her insurance rates were going to skyrocket cause she had gotten a ticket for a "rolling stop" at a stop sign. Checked out her record, the company hadn't even run her driver's license since 1997. NO LIE. But did I run her report to raise her premuim, no I offered her the name of a great traffic attorney... and gave her the option.

Don't judge too quickly, insurance companies and agents are people too. Every company uses pretty much the same criteria (although each use their own calculations) when quoting premium amounts, zip code, loss ratios, mileage, age, credit, etc... And even at that, every company will have some great agents and some real jerks.

That said, I did quite a bit of checking and on Z's changing the deductible on comprehensive from 500 to 0 varied the premium by as much as an additional $12/m to as much as almost $48/m if you have a couple tickets on your record. It really varies quite a bit depending on the other factors.

danisr1

iTrader: (5)

Comprehensive is not expensive on an auto policy, keep you comp deductible low and your collision around 500 for the best value. i keep a 100 comp and a 500 collision. I work for nationwide. To answer to above question NO comp claims do not count against you. You do not get your rate raised for a comp claim but if you have a claim frequency you can get cancelled.

hidehide

iTrader: (3)

Ya, I had a bmw, it caught on fire. It was total lost.
File a claim to insurance, pay me back. That's how I own a 350Z now.