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In short:

  • I have 2 total losses on my record due to city vehicles pulling out in front of me. They were at fault but the insurance companies don't care.
  • My wife has an at fault accident which was a 3rd total loss on my insurances.
  • Her dad backed our van into another car, it was just an insurance claim.

Unfortunately the 2 vehicles are under my name and no there is no way to change this setup.

I am obviously having a heck of a time with my insurances, my current insurance company went from $1700/6mo to $4025/6mo now and I obviously rather ride a bike then pay that. I am pretty much on one of those last ditch effort insurance companies as I am finding it hard to find any insurance company that will take me.

I was wondering if anyone has any useful information that could help me find an insurance company that would take me and that is actually affordable.

Insurance companies that may take me with the previous claims, sites I could use that would help identify better cost saving insurance for the claims I have, ways to magically reset the claims and have that nice $700/6mo insurance I used to have (impossible I know). Anything really that could help, good advice, tips or tricks, what to lookout for...

Another question, say I refuse to insure my car for this price and I just let my insurance lapse and have the lender come take the car for not being insured. Will this still count against my credit even though they repossessed the car due to no insurance not bad payments?

Might be best to let them just take one of the vehicles and buy a clunker for the wife that we can pay outright and let her insure that instead but if it is going to ruin my credit that is not an option.

Edit: Jacksonville, Florida I own a 2013 Nissan Altima SL and 2010 Honda Odyssey EX-L.

Conclusion: I ended up finding another company, a reputable one, I am with AllState now. Apparently they have a high risk policy, I am assuming related to the (FAJUA) stuff mentioned in the comments. I am assuming other big name insurers do as well, and of course yes it was expensive but not $4k expensive. I got a policy for 6mo with them for $2,700 but it does not come with all the nice features their normal policies have like Accident Forgiveness or when they send you money for driving good.

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    In your state, the Florida Automobile Joint Underwriting Association (FAJUA) is the assigned-risk plan, providing insurance of the last resort. Maybe you can find a better plan there. Unfortunately, it's hard to find information about it online.
    – user102008
    Nov 19, 2013 at 22:24
  • Thanks, I will have to dig in and see what I find. It has to be cheaper then what I am about to pay.
    – Tony
    Nov 19, 2013 at 22:59
  • Just saying.. 2017 and my insurance has barely budged I am still paying $350/mo for insurance. Almost need a 2nd job to pay this bill, think I need to go shopping again.
    – Tony
    Jan 4, 2017 at 21:29
  • "[the city vehicles] were at fault but the insurance companies don't care." - was a police report filed and if so did it specify fault? Were any tickets issued to either you or the drivers of the city vehicles?
    – TTT
    Jan 4, 2017 at 23:47
  • @TTT this Q is 3 years old now.
    – Mindwin Remember Monica
    Jan 5, 2017 at 11:54

2 Answers 2

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You're on the right track with buying clunkers, but letting your current cars get repossessed is a bad idea for the reasons you specified.

First, find an insurance broker instead of an insurance agent. A broker works with dozens of companies, many of which you may not have heard of. He is in a better position to find you the best deal than you are because he is familiar with more insurance company products than you are. He doesn't charge you extra for this service.

Second, ask your insurance broker if he can find any insurers offering discounts for persons who have passed a driver training course. Find an accredited course and determine pricing. If the savings exceed the cost of the course, take the course.

Third, if you have outstanding loans on your vehicles, pay them off and sell the cars. Replace them with vehicles you can purchase outright with cash. Make sure you have enough money to replace them again should another accident happen.

Once you have vehicles that are lein-free there is no longer a requirement by the lender for you to have insurance for the replacement value of the vehicle, which is what's killing your rates right now.

Find out what the minimum legal requirement for auto insurance is in your state. In Canada, the minimum requirement is $100,000 liability. Anything else is either a sales job or a lender requirement. Getting your wife to insure her own vehicle may help, getting your insurance under her name may also be something to look into.

Since you seem to have issues with people bumping into you and there have been no medical issues, $100,000 liability may be all you need.

Note: Tactic #3 is not without risk. If you are in an at-fault accident, you will have to pay for any damages exceeding your insured limit out of your own pocket. Any damages to your own vehicle whether at-fault or not will have to be paid out of your own pocket. If you are sued for medical expenses incurred by other parties, you'll have to pay anything over and above your insured limit out of your own pocket.

If there is anything you are unclear about on your insurance policy, ask your agent/broker to explain until you do understand. Buying auto insurance without fully understanding what you are paying for is another risk.

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  • Why replace the vehicles? If they're paid off and in good working order, I see no reason to sell them right away, and selling a car can be a hassle.
    – Yamikuronue
    Dec 2, 2013 at 16:58
  • @Yamikuronue, the OP mentions in their question that there is a lender, hence the vehicles are not paid off. If the vehicles were paid off and in good working order, your advice to keep them would be correct. If the amount owing on the vehicles is less than the amount one would pay for a working used vehicle, the better strategy would be to pay them off as opposed to selling and buying privately or trading down.
    – Jerry Penner
    Dec 3, 2013 at 19:02
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    I understood that part. What I'm saying is, after you've aggressively paid off the car (paragraph 4 of your answer), why sell it and replace it? You now have a car you 100% own, presumably like driving, and generally seem to be in good working order. I'd suggest pay off the loan, keep the car, and start saving for the eventual replacement when the car breaks down rather than right away.
    – Yamikuronue
    Dec 3, 2013 at 19:04
  • If you have enough money after aggressively paying off the vehicle to purchase a replacement in the event of a collision, then by all means keep the vehicle. The intent is to have a vehicle to drive now that is paid off leaving it free of any lender insurance conditions, and to have enough money to purchase an immediate replacement should another accident occur. This strategy sidesteps lender insurance requirements and can potentially save a driver thousands of dollars in insurance.
    – Jerry Penner
    Dec 3, 2013 at 19:20
  • So the intent is to sell car A at a price that will buy you 2 of car B, thus providing car + savings?
    – Yamikuronue
    Dec 3, 2013 at 19:21
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You may not have considered this, and it will depend on your local laws, but if someone causes you damage, you can sue them for the damages. In your case, two drivers forced you to be involved in an accident, which made your premiums go up, which is a real damage for which they might be responsible.

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  • He'll have to sue the city.
    – Joshua
    Jul 2, 2019 at 23:14

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