As a licensed motorist in my state I am required to obtain and pay for car insurance on a regular basis. I suppose the payment for such services is the first of the pitfalls of car insurance. As you may have already experienced, car insurance can be quite expensive. Believe me, with the accidents my children have had, I know.
Another problem is that of privacy. Once you give your insurer your name and personal information, they often turn around and sell it to others. You probably get telemarketers calling repeatedly and your mailbox is full of junk mail and special offers.
If you're a good driver and have never had an accident, you might expect some benefit, right? It doesn't happen. Problem #3: Everybody continues to pay for insurance even if they've been driving for 30 or 40 years without a claim. It really isn't fair, but probably won't change.
The profits reported by insurance companies are sometimes overwhelming. Yes, they do have to pay for the drivers who are more accident-prone, but is this cost really the responsibility of the safe drivers? It seems to be another problem the premiums of those of us who are safe drivers are paying for the accidents of the careless and unsafe drivers.
Another pitfall of this industry is the recording of guilt or not guilt. Let's face it, only the people in the accidents really know what happened. The police can come out and invesitgate, but they weren't there to know. The insurance company will update it's records and that will haunt you the rest of your life.
Maybe you've avoided accidents and premium increases but did you consider hiding from your agent? Maybe you're lucky, but some agents can be an issue. We've all heard the jokes about insurance agents. They're very eager to sell more insurance, get more customers, increase your coverage, etc. Professionals exist, but if you get one who isn't, good luck.
As I think of the pitfalls of car insurance, my next beef would be the almighty insurance card. Anytime an officer of the law pulls you over for a violation, he wants to see your registration and your insurance card. This pitfall of car insurance can be most embarrassing and frustrating. My car is not the neatest area on the planet. Needless to say, the card is in the clove box, which in my case is certainly the catch-all, junk draw, place for my stuff spot in my car. It usually takes a good 5 or 6 minutes just to find that dainty little card. By this time the officer has written an arm's length of tickets for me.
Finally, the uninsured motorist: probably the biggest problem of all in the insurance business. It's impossible to know who he is until he's the one you're in an accident with. There may be reasons why he doesn't have insurance (maybe he simply can't afford it with all the increased costs of goods these days), but the fact is it's the law. Unfortunately, if you have a deductible or damages to pay for, you'll probably be the one having to pay for them.
