I have a 2000 I-30 with 79,000 miles and I am trying to determine if I should drop my collision and comprehensive insurance.

I am paying $246 annually for collision with a $500 deductible and $109 annually for comprehensive with a $250 deductible, for a total of $355.

I read that if the annual premiums are more than 10% of what I would get from the insurance company (car's value), then consider dropping collision and comprehensive. For example, if you have a 10-year old car that is worth $4,000 in a private-party sale and with a $500 delectable, the risk is $3,500. If the premiums for collision and comprehensive exceed $350 per year, it may be best to bank the money.

I do not know the value of my car, but my gut says that it would not be $3,550 (10% rule).

What would you do?

Anovice

 

KBB shows your car worth $6,000. I did this to my '99 which I bought with 50,000 miles for $5k and at 80,000 miles crashed it and lost $8,000 not to mention not getting a penny. Whatever you pick make sure you're happy with it and don't let others give you advice, I learned that the hard way. But if you're someone who can drive defensively then you can get away with it. I was used to buying good deals like $2-2,500 cars and have basic insurance so when I got the nicer '99 max I did the same thing with insurance and didn't have someone slap me straight and I learned the hard way. Good luck.

 

It all depends on how you can handle a collision or comp type event. Do you have a few grand just in case something happens? Can you be without your ride for a while?

Insurance is all about managing risk and there is no one size fits all answer.

 

IMO, $350 annual premium is pennies for a piece of mind. That boils down to less than $30 per month for a piece of mind knowing you are covered against theft, uninsured driver, flood, vandalism and of course at fault accident.

I don't know were you live but if by chance its in the snow belt state, it is not very wise to drop collision before/during winter months, if you absolutely have to, drop it in spring after inclement weather has passed.

PS, your insurance rates are very low. I'm guessing you don't live in new england.

 

I am comfortable with the 10% rule, so the key is to determine the value of the car. I also read the value should be determined by what the car is worth in a private-party sale.

Is KBB the proper reference? I find it hard to believe that even with low miles that my car is worth anywhere near $6,000.

Anovice

 

I would keep comprehensive and not keep collision. Also depends on how you feel about yourself as a driver and your financial ability to bear the burden of replacing the car if you got in an accident and it was your fault. I have an 02 135 with 180K so not exactly in the same boat as yours

 

I put my zip code in because you don't list where you live. Here, things are VERY expensive.

 

Keep it. If you have good insurance you can get good money for the car (especially if it's mint, you can negotiate with them).

My buddy has made over 4 grand off his insurance AFTER he bought it back on his 02 base Maxi SE that was over 180k at the time of the accidents.
There's nothing wrong with the car LOL

A lot of people think it's a waste of money until they drop it, then are in a wreck soon after and have no money (and no car).

 

I was thinking about this just couple of weeks ago! I decided to keep it just in case somethind did happen to my car. Just bought another 2002 Max/Auto with 194K on it for 1500, it's a fixer upper but will fix it up to become my DD.

 

Keep your coverage. You never know what might happen. Here in FL it's worth having, and if my windshield ever gets damaged I can have it replaced for free. Also, I have uninsured/underinsured motorist as well. Many accidents happen every day involving some p.o.s. behind the wheel with a suspended driver's license and expired insurance. Also, if the person who hits you has some b.s. bobo insurance, its best to have your insurance company go after them and recover your deductible later. That's what I did when I had an 18 year old girl run a red light and T-bone my GTP and then fled the scene of the accident. After she had her court date and it was determined that she was legally the at-fault driver, I got my $500 back.

 

I dropped both as soon as my (low mileage) 2001 GLE was paid off in 2006, so I've been driving 6 years without either. Insurance is of course about your own risk factors, i.e., your driving style, accident/incident history, where you live, length of work commute, miles driven per year, financial situation, what time of day you drive (do you drive at 1am when the drunks are out), whether you can afford to self pay in the worst case scenario, etc. For me I felt the risk was low enough that I dropped both, something I've done on all my cars for the last 35 years once they were paid off. However for many folks the peace of mind aspect is worth more than the money, so if that's how you view it than keep both.

 

While dropping comprehensive may be good for you, I would really caution anyone against doing it - if you may be at all collectible for damages.

Beyond the obvious advantage of comprehensive covering you for damages you cause, is that if you are in an accident - one that is not your fault - and the cops make a mistake or the other party sues you, the ins. co. will defend you. This happens ALL THE TIME. I've seen many many cases.

Basically, could you file for bankruptcy protection in the event of a disaster or very bad situation? If you have no or little assets, all you risk is the loss of your car and medical expenses. If you have assets, then you may be in a different situation.

Just food for thought.

 

in my case, i would'nt get squat for my car, ( 95 with 239,000 ) even though she's clean as crap. they just look at the year and mileage, but i still have full comp and liability on her. my passengers would get 100,000 in medical coverage if in an accident while i was driving. trust me, keep the coverage, your car is still worth it.

 

Our Max is still a daily driver, so we keep full coverage on it.

 

Really good point here. That is so true.

Ive had a lot of times over the past 6 years I wish I had insurance so I could fix damage from multiple hit and runs but now its a lost cause w only liability.

 

I pay around the same...cheap and never makes a dent in my wallet. But a wrecked car definitely would make a dent.

 

Comprehensive coverage has nothing to do with damages caused by an accident, no matter who is at fault, that's what collision and liability insurance cover. Comprehensive covers non-accident damage caused by stuff like tree branches falling on your car during a storm, theft, damage caused by vandalism or riot, hail, flood, fire, etc. It has nothing to do with accidents with other cars, so keeping it won't help you with that at all. Collision coverage on the other hand pays for damage to your car if you are in an accident, while liability coverage pays for damage and expenses to another persons car/property, etc, if you are at fault.

 

like what was said above, I vote to keep the basics. Uninsured motorist insurance can help but on the other hand, like what quicky said, dont expect to get much of anything back if you do wreck it. Simple things would total my car out but I dont pay mch at all a month

 

THIS^^^

Why gamble with your car for $30/mth. Now if you not modding the car and have another one just in case that gets wrecked or stolen or whatever then I would say drop it. I put an extra $5000 coverage on my Maxima because its heavily modded and it only cost an extra $20/mth. Well worth it just in case something happens I get at least $5000 for it.

 

Yeah, you are 100 percent correct. I read comprehensive but was thinking liability. Oops.