Adulting 101: Facts About Auto Insurance That Can Save Your Life
Peace of mind: 32 cents a day.
Periodic (and lengthy) rant about insurance…or lack thereof.
Below are two cars of good friends of mine who, by no fault of their own, almost lost their life thanks to distracted and/or drunk drivers.
Concussions, whiplash, broken bones, contusions, and lacerations resulted. The immediate aftermath involved painful surgeries, and fortunately for me, I came in after the orthopedists did their jobs mending broken bones and stitching up the lacerations. I handled the spinal injuries (disc herniations, ligament instabilities, intense headaches, whiplash-type injuries, etc), which we successfully were able to treat conservatively and avoid the need for further surgeries.
The photo is an example, of MY OWN auto policy and the crash. This is a 12-month policy for both my car, as well as my wife’s. Check the red arrow I scribbled in: a little 3rd-grade level arithmetic would show that $236 divided by two is $118, which divided by 12 comes out to 9.83.
$9.83 a month. 32 cents a day. You read that correctly. For peace of mind and to avoid possible financial ruin, or worse.
And that’s for $500K of coverage, in case some uninsured misfit hits you. My suggestion: get at the very minimum $100K, not a penny less. Have you seen a hospital ER bill lately? $100K is racked up very quickly.
A while back, I shared the story about a friend of mine who was also involved in a car crash that destroyed his car, left him with permanent nerve damage in his right arm and leg, ended his collegiate sports career, and the person who hit him was uninsured. That’s bad enough until you get to the part of the story where we learn that my friend was also carrying no uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. Needless to say, he was up a certain creek, without a paddle. The story had no happy ending. Quite the opposite.
Do yourself a favor. Stop what you’re doing, RIGHT NOW, and go check on your auto policy and make sure you have UIM (uninsured/underinsured motorist) coverage. It’ll say on your policy first page, or if not, call your agent and have them add it, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY.
32 cents a day, friends. Do it. (And feel free to share and spread the word)