Most likely, the answer is no. Unless you carefully documented the damages, there is no way for the insurance company to appraise and value them. In addition, your policy has a provision that requires you to report claims in a reasonable amount of time. If you did not report the claim within a month or so of the accident, you won’t be able to get money for the damages.

It’s hard to say what the insurance will cost. The truth is that rates from one insurance company to another can vary by hundreds of dollars. I can tell you that the average is around $1,000 per year. However, insurance rates are in constant change. It could cost more or less. My advice is to get at least three car insurance quotes, check the customer service ratings of the companies that come back with the best rates and choose the best customer service of the lowest quotes. That way you get the best balance of price and service. After all, no matter how cheap the insurance is, it becomes worthless if it doesn’t pay after a car accident!

If you have a loan on the car, the choice to purchase full coverage or liability alone won’t be left up to you. Lenders require that you carry full coverage so that their interests are covered in the event of a total loss accident. Of course, that loan could be from a private party (i.e. Mom). If you didn’t have enough money to buy the car outright, you probably don’t have enough to pay for the car if a total loss accident or theft should occur. In that case, it may be up to you, but you should err on the side of caution and buy the full coverage.

Let me start by telling you that I was once the teenage daughter of concerned parents, dating a “certain someone” of whom they did not approve. My heart goes out to you and I hope you know that this is most likely a phase for her, as it was for me. It sounds like she’s looking for more attention, which is exactly what she’s getting by dating this certain someone. Parenting advice aside, I can tell you that you probably have nothing to worry about as far as your car insurance goes, as long as you told your agent about your daughter as soon as she earned her drivers license. Start by finding out how you policy is currently rated. [Read More]

First, you need to understand that there is a difference between licensing and insurance. You were arrested for driving under suspension, which doesn’t have anything to do with car insurance. It sounds as though the courts or the DMV made an error in processing your payment and ended up suspending your driver’s license. If the court accepted your proof of insurance, that doesn’t mean they forgave your speeding fine. So, either you failed to pay the speeding fine, or the court did not process your payment correctly. The first thing to do is find out why your license was suspended. It seems most likely it was because of the speeding fine.

Your question is not entirely clear to me. I am uncertain if you are looking for theft coverage (pays for damage to the car you rented if it is stolen) or property damage coverage. It doesn’t make sense to go through a third party (York) for coverage you bought from Thrifty. If you are seeking coverage from the third party because the thief was not at fault for the collision, the third party should pay. It doesn’t matter who was driving the stolen car. If it was damaged due to the fault of the third party, that insurance should reimburse the rental company. In that instance, Thrifty should be handling the issue, not you. Regardless, the theft coverage should be [Read More]

This situation could play out in several ways. When someone uses a car without permission, it’s theft. That means the insurance will not pay. Most policies state, “We will pay only if you or someone else using your auto with your consent is legally liable for the accident.” If your son had a reasonable belief that he had permission to use the friend’s car, coverage should apply. For instance, if the friend always said, “yes” to your son when he asked to borrow the car in the past, it would be reasonable for him to think he has permission again. If the friend sometimes said, “yes” and sometimes, “no,” it’s another situation and coverage may be denied. As far as [Read More]

Congratulations on your new driver! I think you might be working under some incorrect assumptions. Here are your questions and my take, in the order you asked them: Would it be better to sell the Yukon and buy a new vehicle, or is it better for insurance if we buy a used vehicle? A Yukon is a big, heavy vehicle. It’s also one of the cheapest to insure for injury and collision claims. Not so for theft, however. That being said, yours is pretty old already (2003) so getting a different used car doesn’t make a lot of sense, unless you are buying something small and very cheap to fix. Even then, such a car would cost more on the [Read More]

You are facing the age-old question when it comes to young drivers…add them on or make them buy their own? Take a look at the answer we gave the last parent in this predicament: Should I Have My Teen Get His Own Insurance Policy? Ultimately, the only way to know the best price available is to ask for and compare some car insurance quotes. We can help with that. Just enter your zip code in the box at the top of this page to get started.

Even though borders are much stricter than they were ten years ago, you can still travel between Canada and America on the same car insurance. Your car insurance policy will spell out exactly where you are covered, but most provide the same coverage in both countries. Some compulsory coverage may only protect you while in your home state. For you, there is nothing to worry about. New York State minimum liability limits extend outside the state and even automatically increase to meet the financial responsibility laws wherever your travel in the US or Canada. As long as you have coverage on your car, it extends to the rental car on a secondary basis. Any coverage not provided by the rental [Read More]