A Fall In Premiums Is No Big Deal

By Author: Marcus Stalder
Total Articles: 491
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When dealing with big business, the mass media usually take the advice of Johnny Mercer who wrote, "You got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative. . . don't mess with Mister In-Between." So, when it comes to finding something good to say about the insurance industry, the journalists seized on the latest Consumer Price Index with excitement uppermost in their minds. For those of you not into big government, the CPI is one of these reports churned out by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Now that got your interest, didn't it. This is what all those expensive bureaucrats think it costs us to live in the real world and it's used to help set wages and regulate pensions. So when these bean counters reported a fall in the monthly average premiums we are paying to keep our vehicles on the road, there was joy and jubilation. "Premium rates dip!" claimed the headlines.

Well, before you get carried away with all the joy, let's put this in context. When you compare the averages between November and December 2010, there was a dip. It was a dip of 0.3%! The most appropriate word that springs to mind at this point is, ...
... "Cowabunga!" One of the lamest words used to register surprise. In the eleven months before December, there were small increases. When you add them up and subtract the dip, we are left with an overall increase in the national average premium rates of 3.7%. That's more than the current rate of inflation and one of the reasons why it's getting painful to keep paying. Putting all this into actual rates, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners collects all the numbers from their members - these are the folk who are supposed to protect our interests against the insurance industry. In 2008, the last year for which they have figures (you can see the speed of lightning in their moves to collect information that might be used to protect consumers) the average cost of insuring a vehicle was $789. If you use the information published by the CPI, the average today would be $855.

One of the ways in which you fight for consumer rights is by being able to compare prices. Although there's no direct competition between states - insurers cannot sell policies across state lines - it does get people talking when they see big differences between rates. If there was more current information published on a regular basis, it would help keep insurers more honest. As it is, you are left to defend yourself as best you can. When it comes to looking for a new policy, get the maximum possible number of auto insurance quotes. Shopping around gives you a good view of what the market offers. Then start playing with the extent of the coverage you ask for and the size of the deductible. If you think you might qualify for discounts, get different auto insurance quotes to test the effect of claiming. Until you test the system, you have no idea whether the premium rates really do come down. Getting quotes is free so try as many different approaches as possible to find how to save money.

Marcus Stalder is a professional journalist who has years of experience in highlighting numerous topics and has worked with site like http://www.insurswebsite.com/articles/in-december-2010.html to bring people all around the world a better understanding of things.