The New Year has come in with icy weather. Even Florida has been enjoying a little cool air. Natural gas prices have been rising so, where this is the source of heat, household budgets are under pressure. The law of supply and demand has kicked in with crude oil back above $80 a barrel. During the warmer months, the refineries focus on gas to keep us on the move. But as fall turns into winter, the need is for oil to keep us warm. This year, the cold spell is forcing the refineries to increase the focus on heating the home. At the pumps, the $3 gallon for premium-grade gas is here again. It’s around $2.70 for unleaded. The prices are higher this week than at any time during 2009. And the bad news is set to continue. The economists are saying the commodity prices are going to keep rising. If unleaded hits $3 a gallon, this could be a real tipping point for us all. Sure this is still less than the highs of the $4 gallon we saw in 2008. But the recession has been biting us hard. More of us have been cutting down on spending and paying down the debts. As the costs of basic household necessities rises, priorities change. Just think how much we buy in the stores comes in a truck that burns gas. If gas gets more expensive, those stores will pass on the additional shipping costs to us. That means less retail therapy. If we buy less, we don’t need the same manufacturing capacity. More jobs are at risk. The risk of a double-dip recession is all too real.
In the face of all this economic doom and gloom, if we want to improve the quality of our lives, we need to act all alone. Those of us out in the boondocks of the exurbs are caught in the need to commute everywhere for most of what we need. Sure, the houses look pretty come the Spring sunshine, but where do we work? Where are the schools and shops? Even living in the suburbs is getting more difficult as owners give up the unequal struggle and shutter their stores. Trying to survive without a vehicle is only really possible in the cities where public transport manages to offer a basic service to key points around the central area. Even where commuting distances are short, the greenest of environmentalists is disheartened by the statistics showing the number of cyclists mown down by drivers. Where he still alive, Darwin would note the failure of the two-wheeled species to survive. more…
When dealing with a car insurance company or agent, never expect the whole truth. Whether they are trying to boost their commission or just sweet-talking you, it’s rarely in their interests to tell you the full story. Always remember what they don’t tell you is probably the thing that could save you money. Things like this:
1. Cancel the collision premium if your car is old.
If your car is 7/8 years old and worth less than $2,500, it’s likely your excess is close to the value of your car. So why pay for comp and collision premiums? A major collision will probably write your car off anyway so it’s wasted money.
2. Don’t use the same company for both home and car insurance
Unlike many bundle deals available today such as broadband internet and TV, it is rarely cheaper to bundle your home and car insurance. While many companies offer great deals on either type of cover, they rarely offer great deals on both. Unless you buy an umbrella policy, a bit of research is likely to show keeping your policies separate will return better savings. more…
Politics is endlessly surprising. The theory of democracy states the people have the power through the ballot box. The reality is slightly different with representative government. At preset intervals, the people have a say in who should represent their interests, and may vote on proposals and policy initiatives. This actually leaves them rather powerless. It’s the elected representatives who have a better control over events, in consultation with all the vested interests and power brokers who have influence behind the scenes. This is not to condemn the current system as broken or corrupt. As it stands, it does have the benefit of being very slow-moving. There is always passionate debate when big changes are proposed. This means changes are more likely to be made for the right reasons.
For example, take a look at California. Its voters approved a Proposition to prohibit insurance companies from relying excessively on zip codes when setting premium rates. The argument is simply made. If the character of a neighborhood shifts from respectable middle-class to a more rundown area occupied by blue collar workers and their families, the rates start to change. If the racial profile of the population also changes to become more Latino or African American, rates change again. These changes reflect the statistical likelihood that certain types of crime will become more common including property damage, vehicle theft and vandalization, and so on. As the claims from that area rise, those living there should pay more. Except this is penalizing people based on the accident of where they live. There is a big difference between increasing the premium because of a bad driving safety record and hiking the premium because the racial profile of his neighbors changed. So Californian voted to outlaw using zip codes to set rates. After years of struggle, this became law and Californian insurers continue to operate profitably. All their protests they would be forced out of business have been proved a worthless gambit. more…
One of the big dilemmas for any country’s government when it bails out a business deemed “too big to fail” is how far it should go in managing that business. There is a temptation to actually start calling the shots whenever this is seen as necessary to protect the interests of the taxpayers whose money is bailing out the company. For example, if tax dollars are propping up a bank that has lent hundreds of millions to home buyers, should the government tell the bank to take a less aggressive approach to foreclosures? You only have to look at the public anger when top executives in these businesses started awarding themselves big bonuses, claiming their performance as managers justified these rewards.
The insurance industry in Michigan is up in arms so there must be something good for consumers happening there. The Property Casualty Insurance Association of America is leading the fight against a threatened attack on their members’ profits. The Board of State Canvassers in Michigan has just approved a petition for ballot in 2010. Despite the fact the insurance industry has remained profitable, paid its taxes and maintained its employment levels, the petition’s supporters allege insurers have been making excessive profits during one of the worst recessions in the last century. If the voters back the initiative, the legislature will be empowered to produce a number of direct limits on the way the industry assesses risk and sets the premium rates. The headline to sell this to the voters is genuinely eye-catching. The aim is to cut premiums on all insurance types across the board by 20%. Because drivers have been claiming that premium increases have been victimizing them, the initiative adds a further 20% cut for the best drivers. This shifts the risk profiling approach from the current factors such as zip code, credit score, marital status, etc., to factors directly assessing the driving skills of the individual drivers such as the driving safety record, the number of tickets issued, and so on. more…
American Mercury Insurance, as its name indicates, is an insurance company automobile and property. George Joseph founded the company in 1961. The company is based in Los Angeles, California. The company sells insurance through third parties such as insurance brokers. The political values of Mercury Insurance costs are low, so that each policy has at least one car in their name. It is a recognized leader in auto insurance, is a familiar name. more…
