The Disadvantages of Pay as You Drive Insurance
Pay As You Drive plans are one of the most popular innovations in auto insurance of 2009. As their name suggests, Pay As You Drive plans charge drivers on the basis of how many miles they drive. Drive less, save more. In tough economic times, the idea of reducing this one monthly bill almost all of us have to pay is very appealing. However, Pay As You Go has a downside.
First off, if you use Pay As You Go, you have to allow your use of your car to be monitored. Monitoring your mileage is not free, and you pay those costs, not the insurance company. Especially if you have a GPS device installed, the costs of monitoring can be greater than the savings in your premiums. Moreover, if you change companies, you will have to change monitoring devices, too. That means you should think twice before you change companies just to get what appears to be a lower rate.
Second, the companies providing odometer tracking may also charge you a monthly fee for transmitting the data. You don't just pay for the device, you pay to use it. This, too, can eat away any cost savings from your driving fewer miles.
Third, the insurance companies have had an opportunity to develop a completely new price structure when they offered Pay As You Go. This has allowed them to pass off new costs to drivers, again, canceling out the benefits of your careful and frugal driving.
There are legitimate concerns about how your odometer data may be used. The devices that provide mileage numbers can be modified to tell you the company not just how many miles you drive, but where you drive, when you drive, and how often you go there. This information might be used to justify increasing your premiums, or it might be passed on to third parties for entirely different purposes, none of which is likely to be to your advantage.
Supporters of Pay As You Drive plans assert that driving less will result in fewer accidents. However, the correlation between miles driven and number of accidents is not necessarily simple. Low-mileage drivers are not necessarily safer drivers. It is just as easy for a Pay As You Drive driver to get into a crash as a driver covered by a more traditional insurance program.
At first glance, the promises of lower premiums for Pay As You Drive seem very attractive. If you are considering a Pay As You Drive policy, however, be sure to ask detailed questions of your authorized insurance agent to make sure Pay As You Drive is really right for you. - 21392
First off, if you use Pay As You Go, you have to allow your use of your car to be monitored. Monitoring your mileage is not free, and you pay those costs, not the insurance company. Especially if you have a GPS device installed, the costs of monitoring can be greater than the savings in your premiums. Moreover, if you change companies, you will have to change monitoring devices, too. That means you should think twice before you change companies just to get what appears to be a lower rate.
Second, the companies providing odometer tracking may also charge you a monthly fee for transmitting the data. You don't just pay for the device, you pay to use it. This, too, can eat away any cost savings from your driving fewer miles.
Third, the insurance companies have had an opportunity to develop a completely new price structure when they offered Pay As You Go. This has allowed them to pass off new costs to drivers, again, canceling out the benefits of your careful and frugal driving.
There are legitimate concerns about how your odometer data may be used. The devices that provide mileage numbers can be modified to tell you the company not just how many miles you drive, but where you drive, when you drive, and how often you go there. This information might be used to justify increasing your premiums, or it might be passed on to third parties for entirely different purposes, none of which is likely to be to your advantage.
Supporters of Pay As You Drive plans assert that driving less will result in fewer accidents. However, the correlation between miles driven and number of accidents is not necessarily simple. Low-mileage drivers are not necessarily safer drivers. It is just as easy for a Pay As You Drive driver to get into a crash as a driver covered by a more traditional insurance program.
At first glance, the promises of lower premiums for Pay As You Drive seem very attractive. If you are considering a Pay As You Drive policy, however, be sure to ask detailed questions of your authorized insurance agent to make sure Pay As You Drive is really right for you. - 21392
About the Author:
Tom Martens is the content syndication coordinator for Carinsurancesa.co.za. South Arica?s leading car insurance portal.
posted by X - Men @ 3:31 AM
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