Colorado Auto Theft Spikes

Colorado is experience an increase in the amount of cars stolen throughout the state. This can cause Denver auto insurance and other state's rates to increase over time and residents do not want to see this happen. According to the article "Thieves Target Jeeps as Colorado Auto Thefts Spike" by Colorado 9News, insurance industry experts noticed a spike in auto thefts throughout the summer with Jeeps specifically on the top of the list.

The 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee is the most stolen SUV in Colorado and the 1996 Honda Accord is the most stolen car according to the Coloradans Against Auto Theft. The 2001 Dodge Ram happens to be the most stolen truck. The Co-Chair of the Coloradans Against Auto Theft states that criminals target older model vehicles because they are easier to break into, which makes sense. The anti-theft technology has come a long way in the last decade. Walker points out that it only take a thief 47 seconds to get into and drive away with someone's car.

It's important to make sure car theft is part of your auto insurance policy. The article referenced above gives a story of a couple who changed their insurance policy just weeks before their car was stolen and it ended up not being covered. This can be a financial devastation for any family, so double check your policy to make sure you have coverage for this type of situation.

New York Auto Insurance Fraud

New York auto insurance fraud has been a problem for many years and some legislators were hoping for a new law to help this problem. One reform type was left out according to the article "NY Lawmakers Fell Short on Auto Insurance Fraud" by Rafe Lieber on MPNNow.com. This reform involved passage of the "Fraud Tax Bill" which would have helped lessen the amount of high level fraud throughout the state of New York.

The article points out that New Yorkers pay on average 53% more for auto insurance rates than the rest of the nation and this is partly due to the no-fault auto accident policy. Research shows that approximately $1 billion has been stolen from the state in the last five years because of organized auto insurance fraud groups that stage accidents and run up bills with the help of participating physicians. New York lawmakers did not pass the bill this year, but this doesn't mean it won't happen eventually.

There is a possibility that the New York legislature will get together again before the end of 2011 to discuss other options. The state hasn't been passing bills including "Alice's Bill" which many consider to be common sense. This bill would make staging an accident in New York a standalone crime in hopes of making punishment harsher. Alice was a New York resident who was killed during a staged accident which shows the severity of this awful crime. Hopefully New York will work towards making it harder for criminals to commit serious auto insurance fraud.

Wisconsin Auto Insurance Changes

Wisconsin recently passed a new bill which will lower coverage limits for Wisconsin auto insurance according to an article found in the Badger Herald by Andrew Averill. Coverage limits were previously raised in hopes that it would save money, but the Democrats had other ideas for lowering premiums.

As of now, Wisconsin law requires auto insurers to cover $50,000 for bodily injury, $100,000 for 2 or more people, and for property damage it's $15,000. The new bill changes the limits to $25,000, $50,000, and $10,000 respectively. This is a big difference and should have an impact on Wisconsin cities and perhaps other northern cities such as Seattle auto insurance will be influenced.

Jeff Fitzgerald, the assembly speaker in Wisconsin, saws the previous law ended up increase auto insurance rates for good drivers and even limited options for consumers. He believes the new law will help people shopping for auto insurance by giving them more choices in coverage plans. He sees this bill as the perfect combination of consumer choice and consumer responsibility. Hopefully it achieves that goal.

Auto Insurance Information

According to the press release "Vehicle Monitoring Systems Raise Serious Privacy Concerns" found on MarketWatch.com, a lawsuit filed by Progressive Insurance, accuses the Massachusetts based Liberty Mutual Group, Inc, of infringing on Progressive's patent which was received in 2000 for a car monitoring system that obtains data such as location, mileage and speed from a customer's automobile.

This type of system has caused a lot of buzz over the past few years while some believe it's intrusive and causes privacy concerns. Tracking devices can infringe on consumer privacy and possibly raise the cost of insurance according to Chris Gay who is the founder and president of MileMeter.

MileMeter is the first and only company in the US which offers pay-per-mile auto insurance. Customers pay for insured miles in advance, and rates are based on age, location and car type. This way of doing insurance not only saves the customer money, but MileMeter's program encourages less frequent driving since the less they drive the more money they save. This helps keep down pollution as well as traffic congestion. It's possible more and more companies will turn to this way of offering auto insurance coverage.