Auto insurance, in some people s opinion, is a complete waste of time and money. However, the fact remains that should you become involved in a vehicular accident and you do not have auto insurance, you may wind up spending hundreds upon thousands of dollars in damages to your car as well as someone else s car if you aren t covered.
It is always best to make sure that you are insured if you are a driver. Especially if you are purchasing a vehicle for the first time from a reputable auto dealership, the dealership will not let you drive your brand new purchase off of the parking lot until they can verify that you have auto insurance. For example, when I first purchased my brand new Jeep back in 2007, I had previously been listed under my father s car insurance policy as a driver because at the time, I had another Jeep that was leased and was in his name (which I was turning in since it was the end of the lease agreement). However, for whatever reason, because I was purchasing my own car for the first time, I had to have proof of my own auto insurance. In order to do this, the dealer actually got on the phone and set up my car insurance for me while I stood there and listened all for the purpose of being allowed to drive my car off of the parking lot.
Not having auto insurance makes you more liable in the event that you get into an auto accident with yourself or with other people. Often times, when you are involved in a car accident with another person and the police are called, the first thing that they want to find out is whether or not you have car insurance. Technically, if you do not have car insurance, then you really aren t supposed to be driving on the roadways. It is actually against the law! Nowadays, all a police officer has to do is drive behind you and run your license plate in their online database to realize that you do or do not have insurance. They are able to see when you first signed up with whatever insurance company you have, and they can also see when your insurance is about to expire.
The best defense is a good offense. If you cannot afford car insurance, then perhaps it isn t a good idea to purchase a car. After all, owning a vehicle is a huge responsibility and can quickly turn from being a privilege into being a nightmare if you don t play your cards right. In order to find what kind of car insurance is best for you, shop around to find the best deals. It is true that there are deals to be had. Car insurance can be relatively affordable if you just do a little bit of legwork in the beginning. Also, be careful about who you allow to drive your vehicle. Even if you let your friend borrow your car to run up to the store, if he or she gets into a car accident, then you may be facing a huge problem.