jackh@zehntel.UUCP (jack hagerty) (05/09/85)
> > > >Yes, the insurance companies have; it costs more to insure a red car. > > > I'm surprised at this one, about a year ago I needed to get a new insurance > agent. I really hunted around - trying to optimize price for the following > conditions; 30 years old, male, mediocre poor driving record, red Alfa Romeo. > > [Peter relates story of finding insurance for his red Alfa] > > Shop around, > Peter B Peter and I are kindred Alfa spirits and have been swapping lies over the net for some time now. I found his story to be interesting because I've been shopping for insurance coming from the other direction. My car is a 1974 GTV, the model before Peter's, and is a lighter-than- burgandy color called Raspberry, although the registration just says "red." Although I'm basically happy with my insurance company (and they with me since I've never made a claim) the premium has been creeping up steadily so I thought I'd look around. My conditions are: male, 32, almost clean record (one ticket in 9/83 for driving 65 in a used-to-be-70 zone; other than that, clean for 10 years). I decided to start filling out those "LET US SAVE YOU $$$ ON YOUR AUTO INSURANCE" junk mail fliers that I used to throw away without opening. The results: Great Falls - Will only write liability, no comprehensive. GEICO - Unacceptable driving record (!) Monkey Ward - Unacceptable high performance vehicle. J.C. Penney - Alfa not on "approved" insurable list. Colonial Penn - Will insure me at 50% increase over present company. I even had my insurance broker look around at the major companies...twice. He found the exact same story. The moral (if there is one)? If you've been with your company for a while and are happy, don't change. Apparently year-to-year premium increases are less that starting new. The companies seem to look only at what kind of car you drive, your driving and claims records count only when it's to your detriment. Peter - I found a fix to the starter problem. Mail me if you're interested - Jack -- Jack Hagerty, Zehntel Automation Systems ...!ihnp4!zehntel!jackh