windshields

[Roger M. Woodbury]

Interesting that windshields often pop up as a special item for discussion.
It usually involves either an endorsement or a diatribe about insurance and
insurance companies.

After too many years in the insurance industry, and after many, too many
cars, and much too much money paid for insuring them about ten years ago I
adopted a new insurance strategy.  It's called a deductible.  It all came
about by accident.

After selling my insurance businesses, and moving on to a saner life, I
severely downsized for a couple of years.  I drove an old VW diesel Rabbit
and I also had a fairly new Ford 4x4 pickup, which is sort of mandatory here
in rural USofA.

One early evening, a deer insisted on having target practice with the front
fender of my Rabbit.  The impact caved in the top edge of the fender and
cracked the windshield.  It really didn't interfere with the operation of
the car, but looked terrible and, of course, before the next annual
inspection, the windshield would have to be replaced.  I had a $50
deductible for comprehensive losses, which is what this would come under, as
it was an accident involving an animal.  (No, it isn't considered a
collision).  This particular car was a Rabbit "S" which was made only one
year, and was the precursor to the GTI, and although old, and having a lot
of miles, was still in very nice shape.

So the insurance company paid the loss....I forget how much.  Then I got a
notice of non-renewal.

The problem was frequency.  Before I had left the insurance biz, I had had
four incidents...all of them comprehensive losses, and three of them
involving windshields.  Two of the three were in the Mercedes that I had had
and used as a high mileage driver.  In Maine in the winter, they "sand" the
icy roads with ball bearings, and it doesn't take a lot to ding a
windshield, especially if you are always in a hurry as I was, and often
following the big trucks a bit too closely.  (I'll admit that now!).

But the straw that broke the camels back from the insurance companies
standpoint, was the eleven thousand dollar accident that my ex-wife had had
in her Porsche after we were separated.  I knew nothing about that, but they
felt that they had had enough of Mrs. Woodbury's little boy Rogie, and his
wild driving, and unstable wife.

Well, I knew that USAA was simply the best automobile insurance company in
the world, and couldnt' face driving along without them, so I appealed.  No.
That's wrong.  I begged, cried, pleaded and begged some more, all the way to
the head of underwriting for the entire eastern half of the USofA.

Then, we made a deal.  The deal was that ONE more incident and I would be
out, PLUS I agreed to accept a large deductible for all vehicles:  $1,000
for collision and $500 for comprehensive, which would eliminate all
windshield losses.  On top of that I agreed that they should be entitled to
surcharge my insurance rates based on my driving record.  They relented, and
coverage continued.

To my VERY large surprise, when my renewal policy came in the next month,
the premiums went DOWN nearly $160!  The deductibles were $1,000 collision
and only $250 comprehensive.  I drove on.

Fast forward four years.  I now was driving my first Audi V8...a very nice
Tornado lose-your-license-Red with black leather.  I had increased my
comprehensive deductible for this car to $500, since the physical damage
rates were MUCH higher than they had been on anything that I had driven for
about five years.

And then it happened.  I caught a nice, fat rock off a truck going in the
opposite direction, and the windshield was spiderwebbed.  The new
windshield?  Around $430, as I recall. They came and changed it right in my
yard.  Cool.

And the bottom line was that the higher deductibles, have saved me enough
premiums with three vehicles, to pay for a new windshield in each of them.
That's over the past ten years.....

Roger