Florida: No auto insurance? No problem!

[Plaz]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19965091/

:ack:

[John V]

$10,000 property damage liability coverage minimum? That's a joke anyway.

[bren]

...three states - Tennessee, Wisconsin and Iowa - do not require drivers to carry some form of auto insurance.

Looks like Florida isn't alone.

[ff]

What are they talking about? Insurance isn't actually required right now. One of the reasons why our rates are so high (besides the fact that FL has the worst drivers on this continent), is because so many people don't have any insurance, causing the people with common sense to pay for the accidents they're in regardless of who was at fault. Case in point, one of my wife's co-workers was rear ended by a drunk with no insurance a few months ago, at 40 MPH as she sat at a stoplight. The cops basically said "sorry, there's nothing you can do but suck it up. The guy has no insurance." And knowing our completely indifferent FL law enforcement, the guy was probably let go without so much as even a slap on the wrist.

[lupinsea]

Well, ages ago in WA state they passed a law requiring drivers to get insurance. This was because there was a staggering 24% of driver who didn't have insurance at the time.

10-15+ yeas later, 24% of the drivers STILL do not have insurance despite the law.

It's just plain good sense to be insured. However, at least in WA state simply having a law say you have to have insurance doesn't apparently do anything.

What I'd like to see is for the insurance companies to sue the people without insurance (in the event of an accident) and be able to deduct from the non-insured's wages the cost of any settlement . . . assuming it's the other guy's fault.

[ff]

What I'd like to see is for the insurance companies to sue the people without insurance (in the event of an accident) and be able to deduct from the non-insured's wages the cost of any settlement . . . assuming it's the other guy's fault.

It'll never happen, because that's not the PC/sympathizer thing to do.

But I agree. And I'd also like to see the state require proof of insurance before issuing license tab renewals each year (what could be more simple than that?). No insurance... no tabs, and you're SOL.

[lupinsea]

It'll never happen, because that's not the PC/sympathizer thing to do.

But I agree. And I'd also like to see the state require proof of insurance before issuing license tab renewals each year (what could be more simple than that?). No insurance... no tabs, and you're SOL.

It just pissed me off to think that my insurace rates are higher because some lazy, cheap-ass bastard won't get insurance and then, when there's an accident, the insurance company doesn't persue said bastard for recompence.

The most that'll happen (without a lawsuit) is that the uninsured driver gets slapped with a $400-500 uninsured motorist fine. OOooo. Wooow, that's actually cheaper than shelling out ~$1k / year on insurance. . . assuming said bastard doesn't get in more than 2 accidents / year.

[Pinecone]

Well, in MD now, you have to have a certificate of insurance in each car, that specifically identifies that the car, by VIN is insured.