How I Saved $1000+ This Weekend
Before the accident:
Do I really need car insurance? What could possible happen? I'm a safe and responsible driver... I think my credit card covers accidents...
After the accident:
But, it really wasn't my fault! I'm not to blame! What?! How could my insurance not cover that?! What do you mean I'm not covered for 3rd party liabilities?!
My Weekend Road Trip:
One of the perks of my job is that I officially have off every other weekend. This means I can leave first thing Friday morning and come back Sunday evening. As a 'dorm mom' during the rest of the week this is awesome!
Friday morning, Oct. 25th, at 6:17am, I headed out of Palo Alto in my baby blue Hyundai Sonata and drove towards Los Angeles where my grandparents live.
I like to think that I am a safe and responsible driver. Sure, I speed a bit - but it's just to keep up with the rest of the cars; being the slowest driver on the road isn't safe either :) .
At some point mid-trip, a tire came flying head-on into my car. It must have been from a previous blowout and somehow landed in the middle of the road. I noticed it coming from beneath the black SUV in front of me a split second before it hit the vehicle. Thank G-d I saw that and I was able to maintain control of the car without totally freaking out :) !
It was only once we arrived in LA that I checked for damages. Sure enough, not only was the whole right side of the bumper scratched, but a something had actually broken somewhere so that the bumper no longer laid smooth...
What I Found Out This Morning:
When I went to return the car to Enterprise this morning, I learned that the damages are probably over $1000 in nature! Boy am I happy that I bought the insurance plan!
I'm so used to using my mom's credit card for these types of purchases because of her coverage protection that I nearly used it this time too. I'm happy I thought to check and make sure I'm still covered even though I recently turned 21. Turns out, I'm not! Following that, I'm happy I though to check that my personal credit card offers car rental insurance. Turns out, it doesn't!
I thank G-d that I did have the sense to do my due diligence and upon finding out that I had no coverage at all, for adding the insurance that the rental place offers. Yes, the insurance cost the same much as the actual rental for the weekend, but it was worth it!
I'm not really sure where the money would have come from had I not been covered...
Yeah... so what has this got to do with WA?
Even more than stressing the importance of insurance coverage in general, my point here is that it is our responsibility to do due diligence in whatever we involve ourselves with!
In WA alone, there's so much that we come across - privacy policies, copyrighted images, plagiarism, etc. just for starters - that we need to be careful with. It's not about hurting someone else per se (though that's certainly something to keep in mind!); but let's be selfish here and talk about hurting ourselves. Low google ranking and unhappy readers and customers are just the beginning of a downward path. But even more than that, what about our honesty and integrity? Don't those count for something!?
Let my experience help you reconsider what is really important and where you need to do what is right even though it may seem to be unnecessary....
Recent Comments
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Hi Stephanie. Read your post and must admit that there is a lot to learn from your experience. Glad you decided to pay for the Insurance and there was no personal damage. In Holland it is a legal obligation that everyone who drives a car must be insured. By the way - not all has to be taken care off by the government - but personal
involvement is a responsability. Regards Antonius
I love this! It's so true. I'm a licensed insurance agent and you would not believe how many people do not understand even the basics of what they are covered for or how the coverage works. I encourage everyone to do their research while getting insurance and renting a car. People need to know what they are getting into and what they are liable for if they get into an accident.
Research like you would for anything else in life. :) Great post!
Wow! When I got back to work, my employer told me that when I buy my own car I should really go for the top level insurance because it'll be worth it in case of emergency...
Thank you!
Very nice :) And aren't you glad it happened on a rental car?
As a young driver (at 21, you are still young) please remember to wait about 10 seconds before moving forward after a light has turned green for you. A neighbor's son was driving one night, the light turned green. He started into the intersection (belts on and all) and was hit full on by another car running the red light. He was only 17.
:-) Yeah, I didn't even think about it like that ;)
I tend to be more careful with things that I don't own / didn't buy because I have a responsibility to give it back in the same condition, so that thought didn't go through my head, but you're right! I sure am!
Thank you for the reminder. Thank G-d I'm a safe and responsible driver, but I do have a tendency to begin moving as soon as the light turns green and recently I've seen a few people run through reds, unfortunately. So, I will keep this in mind...
It is amazing how many people run red-and police are never around! One or two times my foot would start to move toward the gas, and hit the brake instead-only to see a red-runner come barreling through. The scariest was a time when the car would have broadsided myself and my (then) toddler daughter. I also have a clean driving record and no matter what my health may do, *that* is something I take great pride in.
Another tip? If you have a headache, stay home or reschedule-it knocks your reaction time way off.
Great article. Glad you were covered. I have a Review page that I worked on today. My reviews are pull down menus from the main menu. You also have to be careful when we write reviews. You need to due diligent research on the products or services you will be reviewing. Should you give a product or service a bad review based upon a couple of things you read the company could come after you as I the form of a lawsuit. I covered that in my page today. We need to be very mindful of what we write. Debbie
Me too!
Yeah, the best, well, really the only, time you should give a review is after you've tried the product or service - you're 100% correct!
Such a good reminder of our responsibility! If we want to reap the rewards, we'd better take on the personal responsibility for doing it the right way. Thanks!
Pat
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Great post, well done
Hudson