Smart advice for smarter coverage - Page 11

By Aaron Crowe Auto dealers that charge minorities higher interest rates on car loans must stop the discriminatory practice or the banks backing the loans will be sued for unfair lending, a federal watchdog agency announced Thursday. For consumers seeking auto loans through their car dealer, future loans could either be more expensive or cheaper, […]

By Aaron Crowe  The roundabouts of Europe may look like a driver’s nightmare with cars going every direction, and they’ve driven the Griswold family loopy in National Lampoon’s “European Vacation.” Plant a few of those in America and the odd-looking circles might confuse too many people and lead to more accidents. Or, so says conventional […]

A recent bill in Idaho which will allow insurers to deny renewal to cars that are registered out of state has made it through the state legislature by a big margin. The bill, HB 11 cleared the state House with a 65-0 vote last month and the Senate passed it by a 34-0 vote on […]

The anti-texting message is taking hold as lawmakers across the country have introduced bills to raise fines and stiffen penalties for driving while texting. The various pieces of legislation come on the heels of a continuing stream of reports and studies that show that drivers are indifferent to the dangers of texting while driving. A […]

By Aaron Crowe Segway users who drink and drive when using the “personal transporters” recently got a break when a Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled that the Segway isn’t a motor vehicle and drunken driving laws don’t apply to it. Police in Medina, Minn., arrested a man for driving with an alcohol concentration of .08% […]

Gas prices are rising fast, with $4 per gallon common and up as high as $5 per gallon in Los Angeles.  Gas prices usually rise between February and Memorial Day as the costlier summer-blend gas is produced and more people drive while on vacation. But the nationwide rise of 47 cents since mid-January is one […]

By Aaron Crowe Driving in Colorado and Washington State is getting interesting for marijuana users. Voters in both states passed measures in November making recreational use of the drug legal for those 21 and older, though it can only be smoked in private and not in public or while driving. Driving under the influence of […]

By Aaron Crowe Picking on Lindsay Lohan is easy, what with all of her legal problems that seem to constantly get her in the news. Lohan’s problems, however, can be society’s gain if you consider them from the standpoint of lessons to be learned as a driver. The movie star has a long list of […]

By Aaron Crowe Viewing corpses in a morgue as part of a four-hour course on the ramifications of drunk driving isn’t the best way to spend an afternoon, but it beats going to jail. That and other programs that judges impose on people convicted of drunken driving or other driving offenses are meant to discourage […]

If U.S. carmakers have anything to do with it, diesel engines will soon lose the image of being primarily for delivery vehicles and semi-trucks.  European drivers have happily gone the diesel route for decades because of their high performance value and fuel efficiency, but Americans have been slow to adopt the vehicles.  The perception among […]

Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates) recently released their 2013 Roadmap of State Highway Safety Laws which is its 10th annual report card. It grades all 50 states and the District of Columbia on the performance of 15 basic traffic laws. The report this year focused on new incentive grants which are to be […]

By Aaron Crowe Buying a Corvette — the iconic American sports car — is expensive enough at a base price of $56,000 for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. Now try insuring it. Introduced at the Detroit Auto Show on Jan. 14, the latest Corvette is the seventh generation of the car and replaces the C6 […]

By Aaron Crowe For something that wasn’t designed to kill, a car is more likely to kill you than a gun. Motor vehicle traffic deaths killed 33,687 in 2010, more than the 31,672 firearm deaths that year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The numbers are close, equating to 10.9 […]

By Aaron Crowe One of the most difficult situations to discuss with an elderly relative is whether they should be driving anymore. Some elderly drivers might take it as a personal affront that their freedom to drive when they want is being taken away. Family concerns not only include the health of the elderly driver, […]

By Aaron Crowe Nothing gets your heart pumping like a good song. The lyrics to a Bruce Springsteen song or the pop song of the month might stay in your head all day, but the joy of listening to a fun song in the car can be expressed while you’re driving. That could be good […]

If you’ve stood on a street corner while a hybrid car zipped silently by, you might have wondered about the safety ramifications of vehicles that emit barely a sound when driving on battery power at low speeds.  While a reduction in noise pollution is certainly a plus, particularly in large metro areas, pedestrians, bicyclists and […]

A new study from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that electronic stability control (ESC) has saved an increasing number of driver’s lives every year since the technology was required in all new vehicles. ESC works by applying the brakes electronically on each separate wheel to help keep directional control of a vehicle […]

A recent report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which recorded a two percent drop in roadway deaths, also found a big drop in the rate of drunk-driving-related fatalities.  According the NHTSA, drunk driving deaths fell 2.5 percent nationwide in 2011 when compared to 2010 numbers. The report broke the data down by […]

By Aaron Crowe If you didn’t get a Christmas gift for your car, then consider the many wonderful things available at the recently ended Consumer Electronics Show, or CES, in Las Vegas. While some of the items may not be immediately available and are in the early planning stages, many are at least available now […]

With a competitive insurance market automobile insurance carriers are looking to write more and more business, but of course they also want it to be profitable. One such way to remain competitive while still writing the best drivers is a GPS like device for drivers, or a monitoring device for driving habits. This type of […]

With the continued competitive nature of automobile insurance, individualized automobile insurance policies may be coming. No longer will drivers be grouped into one class, solely based on age or other demographics. Currently many states rate on basic categories, age, years driving, and other factors not really individualized to each driver. A very controversial method of […]

Writing that monthly check for your car insurance premium is never fun but if you have the right job you might be able to take a little bit of the sting out of it. Certain occupations often come with a chance for an insurance discount. While not every insurer offers these discounts it is a […]

The debate rages on in all states about elderly drivers. Every time an older driver is in an accident that seems preventable the general public questions if the driver is really capable to continue driving at their age. Mandatory elderly driving testing is slow to take effect in most states, as it is considered unfairly […]

Nissan Motor Co. in an attempt to reassure customers about the durability of the batteries in the all-electric Leaf are upping the current warranty. Nissan will be notifying current owners as well as dealers early in the new year that Nissan will repair or replace the lithium-ion battery if it loses 30 percent or more […]