Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by William W. How on March 11, 2013 at 9:07pm

Cars are dangerous, but our society is literally built around the assumption that hundreds of millions of people will own hundreds of millions of private automobiles. For this to work, the real costs of our car culture must be spread very thin.

Real costs = cars themselves, roads, pollution, foreign policy dominated by petroleum policy, costs of accidents (not just repairs, but medical care, lost productivity while recovering from injuries, etc.). It's a very long tally.

Part of this cost spreading is to require everyone to have insurance. Insurance spreads the costs of accidents from accident victims, to drivers, to corporations, to stockholders. The smallest car accident, which can be caused by even the best drivers, can lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills. Without insurance, whose paying those bills?

The victim - not fair

The driver - possibly fair, but not efficient to wipe out someone's assets for a small accident; also, unlikely, given our bankruptcy laws, which would put the cost back on the victim

The government, with public healthcare - not as fair as putting some cost to the person who caused the accident

The risks are different with first-party insurance. If your home burns down, only you are financially ruined, and no stranger third-party is hurt. Likewise with your choice to carry health insurance.

And mandatory liability insurance isn't all that rare. Most businesses, in order to operate, are required to carry insurance, either by the government or a customer or a supplier. And home owner's insurance, necessary for a mortgage, includes liability coverage.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jack Bauer on March 11, 2013 at 9:14pm

Good grief that was a messy answer.

JB

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by William W. How on March 11, 2013 at 9:25pm

Sorry?

Tried to condense 80 pages of Prof. Abraham's case book into one post, as well as my own distaste for automobiles.

At least I didn't bring up how the minimum insurance mandated by the government doesn't fully cover even a small injury accident. Insurance law hasn't kept pace with the cost of medical care (and even automobiles).

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jack Bauer on March 11, 2013 at 9:08pm

You're not forced to insure your car.  Nobody gives a damn if you fix your car.  We just want you to fix ours if you screw-up.  You're forced to insure for damage you do with your car.  Its liability insurance, not collision and comprehensive insurance (which is elective).  State-mandated insurance won't fix your car ... it will fix the other guy's car, or house, or body, etc. if/when you make a mistake.

It is reasonable to require you to take financial responsibility in exchange for the privilege of driving.

JB

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jason M. Reece on March 14, 2013 at 4:15pm

It is reasonable to require you to take financial responsibility in exchange for the privilege of driving.

Perfectly said!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Chu Kim on March 26, 2013 at 10:52am

So you guys must completely and fully agree with being legally required to pay for healthcare, life, and home insurance, eh? Alongside every "privilege" that a person has where there is insurance available for it. I wish I was as rich as you dudes...

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by LShieldes on March 26, 2013 at 11:11am

That isn't remotely what JB said

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by David F. on March 26, 2013 at 11:37am

That is not what he said.

On house insurance, that is enforced from the banks to cover the risk of their asset you are inhabiting as you slowly buy it from them.  
Regarding areas where the state covers the insurance cost, that is to allow the communities to rebuild and keep society stable.  I personally don't think we should pay house site lost twice to the same natural disaster from federal funds.

   

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by David F. on March 26, 2013 at 11:39am

On health insurance are you saying you think people should have to prove ability to pay before ambulances are dispatched or people are admitted?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jess Levens on March 26, 2013 at 11:41am

Way to put words into other people's mouths. No one mentioned home or health insurance, and that isn't what you asked. You don't crash your house into other people's houses (unless you live in Oklahoma or Florida). People are stupid and can be dangerous in cars, and they can't be expected to or trusted to pay for their damages, so we have insurance. 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jack Bauer on March 26, 2013 at 11:52am

Good grief.  Do you understand the difference between liability insurance and comprehensive, homeowners, life, health, etc.?

Auto liability insurance laws require you to be able to pay for damage you cause to somebody else.  Health insurance, homeowners insurance, comprehensive insurance, life insurance, etc. pay for damage to yourself (actually, life pays your family if you croak, but it doesn't really matter for this conversation).

I don't think you should be forced to buy any insurance to repair your own body, or house, or car, or whatever.  If you wreck your car, or burn down your house, or break your arm ... and you can't afford to fix it ... I don't care.  Do without.  Your problem.  If you damage my car, and can't afford to fix it ... I care.  Liability insurance pays for the damage to my car, not yours.

Auto liability insurance is pretty cheap.

JB

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by David F. on March 26, 2013 at 11:33am

Well said.  It shifts the costs of damages from the state to the person causing it.

• ▶ Reply

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• Next ›
• Page