The consequences of making multiple claims in a short period of time depend on the type of claims.

Anytime you file a claim with your insurance company, what happens to your insurance rates heavily depends on the type of claims you are filing. If you are filing multiple claims because your windshield keeps getting cracked or broke, you won’t see much, if anything, in the way of an increased premium.

However, if you have had 2 at-fault accidents within a 6 month period, be prepared for premium increases that are going to take your breath away.

As far as the question about the claims being on 2 different policies, again it depends on the claim. All claims are reported to your C.L.U.E. report and all insurance companies pull your C.L.U.E. report when you apply for insurance coverage with them. Not-at-fault accidents and windshield claims that are paid out by one insurance company are usually not recognized by other insurance companies when they determine your premium. An at-fault accident claim though, will be taken into account with any insurance company, regardless if they were with different companies.

State Farm introduces a questionable, driver feedback app with a cute commercial.

Commercial

Commercial starts with teen walking out of the house to his car with cellphone in hand. At the car, his dad has attached a number of homemade contraptions to track the teens driving behavior.

Teen: Dad, whatcha doing?

Dad: Come here. Ya gotta see this. (Pointing to a satellite dish) This will tell me where you are and how fast you’re going. And this, when the ball hits the sensor tells me how fast you turned. Oh! And you remember the old video camera.

Teen: Dad. You know that this (pointing to cellphone) can do all of that (pointing to inventions), right?

Commercial goes to a computer graphic of the different screens for the app.

Announcer: The driver feedback app, start it, stop it, see how you did, see where you went. Get tips for driving, and even better – it’s free. Download the driver feedback app now!

Commercial goes back to dad in front of the car.

Dad: But can it do this?

Dad locks the car and it plays a tune. Teen folds hands behind his head in exasperation.

Point of Commercial

State Farm is introducing a new app for teen drivers. While they are targeting parents of teen drivers, it feels like an extension of the campaign aimed at trying to appeal to the younger generation of drivers, also (see Buffalo Jingle commercial).

What They Want You to Do

They aren’t asking for your business, they just want you to use their app. Read the fine print before you download it though.

My Opinion

Don’t get me wrong, I really like this commercial. It’s funny, it’s memorable, and the commercial hits its target of parents of driving, or soon to be driving, teens perfectly. What I don’t like is the app itself.

As a parent of a teen, there is a problem and the impending excuse that comes to mind immediately. The problem is that the teen is responsible for turning on the app via their cellphone for you to be able to track them. How many teens out there want their parents tracking their driving, let alone voluntarily subjecting themselves to it?

As I asked myself this question and tried to find the solution of making them turn it on, the excuse of “ I forgot” immediately came to mind for each time you ask as to why they didn’t turn it on. Sorry, but thinking that this app isn’t going to be as helpful as the tracking devices that are attached to the car like the ones from GEICO and SAFECO.

But since we are here to talk about the commercial and not the app, let me return to our beaten path with a rating. The funny, on target, State Farm driver feedback app commercial, gets two thumbs up from me.

New Jersey gives you the choice of fines and surcharge or fines and insurance increases.

Would you pay the smaller surcharge to keep violation points from increasing your insurance premium?

If you had the option to add a surcharge on your traffic violation to keep it off your driving record, would you? You can in states like New Jersey, where they give you the option of paying a surcharge on top of your initial traffic violation fine. This surcharge keeps the points from the traffic violation off of your driving record; making you look like a better driver than you really are to your insurance company.

How This New Jersey Surcharge Works

New Jersey allows you to pay a $250 surcharge on top of the fine amount you are charged for two traffic violations in a 5-year period. The surcharge keeps the points from being added to your driving record, kind of like a paid forgiveness program. Nothing in life is free anymore, is it?

If you are silly enough to get 3 or more violations in a 5-year period, New Jersey fines you and starts adding up the points. Because you used up all their forgiveness the first two times, the third violation and anymore after that will add 4 points apiece to your record.

How Would the Surcharge Affect You?

The surcharge that is paid through this program is to keep the points off your driving record; which is what insurance companies use as one of the factors to set your insurance premium. Actually, the driving record is one of the biggest factors that the insurance companies use for your insurance premiums.

Because you have a higher chance of getting into a car accident with your driving behavior, the more points on your driving record, the higher your insurance premium. In some states they eventually revoke your license after so many points, and in other states they do not.

As an example of how your points affect your driving record; when I worked in the assigned risk department for an insurance company, the most points I ever saw on a driving record was 25 points. This person no longer qualified for regular insurance coverage because of how dangerous of a driver they were. So the company was forced, by the government, to give this person insurance, and they made sure that the driver was paying enough to cover any accident they were most likely to get in.

In fact, the premium was so high that it was everything I could do not to point blank ask this person why they didn’t just take the bus. We aren’t talking a couple thousand dollars here, were talking enough to pay for a different, nice, used car every 12 months ($10,000 – $13,000).

If you only had one or two violations, would you pay a surcharge to keep them off your record, so your insurance premium would stay down?

The 2012 BMW M3 is a classy car, but may carry a higher insurance tag than you expect.

Starting at $60,000, the 2012 BMW M3 is out of the price range for most of us. But like the adage goes, “If you can afford the car, you can afford the insurance.” If you are pushing the limit of your budget just with the new car payment, you are going to want to call your insurance and get a quote to make sure that you are going to be able to pay for the insurance premium that is going to tag along.

The M3 is a high-performance vehicle that was first developed in 1986. It has a high-revving engine with 414 horsepower, and two different transmissions (a seven-speed double-clutch and a six-speed manual). The 2012 M3 is only available as a coupe or a convertible this year. The M3 sedan is not available as it is going through the process of being redesigned.

Safety Testing for the 2012 BMW M3

There was no safety testing done on the 2012 M3 by either the National Highway and Transportation Safety Administration or the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The 2012 BMW M3 does have some safety equipment that is not found in other vehicles, like more airbags and headlight safety features. But most of the safety equipment found in the M3 can also be found in the newer models that many other manufacturers are putting out today.

2012 BMW M3 Safety Recalls

There are no safety recalls for this vehicle at this time.

Insurance for the 2012 BMW M3

There is no safety data to base whether the vehicle is going to protect the driver and passenger in the vehicle. However, with how many airbags that are in the M3 you are probably going to be a little bruised up, but otherwise okay.

The comprehensive and collision coverage for the vehicle is going to be on the higher side, with how much the vehicle is worth. The BMW M3 is not a super-high priced vehicle like some of the other ones we have reviewed, but it is still on the higher end of the auto price range; which makes its replacement parts more expensive.

What will help with the insurance is that it is not a large vehicle and it is not technically categorized as a sports car; both of which help to keep the liability insurance down.

Overall, the insurance on the BMW M3 for 2012 is going to be on the moderate to high side

All of us at Car Insurance Guidebook wish you a safe and Happy Halloween.

Have a Happy Halloween and Drive Safe!

Candy, costumes, and safe driving are a great combination to make every Halloween a Happy Halloween. Because Halloween has its very own set of holiday hazards to watch out for while you are out enjoying the evening, it is very important that you are extra vigilant and sober while you are driving on Halloween night.

The costumed children will thank you; their parents will thank you, and your wallet will thank you for sparing it from insane insurance costs, fines and jail time.

Don’t Drive with Halloween Masks On

I would hope that this would be a no-brainer, but you just never know with some people. So we would like to kindly remind you NOT to drive with your Halloween masks on. There are enough blind spots in your car without adding to them with a mask.

Most masks allow for minimal eyesight, so skip the mask while you’re driving and arrive safely. Besides, putting on your mask is one of the best parts of Halloween, and now you can enjoy that moment several times in the same night every time you get in and out of your vehicle.

Watch for Halloween Princess’, Zombies, and Ghosts

As darkness falls on Halloween night, the streets will come alive with little ones out in search of treats. This is the night that you need to be the most careful when you are driving through neighborhoods. These little ones have very little else on their mind other than being dressed up and what candy the next house will have.

If you are not paying attention or driving too fast, you could easily hit one of these trick-or-treaters. The aftermath of which will result in terrible guilt for the rest of your life, a huge increase in your insurance rates, and most likely jail time.

Don’t take the chance, just be careful.

Don’t Drive After Enjoying Too Many Halloween Concoctions

Drinking, costumes, and trick-or-treaters are not a good combination for a Happy Halloween. If you are going to enjoy your Halloween with a couple drinks, don’t be driving. Your reaction time to a trick-or-treater running in front of you will not be enough to prevent a tragedy.

I know that it is socially responsible for us to be putting this message out, but for me, it’s personal. My great-grandparents were killed by a drunk driver on Halloween night, so, please spare a family the pain of losing a loved one on a night that is supposed to be fun and give everyone a Happy Halloween by letting someone else drive if you have had too much.