Can military members maintain auto insurance in their home state, or do you have to switch it to wherever you're stationed?

your car should be insured for the location where it is garaged

Pat is correct (of course), but.... that doesn't mean you have to change agents, just let them know where you & and your auto are..... IF they have a problem with it they will let you know..


Wray...

Thanks. Hopefully my insurance won't go up too much.

Funny, but my insurance has done nothing but increase each move. Enlisted in Virginia, moved to California: insurance went up. Moved from California to Oregon: insurance went up. Moved from Oregon to New York: wow did insurance go up! Moved from New York to Maryland: insurance went up. Finally, moved from Maryland back to my home of record, Virginia. You guessed it, insurance went up. I'm not sure how it works out that I've come full circle and Virginia is now the most expensive post for insurance when it was the cheapest when I enlisted. Auto insurance is just plain expensive.

Travis

Travis.. yes it is expensive, but ya gottta have it...

The continued rising cost is called INFLATION...

Do you remember how much a gallon of gas or milk was when you first enlisted in VA? Gone up, huh.... no matter where you live.

Wray...

Insurance is applied as per the state your in. Some states have different levels of "required" coverages. It's one of those areas you just can't escape from. I did have AAA from Michigan and they covered me while I lived in OH. They said because the policy was written for MI, OH and IN areas, I didn't have to switch agents. If I had an accident in OH, Oh rules applied. If in Mi, Mi rules applied, etc.. The only thing that saves your bacon is you can register the car in your home state. Now, when I left California, they were pissed at the military (BRAC) for closing all the military (at least most) in t hat state, so, they tried to push the smog thing on cars with out of state plates. They wanted the military to enforce a rule that if you car didn't get tested, no base sticker. Not sure if it went anywhere but I scooted out off to Florida before it picked up support.

quote:

Originally posted by Wray:
Travis.. yes it is expensive, but ya gottta have it...

The continued rising cost is called INFLATION...

Do you remember how much a gallon of gas or milk was when you first enlisted in VA? Gone up, huh.... no matter where you live.

Wray...

MC, I disagree. Insurance has gone up because of litigation, not inflation. Lawsuits are a driving force behind increase premiums. It costs more to fix a new car today because of design. The cars of today are designed to "die" so the occupants don’t. They sorta "explode" into pieces on impact, therefore costing more to fix. Bottom line, our costs go up because the industry can raise them for whatever reason they want. Almost half my policy now is for a "catastrophic claims" add-on that went from a few bucks to hundreds more a year because our mentally handicapped gov allowed it to get out of control. Michigan is the only state that has this charge. So, sons 91 Honda is about 300 bucks liability only. 127 of that is CC. CC is to cover why my 300k bodily injury does not.

One way or the other, it is a good idea to maintain at least the minimum coverage required by the State in which the vehicle is "principally garaged," i.e., where you and the car currently reside. In Pennsylvania, failure to maintain adequate insurance can lead to a 90-day suspension of the owner's operating privilege and a 90-day suspension of the vehicle's registration. My agency litigates this issue frequently, normally successfully, so maintaining that insurance here is a must.

quote:

Originally posted by Wray:
Travis.. yes it is expensive, but ya gottta have it...

The continued rising cost is called INFLATION...

Do you remember how much a gallon of gas or milk was when you first enlisted in VA? Gone up, huh.... no matter where you live.

Wray...

MC,

The thing that bothers me is not that it goes up but that it goes up each time I move. I'm always told that the new state is more expensive than the old state. I understand that insurance is more expensive, I'm driving more expensive cars/suv's etc. But everything being equal (same insurance carrier, same year, same cars, no change in coverage, etc) why is each state more expensive than the last including the first state revisited? I know, its a rhetorical question but it is something I've noticed over the last ten years.

Gas was $0.93 at my local Costco when I left VA in 1998. It's now $2.71 at the very same Costco but that's another topic.

quote:

...they tried to push the smog thing on cars with out of state plates. They wanted the military to enforce a rule that if you car didn't get tested, no base sticker. Not sure if it went anywhere...

Actually, it's an EPA air quality reg or somesuch - it could also apply in the Puget Sound area, based. I haven't heard much about it lately.

quote:

Originally posted by nekron99:

quote:

...they tried to push the smog thing on cars with out of state plates. They wanted the military to enforce a rule that if you car didn't get tested, no base sticker. Not sure if it went anywhere...

Actually, it's an EPA air quality reg or somesuch - it could also apply in the Puget Sound area, based. I haven't heard much about it lately.

It might have been the EPA but it was California who was pushing the cars from out of state testing. And, it's not the EPA keeping new diesel automobiles from being sold in California. And it's not the EPA suing the Big 3 and others to force them to reduce smog spitting cars. I don't disagree that the EPA may be a part of it, but it's got California "I know what's best for you" ideals all over it. Think it pretty much came down to this. California to the military. Do not issue a base sticker if said car has not been California smog tested, even with out of state plates.

Mark W.. wanna chime in on this? You been holed up out there in them there hills for a few years.. whats the latest?

We had an E-4 in Michigan driving a car he told the insurance company was garaged in Florida. Of course he had cheaper rates, but when he totalled it in an accident they didn't give him any money and rightly so.

Keep your deductables at level you can afford to pay if needed. If you can't afford $1,000 out of pocket when needed then maybe you should have a $500 or less deductable. Also by only keeping the minimum coverage, you will be liable for any amount over your limits. It doesn't take much to rack up a lawsuit over a several hundred thousand dollars and if you're only covered for the minimum required, you may find yourself in a bind all for saving a few dollars a year.

Bottom line, if you can't afford the insurance on the car you want or have, better get a different vehicle. Always check the coverage costs before buying a vehicle. That's one of the biggest mistakes our young service members make.

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It doesn't take much to rack up a lawsuit over a several hundred thousand dollars and if you're only covered for the minimum required, you may find yourself in a bind all for saving a few dollars a year.

I'm going through this right now with a woman who totalled my car and is suing my son (who was driving my car) for an accident she caused (my son had the presence of mind to do a 360 degree photo shoot of the crash scene with his camera phone).

USAA has been great throughout the whole thing, and will take this to either arbitration or court whichever way it goes.

I have had great experience with my insurance company and even had the agent get into a fight with the main office about my moving around. He found out that by PA law military can be covered as though their car is at there home of record. It works similar to when a child is sent to college. You just have to let them know where the mailing address is and the rates are based on you permanent address. The only thing they have ever had to change was TORT coverage depending on where I was. That of course was with PA, I can't say for other sates. I have had claims while in the other states also, so it is not something I just got away with.

Well, the applicable FEDERAL law is the Clean Air Act, that basically gave the states sovereignty over Federal actions inside their borders, and allowed states to set more stringent standards than the Federal ones...

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same insurance carrier, same year, same cars, no change in coverage, etc

There is your problem. Had the same company for 15 years one claim(18yrs old) and one ticket which was dismissed. However that was during my first 4 years of coverage. They eventually started raising the rates on me for no reason and sited address change etc for the lame excuses. I finally had enough and shopped around guess what for my loyalty my last increase would have cost 2500 per year for 2 cars and a boat. I am now paying 1600 for same coverage(full) on same vehicles in same state. Loyalty to your insurance company gets you nothing. I gave them an oportunity to meet the other companies quote and they declined interest. It pays to shop around. Loyalty gets you nothing.

We have had wonderful service since 1981 from State Farm. Tornado damage, rental car damage, even the self induced damage, we have done well.

Tickets do raise your rate, but then they will go down if you stay out of trouble long enough. Rates do vary by state, and locality.

If you want to have really good rates, drive older cars. Cars hold up so well now it just doesn't make sense to purchase a new one. Taxes, insurance, and the new car price are killers.

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Bottom line, if you can't afford the insurance on the car you want or have, better get a different vehicle. Always check the coverage costs before buying a vehicle. That's one of the biggest mistakes our young service members make.

Thank you, QM!! How many times did we look down the pier at the SA, 6 months out of boot camp, pulling up in the new sports car? They live on board, have no real expenses and think, "Hey, why not?".

Even when I was young and stupid I knew that the kind of vehicle I drove dictated the cost of my coverage. If you're under 25 in a sport coupe, you'll pay through the nose. I had a 4-door sedan that got me from point-A to point-B. It wasn't fancy, but I was U/W six months of the year anyway. When I had inport libo, I'd have gladly driven a tractor to get off base!

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