When to drop collision coverage?

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JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
29,391
2,738
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2005 Mazda3i, 165k miles

got my 6month insurance bill: $425 (Northern VA)
$125 of that is collision ($250 deductible)

At what point should you drop collision?

Thread necro.
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rommelrommel

Diamond Member
Dec 7, 2002
4,426
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When the idea of the car becoming worth scrap value if you make a serious mistake while driving isn't a big deal to you anymore.

I have the best possible collision rates so I think I'd have collision on any vehicle worth more than 5 grand or so. Guess it's relative to your rates tho.
 

Zivic

Diamond Member
Nov 25, 2002
3,505
38
91
2005 Mazda3i, 165k miles

got my 6month insurance bill: $425 (Northern VA)
$125 of that is collision ($250 deductible)

At what point should you drop collision?

when you can "afford" to take the loss.

I measured it objectively and it was when the collision premium for 3 years + my deductible was greater than the value of the car.

so by my makeshift logic:
(125 x 6) + 250 = $1000. rough run through on NADA puts your car at 4500 - 6500. I could stand to afford a 5 grand loss, but considering it is only costing you 250/yr I would continue to carry the coverage
 
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kitatech

Senior member
Jan 7, 2013
484
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OP:
You're paying 250/yr to cover your car that's worth about $5000...that's about 5%/yr....that seems reasonable considering a rear-ended car might easily cost more than $3500 to be repaired and would likely be totaled by the insurance company...they total a car that costs about 75% of value to repair....that how it went with my rear-end totaled Altima...

This is a good reminder that if you're considering that down the road, it might be good to start putting about $30/mo in an account @ 100k miles for when the car gets past 150k miles when you might want to drop the collision....after that the $250/yr you don't spend on collision (and gets put into that savings account) must cover you for another 4 years....alternatively...
...if you already have $1,500 (+$250 deductible) @ 100k miles in an account and can get through 4 years post 100k miles without needing collision, you've "covered" yourself post-150k miles....

If you have a couple of thousand dollars in an account now that you can put (as a downpayment) into a replacement car if the Mazda is totaled I guess you can drop collision.

If you don't have that money, and if you're not sure you can save that money securely, then you should pay the insurance company for collision in advance for that security...

Another suggestion...at this point save receipts for major repairs because if the car is totaled, major expenses made within the year prior to the car being totaled may be reimbursed all or in part by the insurance company.
 
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SparkyJJO

Lifer
May 16, 2002
13,357
7
81
Calculated risk.

First off, do you own the car? If you owe anything on the car most auto loans require you to have full coverage.

If you hit someone and total your car, can you afford to replace it? If so, it may not be worth spending the money. If not, then keep spending the $250 a year.

I carry collision on my 02 Trailblazer with 180k miles. I own it outright, title in my name, etc. I cannot afford to buy a replacement 100% cash. With the money I do have saved and what they'd give me if I did total it, I could. Therefore, the extra bit I pay each year is currently worth it.

If you drove a $500 beater I wouldn't carry collision on something like that :p But any reasonably decent vehicle that would cost a few thousand to replace, yes. Just my opinion.

I didn't used to carry collision "because I couldn't afford it" and I realize now how stupid that was. If I thought I couldn't afford collision coverage, how could I afford to fix or replace the car if I had hit someone?
 

Fenixgoon

Lifer
Jun 30, 2003
33,021
12,374
136
depends on how much your car is worth. assuming it's even worth $5k, you'd have to forgo collision for a long time before you'd make up the difference if something happened to your car.

i'd just up your collision. changing it to $500 or $1000 might make a big difference.
 

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
29,391
2,738
126
thx all for your replies!

bought the car outright, no loan.
i can afford to cover a $5k repair. heck, i could have covered a $15k repair when i bought it new. but the cost benefit of collision insurance on a new car was a no brainer.

now 8yrs later, its not as clear cut.

Zivic - thx for the formula! thats exactly what i was looking for.
 

Jimzz

Diamond Member
Oct 23, 2012
4,399
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How old are you, any tickets, bad credit???
I have 3 cars in NoVA and pay about what you do. 2 have full insurance the 3rd, a 73 Chevy, only has liability.

We shop around a lot. Just dropped Geico again and went to eSurance. When the last time you shopped?
 

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
29,391
2,738
126
How old are you, any tickets, bad credit???
I have 3 cars in NoVA and pay about what you do. 2 have full insurance the 3rd, a 73 Chevy, only has liability.

We shop around a lot. Just dropped Geico again and went to eSurance. When the last time you shopped?

no tix in past 5yrs, 800+ fico
have home/auto discount.

last shopped around 2yrs ago. got them to lower insurace $75/6months by showing them other quotes.
auto has only gone up $25/6months in that 2yrs. homeowners is the same.
 

Vetterin

Senior member
Aug 31, 2004
973
0
71
If you just want to lower your payment up your deductible to $500 or $1000. The difference should offset the higher out of pocket in a few short years.
 

kitatech

Senior member
Jan 7, 2013
484
3
81
I asked about raising my deductible from $250 to $500....<$5/mo...stayed with $250
 

Vdubchaos

Lifer
Nov 11, 2009
10,408
10
0
Just to give you example

We have 3 cars. 99 Passat (not using it at the moment), 2000 MPV (113k) and 2001 Protege (70k)

All of our cars MIGHT be worth 2-4k (on a good day).

It's not worth for me to get collision coverage on ANY of these cars. We have never been in an accident that was our fault and even if it happens 2-4k is not a big deal.

Our insurance rate is about 1/2 the price of collision (maybe little less).

To us, it's not worth it.

Remember, you have to evaluate how much your car is worth, how much extra you will pay....deductible and your driving history/risk.

All of these play a big role.
 

T2urtle

Diamond Member
Oct 18, 2004
3,432
3
81
I looked at prices of bumping it $500 and $1000 deduct. Remember to do that for both Collision and Comprehensive.

for $250 a year, I would consider dropping it when the car becomes around $2000, which is a VERY long time from now. You never know when a deer or animal might want to cross the road.
 

cbrsurfr

Golden Member
Jul 15, 2000
1,686
1
81
My friends mom recently dropped full coverage on her 99 F150 to save money (couple hundred a year). She backed into the house ~2000 in damage and 2 weeks later hit a deer for another 2500 in damage. Cost her 4500 to save a couple hundred.

I probably wouldn't have fixed all of it, just enough to make it road legal again.

I would not drop full coverage on a car I'm dependent on day to day.
 

cbrsurfr

Golden Member
Jul 15, 2000
1,686
1
81
2005 Mazda3i, 165k miles

got my 6month insurance bill: $425 (Northern VA)
$125 of that is collision ($250 deductible)

At what point should you drop collision?

How old are you? You may need to shop around.

I pay $272 for 6 months $0 comp / $250 coll on a 2008 VW GTI. 100,000/300,000/100,000 with 5000 medical @ State Farm. I changed it from 250 comp / 500 coll because it was only 10 more for 6 months.
 

Vetterin

Senior member
Aug 31, 2004
973
0
71
yup, same here. save $5 :(
Maybe you got the wrong insurance co.
One of the best ways to save money on auto insurance is also one of the easiest: raise your insurance deductible! In fact, increasing your insurance deductibles from $250 to $1,000 could reduce your comprehensive and collision premium by as much as 40 percent.*
 
Aug 23, 2000
15,509
1
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Something you need to consider when dropping full coverage to just collision is will you keep medical coverage for yourself or your passengers?
Having had an accident that was 100% the other drivers fault, it's not a slam dunk to get their insurance to cover your bills. I racked up $10K in medical bills real quick and I still haven't seen a dime from the other insurance company.
 
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