California Agents May Get More Calls From Uninsured Motorists
West News • December 14, 2006
Insurance agents who sell personal lines in California might be getting more calls than usual from consumers seeking auto insurance, now that the state is cracking down on uninsured motorists. ...
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Subject: RE: CA UIM
Posted On: December 14, 2006, 3:05 pm CST
Posted By: Umpiire
Comment:
It appears the comments have gotten off the point of the article... so if I may, I'd like to go back to the article for my points...
Something about States and uninsured drivers I've never quite understood: it seems to be OK to charge vehicle registration taxes, but not OK to force insurance? The reality is, if you do not pay for one, you cannot get a license plate.
UIM is therefore, in my view, patently simple. To get a plate, you pay for the State taxation, and you pay for the insurance minimum limits. If you don't, the State takes the plate off your car. They own the plate -- you don't. The cost to come take your plate away from you is then charged to you, if indeed you cannot prove that you had the insurance on the vehicle when they "repossessed" that plate.
Computer reporting is a wonderful thing. In many States, officer car computers have direct hookup to this information. When they come across one without insurance, they get out their screwdriver and take the plate -- which is deposited at the local DMV office at the end of the day, where you can retreive it the next, if you really get the insurance. Again, your ticket pays for this State service.
So we have ease of doing it, and direct cost application. Don't have an insurance agent or way to get insurance?... simple, have the DMV offices have insurance sales kiosks on site for minimum limits coverage, which spits out an ID card on the spot.
If the State won't tolerate not paying for the vehicle registration / plate taxation... then they have no business tolerating the failure of minimum limits insurance that is also within the same statute book.
West News 
Subject: RE: CA UIM
Something about States and uninsured drivers I've never quite understood: it seems to be OK to charge vehicle registration taxes, but not OK to force insurance? The reality is, if you do not pay for one, you cannot get a license plate.
UIM is therefore, in my view, patently simple. To get a plate, you pay for the State taxation, and you pay for the insurance minimum limits. If you don't, the State takes the plate off your car. They own the plate -- you don't. The cost to come take your plate away from you is then charged to you, if indeed you cannot prove that you had the insurance on the vehicle when they "repossessed" that plate.
Computer reporting is a wonderful thing. In many States, officer car computers have direct hookup to this information. When they come across one without insurance, they get out their screwdriver and take the plate -- which is deposited at the local DMV office at the end of the day, where you can retreive it the next, if you really get the insurance. Again, your ticket pays for this State service.
So we have ease of doing it, and direct cost application. Don't have an insurance agent or way to get insurance?... simple, have the DMV offices have insurance sales kiosks on site for minimum limits coverage, which spits out an ID card on the spot.
If the State won't tolerate not paying for the vehicle registration / plate taxation... then they have no business tolerating the failure of minimum limits insurance that is also within the same statute book.