Resolved Question - Auto Insurance New York

What is the most popular and best auto insurance broker in NYC? Any recommendations? What is the advantage?

By best, I mean the lowest priced rate they can come up with. What is the advantage I get going to a broker instead of directly going to a popular auto insurance company? Thanks a lot.

Additional Details
I live in Bronx, NY, work in Manhattan and I have a 2000 Toyota RAV4.

Answer:

The best thing to do is to ask friends & colleagues who they use for their insurance. If you have a tenants or co-op policy, go to that company first. Travellers is a good company and used to have decent rates in NY. I was from NJ & one of my insureds moved to Manhattan & his rate went down with Travellers. They work through independent agents. Look in the phone book under insurance & start calling. You don't necessarily want the cheapest rate (remember you get what you pay for), you want the best coverage for your situation. You want a good company that will be there to help you if you have a claim. Good luck to you. If I were still in the area, I may have known someone but unfortunately, I am not anymore.

Resolved Question - Auto Insurance New York

What is the most popular and best auto insurance broker in NYC? Any recommendations? What is the advantage?

By best, I mean the lowest priced rate they can come up with. What is the advantage I get going to a broker instead of directly going to a popular auto insurance company? Thanks a lot.

Additional Details
I live in Bronx, NY, work in Manhattan and I have a 2000 Toyota RAV4.

Answer:

The best thing to do is to ask friends & colleagues who they use for their insurance. If you have a tenants or co-op policy, go to that company first. Travellers is a good company and used to have decent rates in NY. I was from NJ & one of my insureds moved to Manhattan & his rate went down with Travellers. They work through independent agents. Look in the phone book under insurance & start calling. You don't necessarily want the cheapest rate (remember you get what you pay for), you want the best coverage for your situation. You want a good company that will be there to help you if you have a claim. Good luck to you. If I were still in the area, I may have known someone but unfortunately, I am not anymore.

Where the Worst Drivers Live

The worst drivers in America live in New York. Of course, you knew that. You've been in the Holland Tunnel. But now, we have proof.

GMAC Insurance has released the results of its National Drivers Test for 2009. The test, which measures basic knowledge of driving laws, was given to more than 5,000 drivers from all 50 states and the District of Columbia -- and New Yorkers finished last. Last year's loser, New Jersey, improved its score just enough to leap over New York. Hawaii, California and Georgia rounded out the bottom five.

Idaho and Wisconsin drivers tied for the highest average score, with an 80.6.

The point of the test, of course, is not just to confirm what anyone who's tried to merge onto the Thruway already knew. It's to measure how much we know about safe driving. And the news isn't good.

In a press release, GMAC explains, "Results from the 2009 GMAC Insurance National Drivers Test released today found that 20.1 percent of licensed Americans - amounting to roughly 41 million drivers on the road - would not pass a written drivers test exam if taken today." Most of us have trouble, according to the results, with "questions about yellow lights and safe following distances."

The survey has been given for five years. The average score has fluctuated up and down during that time, but this year it is down - 76.6 percent versus last year's 78.1.

GMAC notes, "In general, geographical regions ranked similarly to previous years, with the lowest average test scores in the Northeast, while the states in the Midwest held the highest averages. When comparing genders, men are still more likely to pass the test than women, but the gap is considerably smaller in 2009 (81 percent of males versus 79 percent of females) than in 2008 (87 percent of males versus 80 percent of females)."

And, "The older the driver, the higher the test score." Drivers over 35 were more likely to pass than those under 35, while men over 45 posted the highest scores, and "the age group with the highest failure rates was young adults (18 to 24 years old)."

Curious how you'd do? Take the test yourself at nationaldriverstest.com. When you're finished, GMAC will even let you play a video game that teaches you how to avoid elderly people and aliens in the roadway (no, we're not kidding).

State Rankings

Note: Many states tied for the same position in the rankings.
1 IDAHO
1 WISCONSIN
3 MONTANA
4 KANSAS
5 SOUTH DAKOTA
5 NEBRASKA
7 UTAH
8 WYOMING
8 IOWA
8 OREGON
8 MINNESOTA
12 ALASKA
12 NORTH DAKOTA
14 VERMONT
15 COLORADO
15 MISSOURI
17 OKLAHOMA
17 WASHINGTON
19 NEW MEXICO
20 NORTH CAROLINA
21 VIRGINIA
22 INDIANA
22 MICHIGAN
24 ARKANSAS
24 TEXAS
26 ALABAMA
26 NEVADA
28 WEST VIRGINIA
29 ILLINOIS
30 ARIZONA
31 MAINE
32 DELAWARE
33 NEW HAMPSHIRE
34 OHIO
35 KENTUCKY
36 PENNSYLVANIA
37 LOUISIANA
38 TENNESSEE
38 MISSISSIPPI
40 SOUTH CAROLINA
40 MARYLAND
42 CONNECTICUT
43 FLORIDA
44 DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
45 MASSACHUSETTS
46 RHODE ISLAND
47 GEORGIA
48 CALIFORNIA
49 HAWAII
50 NEW JERSEY
51 NEW YORK

How many states in the US are 'No-fault' states?

Answer :

12 states and Puerto Rico have no-fault auto insurance laws. Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania have verbal thresholds. The other seven states ' Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Dakota and Utah' use a monetary threshold. Three states have a "choice" no-fault law. In New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Kentucky, motorists may reject the lawsuit threshold and retain the right to sue for any auto-related injury. Colorado's law reverted back to the tort liability system in July 2003.