Congress eyes massive insurance hike

Costs going up and rates keep going down.
Pretty soon we'll be doing work for free!

 

Simple math…it don’t matter when it was last raised..raising it that much equates to gouging..

 

Regarding the whole foreigner thing, I agree, some make good business owners, and if they attain full citizenship, read, write, and communicate in fluent English I have no problem with them chasing the dream. But work visas and any other type of gov't red tape that allows them to work here I'll take a pass. If the #### hits the fan they simply retreat back to their country, without consequences, never to be seen or heard from again. Another thing is the FMCSA is a lazy agency. Instead of getting to the root of the industries problems, they put band aids on things hoping the problems will go away, regulation after regulation hoping eventually one will do the trick, even when the people out here actually doing the job day in & day out are more than willing to give them the proper guidance they need they just go right ahead and set forth new regulations despite the pushback from the industry. They need to look at themselves for the shape we're in right now. This isn't a case of a few bad apples, we've got bunches, playing demolition derby in the snow, following their GPS out to the beach, hitting low bridges, the industry could be safer if it educated itself more. Someone has to because the 4 wheelers sure aren't going to. My 32 years as a CDL holder have no accidents or claims attached to it and I am thankful to get my super great insurance rate every year, I have earned it by being responsible and a professional. Doesn't that mean anything anymore?

 

I don't think we should derail this post with who is driving our trucks, but with all these crashes, why, I bet one is happening right now, and all the trucks askew, like it or not, they do the most damage, it was just a matter of time, SOMEBODY has to pay for all that carnage. The 4 wheeler, that may have caused the mess? Not bloody likely, and why is that? To me, and probably 95% of folks involved in those crashes, have every right to blame the trucker that plowed into them. Professionals just don't do that sort of thing. In my time, that was unacceptable, rarely, if ever saw it, and be drummed out of the business if that happened. There's little or no consequence, "oh, insurance will cover it, I can drive unsafely, and I'm still covered". A few posts back, someone said they got hit by a trucker that had no insurance. I think, if this goes through, you'll see more of that, exasberating the issue, and anything short of total control will be the only option. I only hope I'm gone by then.

 

If they want to raise minimums for trucks then they should raise across the board. Auto policies should increase in case they are at fault in a large accident. And there should be a system in place so that if they don’t have insurance their tag gets flagged and can be picked up by plate readers. Most states don’t even require proof of insurance to get tags anymore because they know people were just cancelling it later anyway.

 

I beg to differ, all but 2 states , New Hampshire and W. VA. don't require insurance for a license tag, but all others do. It's easily found by the LEO in their cruiser, and face a $1,000 fine in CO. I believe if you cancel the ins. after getting a license, the state knows all about it.

 

They do? Because the only place I’ve lived that required actual proof was Hawaii. Montana didn’t ask for proof. South Dakota didn’t ask for proof. Nebraska didn’t ask me for proof. My experience has been pay the fee and get the tag no questions asked. Being able to sell me, a policy holder, uninsured or underinsured motorist protection shouldn’t even be an option. If they’re going to crack down on insurance then let’s crack down on insurance. If trucks need $5mil just in case then autos should be $2mil just in case.

 

Nebraska absolutely DOES require proof of insurance!

 

Let's take the 4 wheelers out of it. How much does it cost to recover a truck that laid itself down in the ditch because he was driving too fast for conditions? Should the State be responsible for covering those costs?

And let's not forget these guys:




https://krcrtv.com/news/local/semi-truck-crashes-into-us-bank-in-burney

Putney credit union closed after truck hits drive-thru canopy

Semi driver fainted before crashing into Wisconsin home

And I haven't even gotten to bridge strikes.

 

This is all coming from the most powerful lobbying group in this hemisphere, the trial lawyers lobbyists.