Please email (
) if you are a good driver and don't have the best credit score. Also keep in mind that according the Consumer Reports even people with good credit can end up with a low insurance score. (Consumer Reports) Please support us in passing measure 42. It will NOT increase your rates as insurance companies claim. On the contrary it will lower your rates if you are a good driver.
WCCO News 6 Minnesota
Eleanor Cedergren recently realized that when comparing a recent statement with some of her friends.
"I thought it was ridiculous. I'm paying $468 every six months," she said.
That's a $100 more than the average Minnesota driver, which may not sound like a big deal until you consider what she drives.
"I drive a 1991 Pontiac 6000," said Cedergren.
Farmers Insurance said Eleanor has every possible discount -- for being a senior citizen, passing a defensive driving course, for being accident-free, bundling her home and car under one policy and for her good credit. Cedergren said her agent told her it was a lack of credit that was costing her.
Cedergren's home and car are paid for and she has no credit cards.
She said she was told her costs are higher because her credit "report comes up as incomplete and so then they slap this 10 percent charge on. I'm paying more than people with a good credit rating, when I think my credit rating is as good as anybody's, it's just that I don't use credit cards."
I was a victim of insurance credit scoring
I was a victim of insurance credit scoring. I knew nothing of this practice when it occurred and not satisfied with the answers from my agent, I went looking for the information myself. What I found was appalling.
Following a reinstatement by my insurance company, I decided that no one should go through this frustrating process without answers - so I do my best to give them to you. My website is a compilation of that research and an attempt to make insurance consumers aware of this practice and how the industry has come to abuse it.
Explore this site, and my site, and learn of this practice. If you have been victimized, share your story. Then Get Involved!!
The insurance industry is not going to abandon this practice voluntarily, it is up to the insurance consumer to make the industry and our legislators aware that this biased and discriminatory practice will not be tolerated.
Why I Support Measure 42
Denise Subramaniam
Three years ago I was laid off from my software engineering position. I wasn't alone. A lot of high tech workers have lost their jobs in Oregon over the past few years. As a matter of fact, so many of us were laid off that competition is high and finding another job in the industry in the Portland area is not easy, especially for those of us who are older.
Over a year of unemployment helped me decide to refinance my house, take out some equity and start my own business. It's tough being a small business owner. I learned the hard way that you need a lot more money than I had to make a go of it.
I was just scraping by when a client I was working for went bankrupt owing me over $5,000. Shortly after that I lost a large project because the sub-contractors I hired in India didn't deliver. I fell behind in my mortgage and all my other bills. Needless to say my credit score plummeted. I'm still struggling to get back on my feet.
I've been driving for over 30 years. I've been in two accidents in all that time, one over 25 years ago and one over four years ago, and neither were my fault. I have no moving traffic violations. I am not a risky driver. I'm a good driver and I do not feel I should be punished with higher insurance rates just because I am facing financial difficulties. Higher insurance rates are only going to add additional burden to an already difficult situation.
What happened to me can happen to anyone. Do you think all the 1000 plus Intel employees recently laid off in Oregon will find work at the same pay they were earning? Not likely.
I can't believe people could fall for the insurance company ads, but the power of television is great. The insurance companies have the big bucks to pay for those ads, and you can bet are they not paying because voting no on measure 42 will help you or me. They want more of our money. They want to increase their profits.
When I saw the news story, Whistleblowers Say State Farm Cheated Katrina Victims, ABC aired on how State Farm Insurance supervisors systematically demanded that Hurricane Katrina damage reports be buried or replaced or changed so that the company would not have to pay policyholders' claims, I felt sick.
The insurance industry has way too much power and control over our lives already. They are the primary cause for the high health care costs in the U.S. As a small business owner with a low income, I'm one of the over 40 million Americans who are uninsured.
My sister used to work for the board of education and was a city counsel member for a number of years in her community. She said that the first item discussed at budget meetings was insurance because it was their biggest expense.
I can remember when having automobile insurance was elective. I paid $20/month for full insurance coverage on my car. I was living in New York at the time, one of the first states to make auto insurance legally mandatory. Immediately after the law passed my insurance went up to $50/month. Now minimal coverage on my 1988 Honda Accord costs $145/month.
Insurance companies are already making record profits. Read this Los Angeles Times artical: Insurance Companies Made a Record $44.8 Billion in 2005; Increased Industry Surplus by More than $427 Billion. Let's not give the insurance companies more profit.
I feel so angry when I hear those deceptive ads on TV.
The ads they sponsor say "Measure 42 sounded good until I looked into it." The fact is they hope you will not look into it and just take their word for it. They are counting on you being a couch potato and not making any effort to do research yourself. If you google on insurance and credit scores, you'll find information provided by the insurance industry is the ONLY information in favor of insurers using consumer credit scores to determine insurance rates. Let's show the insurance companies that Oregonians are smarter than that!
I urge you to help us pass measure 42.
