Know the Gaps before and after winter and save!
Accidents do not discriminate, and eventually each of us ends up in one because we are not prepared for it. Well you might say how does one prepare for an accident? My might also suggest that I am crazy for suggesting that you prepare for an accident, because you are not going to be likely party who is at fault and you have insurance to protect yourself and your vehicle.
When I ask: Are you prepared? I am suggesting that you look at the things which will protect you and your vehicle.
Mechanically, you should get the brakes and tires inspected and replaced if they are bad or not adequate. All brakes and tires are not created equal and when they are tested by the elements, they don’t perform in the same manner. Investing in a better quality brakes would allow them to perform at their best when you actually need them to perform. A good set of tires such as the Nokian WRG3 
In my business I see so many individual who are not prepared to be in accident, and when they are they expect the repair shop to save them money they are not prepared to spend. I really think the first thing you should look at before winter is who you have purchased your policy from and what kind of coverage you have? The saying of ” being penny wise and pound foolish” comes to mind in this situation. I have individuals who would come to get a car repaired because of an accident. They would like to get it repaired, but not completely, because they don’t have money to repair the car. They purchased liability insurance only or purchased a high deductible policy on a vehicle which is valued at $5000. This $5000 car is a good runner and has been very dependable, and cannot be replaced for $5000 if they needed to replace it. Now an accident has happened, which may have been or may not be their fault, but the vehicle has sustained damages over $2000 dollars which they don’t have.
At this point it is very difficult to find out that they were not prepared. It is even more difficult to find out after an accident, that full coverage would have cost less than a dollar a day and lowering the deductible to $250 from $500 might be $6 dollars more per month.
The mechanical issues can be corrected at any time, but once you are involved in an accident, you cannot go back an change your policy. Check with your company to see what your deductible is, and how much more it is going to cost you to go to a $250 deductible. In most instance, as in my example, it is not very much.
Purchasing liability insurance alone is not a good idea, because when there is a doubt as to who is at fault, the determination is that the cause is no-fault and both parties are blamed equally. Ask yourself, do have the money to repair your car or replace your car if was to be stolen. Most working vehicles can reasonably be valued between two and three thousand dollars. I know that I don’t have that kind of money to throw away. Spending a little more money to protect my investment. Good running vehicles at a reasonable price are hard to find and even harder to replace.
Shop around for insurance and bundle with a home or apartment policy to save money. All insurance company are not created equal. They all follow two different strategy to increase their earnings. The first group will charge a fair premium and provide and repair you vehicle according to the terms of the policy, the latter group, will charge a lower premium, but try every way to not to repair your vehicle and even total your vehicle. Paying your less for your vehicle than you have invested.
The insurance companies have created the gaps in the insurance to reduce what they have to pay. Farmers says, “Know the Gaps.”more so before winter. It is better that you do know the gaps before an accident, where you can make an educated choice, because after an accident your are stuck! Be proactive instead of reactive, look at your needs before have a need for my services. It is very difficult to assist a customer to get back on the road, because they failed to plan for their needs. It is even more difficult to understand, that there is an expectation that the repair shop is there to help them out because of their lack of planning. Individuals do not like to hear the plain truth, if you don’t purchase adequate coverage or put the money you have saved from not purchasing adequate coverage.
Expect to loose that vehicle once you have been in an accident. Therefore don’t leave cash on the table, where someone can take it from you and you can’t do a darn thing about it.
