Cost Of Insurance & Wrecks
Its a proven fact: Safe drivers cost less to insure. How does an auto insurance
company know that youre a safe driver? By your driving record. Unfortunately, when
youre a new driver, you have no record. Its impossible for anyone to know how well
youre going to drive. Youre going to have to take it day by day, drive by drive.
Number of tickets Chance
of crashing next year
1 1.6 times more likely
2 2.2 times more likely
3 2.5 times more likely
4 3.1 times more likely
5 3.5 times more likely
Life on the real
road story - The
cost of speeding
High school junior Matt Gulyas thought he was cool. Driving a borrowed convertible
at 80 mph on a sunny day, he was feeling great. The car was handling the road curves
smoothly, and Matt was confident he could edge the speedometer up a notch or two.
Ready... Earlier that day, when Matt begged his friend, Andrea,
to let him drive her new convertible, she hesitated. Her father told her not to
let Matt get behind the wheel. The car was her pride and joy, and cost a great deal
of money. Her dad knew Matt was a fun-loving kind of guy. If that car got wrecked,
shed have a lot to pay.
Set... Matt knew the value of money. Through hard work after school
and on weekends, he saved quite a bit of cash. He planned to spend it on a car,
a trip, some cool stuff, college, whatever. It made him feel good to know it was
there. He counted on it. The cash was part of his future. A very important part.
Experienced drivers know to expect the unexpected. Most new drivers have only been
told about dangerous situations, but they have not had to face them. Theyve heard
about what can happen when bad driving decisions are made, but they havent lived
through the consequences.
Even so, it doesnt take long for a new driver to feel experienced and believe they
can successfully negotiate the unexpected when it happens. The trouble is, if a
situation is unexpected, how can any driver really be prepared to expect it? The
trick is having the know-how to predict what could possibly go wrong, and doing
everything to avoid a tragic outcome.
GO! ... Matt was nearing a dip in the road and pushing the pedal
to the metal to make a big jump on the rebound. Suddenly, a car turned onto the
road ahead, directly in front of him. Not wanting to slow down, Matt shifted to
the left lane to pass, and gunned the engine.
Matt quickly closed in to pass the slower car, and then the unexpected happened:
The car made a left turn directly in front of him. Matts foot hit the brake pedal
instantly, but it didnt matter. He smashed into the car and the force pushed them
both off the road.
The slamming crunch of metal and the squeal of rubber was earsplitting. Matt didnt
think about it then, but when everything came to a halt a few seconds later, he
realized all his hard-earned money had been completely spent.
Luckily, neither Matt nor the other driver were seriously hurt. The police arrived
and informed Matt that he could be charged with assault with a deadly weapon, as
well as reckless driving and speeding. As Matt stood by the twisted hunk of metal
that used to be his friends car, all he could think of was, How am I going to tell
her that her dad was right?
The other driver decided not to press assault charges, but Matt did receive a citation
from the officer. The fine was not small, but it was nothing in comparison to what
he ended up paying. Matts parents insisted that he pay for his friends car, as well
as the repair of the car he hit - a total of $6,500. His plans for the future went
up in smoke, bent metal and burnt rubber. The cost for a few seconds of fun and
speed? An empty bank account and a ruined friendship. How cool is that?