Tough times lead consumers to cutting out the luxuries. Tougher times mean that we all start looking at cutting necessities in order to get by. I imagine that some consumers will look at lowering insurance costs by going bare or reducing auto coverage. Here are some things that Oregon consumers need to know about cutting auto coverage.

1. It’s a Class B offense to drive uninsured: Pretty simple. The act of driving without insurance is a traffic offense. ORS 806.010.

2. If you’re in a traffic accident and you’re uninsured, you’re subject to drivers license suspension for a year.

3. In a heaping-it-on-the-poor move, the Oregon Legislature made it clear that if you’re uninsured and you’re in an auto accident, you can’t recover non-ecomic damages. That’s true regardless of whether you were at fault.  ORS 31.715

4. Excess coverage is usually much cheaper than the first level of insurance. So your insurance dollars actually go a long way when you are buying coverage over the minimum.

In tough times, it can be hard to make the best decisions. Driving uninsured is really unwise. One way to think about it is that insurance–like gas, car payments, and maintenance–are part of the true cost of driving.  So if you’re looking at cost cutting, unless you’re getting rid of the car, don’t cut the insurance.

David Sugerman

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