car insurance

Your job and education could be determining your car insurance rate

I went online last week to get a car insurance quote from Mercury Insurance. I went through the process twice, once listing my occupation as engineer.

All the rest of the information was the same — my age, address, driving record, car make — but as an engineer, I was given a lower monthly rate: $247.88 instead of $262.88 and a potential yearly savings of $179.89.

My price comparison experiment was inspired by a petition filed July 18 by Consumer Watchdog, a taxpayer and consumer advocacy group, protesting Mercury Insurance Co.’s request to the California Department of Insurance to bump up its auto rates.

Mercury Insurance, a major car insurance provider in California, is asking to raise its rates on customers by 6.9%, or $131 million.

But a major factor that underlies Consumer Watchdog’s demand for a public hearing on the proposal is its claim that Mercury’s rates are not only “excessive” but “unfairly discriminatory.”

“It’s an issue that we have been fighting for many years to rectify in California where insurance companies have been illegally surcharging folks based on arbitrary job categories,” Consumer Watchdog Executive Director Carmen Balber told me.

In 1988, Californians passed Proposition 103,

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How to Find Someone’s Insurance Info

  • You can find auto insurance information through the police, DMV, or through your own insurer. 
  • In some cases, you’ll have to use your own coverage to pay for vehicle repairs.
  • There are some circumstances where you won’t be able to file a third-party claim, even if you aren’t at fault.

Accidents can result in thousands of dollars in medical bills and repairs. Fortunately, insurance is available so you can recoup the costs. If you’re hurt or your car is damaged in an accident that’s someone else’s fault, you can often file a claim with that person’s insurance company. 

While getting someone’s insurance information at the scene is ideal, it may not always be possible. If you’re involved in a hit-and-run, or the at-fault party refuses to cooperate, there are ways you can protect yourself. 

How to get someone’s car insurance information

While frustrating, there are some actions you can take if someone you’re involved in an accident with is uncooperative. You can request help from the police, contact the DMV, or work with your provider to find out who the at-fault party’s insurer is, says Anastasia Allmon, a personal injury attorney at Farris, Riley and Pitt

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Carjackings on the rise; make sure your auto insurance has you covered

“Basic, standard auto policies might not have theft coverage — you have to specify it.”

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“Latest Vaughan carjacking caught on doorbell camera.”

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“Arrests made in alleged violent Oakville carjacking.”

“Pair faces 100 charges after 10 Toronto-area carjackings.”

“Gunpoint carjacking in Burlington neighbourhood.”

When Maple Leaf Mitch Marner had his SUV stolen at gunpoint one evening in May outside a local movie theatre, it put a very public face on a crime that seemed to have exploded overnight. It’s not just here. Like the GTA, places like New York City are also reporting a dramatic increase in the often-violent thefts. By the time Marner was relieved of his Range Rover, Toronto police said they’d already reached 2021’s yearly total, not even six months into 2022.

Could it happen to you? If you drive a vehicle that shows up on

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