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It won’t be big news for car owners saying that some cars are just too good to not get stolen every now and then. To our regret, car theft is something that happens in our country on a regular basis, and those who do it have particular tastes and interests when tracking down their victims. In some cases there’s even a hunt for particular car makes and models, which makes insurance providers adjust their rates accordingly. Who wants to insure a car for cheap when it’s very likely to be stolen, right?

According to the 2009 National Insurance Crime Bureau, the following are the top 10 most commonly stolen cars in the US:

1. ‘94 Honda Accord
2. ‘95 Honda Civic
3. ‘91 Toyota Camry
4. ‘97 Ford F-150 Pickup
5. ‘04 Dodge Ram Pickup
6. ‘00 Dodge Caravan
7. ‘94 Full Size Chevrolet Pickup
8. ‘94 Acura Integra
9. ‘02 Ford Explorer
10. ‘09 Toyota Corolla

These are the average national rankings, which vary from state to state. For example, in southern states there’s a particular interest in ‘95 full-size Chevrolet pickups, while the northern car thieves prefer ‘00 Dodge Caravans. In general, the ‘90 import cars seem to be very popular targets for car thefts. There are many reasons for this, including their affordable prices and in many cases the possibilities of tuning, which are highly appreciated among car enthusiast who often don’t even suspect that they are buying a stolen car for such a low price. Still, some newer models show their wide popularity among the population, which is reflected bizarrely through higher theft rates.

How these statistics reflect in car insurance quotes and rates? Well, insurance providers simply tend to set higher rates when seeing vehicles with high theft rates even if other factors such as engine volume, top speed, age and sex of the driver, his credibility and driving record are good in general. This is done to assure that the insurance company is getting the payment for taking the risk of insuring a particular vehicle, which is of course higher when dealing with car from the list above. (more…)

We all are well aware of the fact that auto insurance is a legal requirement, and you’re obliged to carry the minimum amount of coverage in order to drive a car in a particular state. It usually depends on the state the car is registered in and respectfully where it gets its plates. But what many of you would really like to know is what will happen if you get caught without having auto insurance? This is especially interesting for those who are looking forward to drop their insurance coverage and take the risk of driving while being uncovered.

The Insurance Information Institute tells that the penalty for driving without auto insurance coverage depends on the state you’re licensed in, as the laws vary across all states and the percentage of uninsured drivers is different too. For example, Massachusetts drivers who choose to not get auto insurance and get caught usually face fines between $500 and $5,000 and can even get up to one year prison sentence. In a set of other states including Florida, Louisiana, Connecticut and New Jersey, you won’t be able to get the car licensed without meeting the state minimums. And if you drop coverage afterwards and get caught, your car will simply get impounded, and it will cost you a lot of money and time to get it out.

So, before you decide driving without auto insurance, first makes sure to learn what are your state minimums and the penalties for not complying with them. The best source of information on the matter is your state insurance department or the department of motor vehicles.

But in any case, driving without auto insurance in not the smartest thing to do. Even if you won’t get caught by the police, ending up in a serious accident will cost you much more in out of pocket expenses than you would pay for insurance coverage. Sure, some of you may say they can’t afford having costly auto insurance. But who said that it has to be expensive anyway? (more…)