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skycat
10/5/2006, 09:45 AM
My wife's car caught on fire yesterday while she was in San Antonio on business. She said she was just driving along when her car started making funny noises, and then the motor quit. She pulled over to the side of the road and got out. At that point she noticed something on fire under the car.

It turns out the starter motor spontaneously combusted.

The car had a bunch of miles on it, and with this damage it doesn't make too much sense to fix it. The good news is, we get to buy a new car!

Yay! Car payments!!

NormanPride
10/5/2006, 09:51 AM
Does insurance cover mysterious car fires?

Tailwind
10/5/2006, 09:52 AM
Glad she wasn't hurt or anything.

mdklatt
10/5/2006, 09:53 AM
Does insurance cover mysterious car fires?

Probably not if it's due to a mechanical malfunction.

Bourbon St Sooner
10/5/2006, 09:56 AM
Last year, my car burned on the side of I-35, near Davis. Apparently the right rear speaker shorted and caught fire. We were able to pull over and get out, but once those seats caught on fire that thing went up quick. Thanks, Chrysler.

Oh yeah, that was about 2 weeks after Katrina flooded my house. What a month!

Bourbon St Sooner
10/5/2006, 09:57 AM
Insurance covers it if you have comprehensive.

skycat
10/5/2006, 10:00 AM
Glad she wasn't hurt or anything.

Obviously that's the for reals good news.

Anyway, no insurance doesn't cover this. Unless we can prove another motorist collided with said starter motor causing the fire, without denting the body.

Mjcpr
10/5/2006, 10:07 AM
So insurance doesn't cover the loss of your car if it catches on fire?

Is it because you didn't carry comprehensive? I'd think they would cover something like that.

jk the sooner fan
10/5/2006, 10:08 AM
a comp policy does not cover mechanical failure....however it does cause fire

so you could deduct the mechanical damage from the appraisal, but typically an engine fire will total the vehicle anyway

yes, fires are covered

skycat
10/5/2006, 10:10 AM
I guess I'll call the agent tonight, but this was due to mechanical failure of the starter, which a quick glance at the policy said wasn't covered.

skycat
10/5/2006, 10:12 AM
a comp policy does not cover mechanical failure....however it does cause fire

so you could deduct the mechanical damage from the appraisal, but typically an engine fire will total the vehicle anyway

yes, fires are covered

I'm hoping that our particular policy doesn't actually cause fire, if so we're switching to Geico.

You guys are starting to make me feel more hopeful. I'll definitely be getting in touch with the agent now.

crawfish
10/5/2006, 10:15 AM
Does insurance cover mysterious car fires?

10 years ago my Honda Accord spontaneously caught fire and burned up in my work parking lot. The great thing was that there was no way to tell what condition it was in prior to the fire, so they gave it their best rating and we got more money for it than we could have any other way.

All in all a very good way to get rid of a car. Couldn't have worked out better if I'd planned it. :D

jk the sooner fan
10/5/2006, 10:19 AM
its an accidental fire, and its covered, ........if you live in texas anyway, i dont know what the law is where you live

skycat
10/5/2006, 10:21 AM
its an accidental fire, and its covered, ........if you live in texas anyway, i dont know what the law is where you live

I live in Austin.

I knew posting in the SO would pay off some day.

:texan:

yermom
10/5/2006, 10:57 AM
it's paid off and you still have full coverage?

skycat
10/5/2006, 11:12 AM
it's paid off and you still have full coverage?


My wife has had the policy forever, and I'm apparently too lazy to change it.

mdklatt
10/5/2006, 11:13 AM
it's paid off and you still have full coverage?

This is bad because...?

yermom
10/5/2006, 11:15 AM
just a question... i didn't add the !?!?!?! at the end or anything :)

depending on the value of the car it can make sense

if the car is fairly cheap, you are probably better off saving the extra cash or something

soonerbrat
10/5/2006, 11:16 AM
it's paid off and you still have full coverage?


full coverage and UM/UIM always. no matter what.

yermom
10/5/2006, 11:19 AM
always is a strong word

mdklatt
10/5/2006, 11:24 AM
if the car is fairly cheap, you are probably better off saving the extra cash or something

Right, of course. I thought you were implying that the only reason you should have comprehensive is if you were required to by your finance company.

Is there a rule of thumb for when it makes sense to drop comprehensive coverage? If you're paying more per year for insurance than the car is worth it probably makes sense, but maybe the point of diminishing returns is probably long before then.

yermom
10/5/2006, 11:31 AM
i think there is a case for not covering at all after you pay off the car, but it's a risky gamble

mdklatt
10/5/2006, 11:32 AM
but it's a risky gamble

Hence the concept of insurance. :D

yermom
10/5/2006, 11:34 AM
yeah, but you aren't playing against the house edge at that point ;)

Mjcpr
10/5/2006, 11:42 AM
i think there is a case for not covering at all after you pay off the car, but it's a risky gamble

And illegal.

mdklatt
10/5/2006, 11:48 AM
And illegal.

Only if you do it online.

sooner_born_1960
10/5/2006, 11:50 AM
And illegal.
I think he's talking about comp and collision. Most cars reach a point where it is silly to continue covering.

yermom
10/5/2006, 11:58 AM
And illegal.

ok, by "at all" i meant covering more than required by the state

jk the sooner fan
10/5/2006, 12:20 PM
i tell people this all the time "your paid off vehicle is worth MUCH more to you than it may be on the open market"..

before i bought my "new" used car...i was driving a 93 gran prix with only 94K miles on it...all i used it for was to get back and forth to work....there's not a dent or scratch on the thing (jk3 drives it now).....but the actual cash value of the car is only about 2K - so if that car is totalled, what the heck am i going to get with 2K? not much

on the older cars, sometimes its ok to not cover it with comp/collision

mdklatt
10/5/2006, 12:28 PM
ibut the actual cash value of the car is only about 2K - so if that car is totalled, what the heck am i going to get with 2K? not much


If you're paying $500/yr for insurance you'll be ahead of the game for four years (for example's sake; this doesn't factor in deprecation, declining insurance rates, etc.) I guess the point at which you should stop paying for comprehensive is when the car becomes worth less than the total amount you've paid for insurance over the life of the car. That should be pretty easy to figure out.

jk the sooner fan
10/5/2006, 12:30 PM
exactly

we've got liability only on jk3's car.....

skycat
10/5/2006, 01:27 PM
If you're paying $500/yr for insurance you'll be ahead of the game for four years (for example's sake; this doesn't factor in deprecation, declining insurance rates, etc.) I guess the point at which you should stop paying for comprehensive is when the car becomes worth less than the total amount you've paid for insurance over the life of the car. That should be pretty easy to figure out.

Well, the other thing to factor in would be the statistical liklihood of making a claim in whatever time frame you're thinking about insuring the car. Anybody here an actuary?