The Washington times., 1922-07-16
'2O-3O' POLICY -.
|SBEST SUITED
CITY AUTO|STS
William UlIman Tells How In
suranoe Appropriations
Should Be Apportioned.
BY WILLIAM ULLMAN.

by WILLIAM ULLmAN.
Copyright. 1924, by the Ullman Feature
Service.)
A car owner was talking with his
insurance agent about a recent COLI
sion in which he had participated.
He had witnessed the sad spectacle
Of having his machine practically
wrecked for no fault of his own.
Carrying no collision insurance him
self. he had brought suit against the
guilty party, but the court had re.
vealed the fact that in addition to
being uninsured the defendant had
but very little equity in his car and
was In no financial position to pay
the amount OF the judgment.
Gar owners ought to be compelled
to carry property damage coverage,"
the unlucky motorist declared, view
ing his staggering repair bill. THE
same with liability insurance. Sup
pose this had been an accident case
in which had been totally disabled
and consequently unable to support
my family. A lot of good IL would
do me TO know that the other fellow
was serving his term in jail"
That's all very true" the agent
admitted, but compulsory insurance
wouldn't solve the problem. and I'll
tell you why. II 1T were a known
fact that every motorist carried a
certain amount of property damage
and liability coverage there would be
any number of takers to take advar.
tage OF the situation. Unscrupulous
car owners who wanted to sell their
Dachines to the insurance companies
would conspire to have the cars
struck and wrecked by other policy
holders. Exorbitant claims founded
on fictitious repair bills would thrive,
the plaintiff always being absolutely
certain that the defendant would be
good for at least the amount Of the
property damage policy. The same
thing-only on a more elaborate
scale-would apply to the matter Of
fake accidents.
Intelligence In Selection.
But something ought to be done
about this insurance situation" the
a.otorist contended. Car owners buy
blindy and seem to imagine
that any policy will cover the whole
situation. Believe me, they would
give this subject a little more
thought IL they could only be in my
position"
That's just the point" the agent
explained, Thousands of car owners
are going through experiences
similar to yours and the facts which
they learn are bound to educate
them to q need for more intelligent
buying of insurance. It's the hard
school OF experience, but Ats a
natural process which works always
toward the ideal without offering
as might De expected
under compulsory insurance"
THAT isn't very encouraging for
the motorist who would. like to be
sure he's insured" the other said,
casting another painful glance at his
repair bill. -
but you forget that the car owner
who really wants to be sure that
he's fully covered against all reason
able contingencies doesn't wait to
learn the details through experience.
He looks ahead a little. uses his
and buys what he thinks
he may need, just as he buys an
extra tire when starting on a trip
in the event of run of punctures."
But there is another angle to the
question which the agent appeared
10 overlook, and that is: How is
the average car owner to know just
what forms and amounts of In.
surance he ought TO carry? Motorists
are frequently misled through en-
the advice of some other
car owner whose particular in
surance requirements may be entirely
different. The situation becomes all
the more critical when the car
owner adds to this misleading In
his own Ignorance OF the
subject.
Consider the motorist in question
at the outset. Someone told him to
buy collision insurance mot even the
800 deductable variety because, as
The adviser nut Il: "If you collide
with someone else's car hold him re-
sponsible for 1t and'put In claim on
his insurance company to cover the
damage. Practically everybody car
ries property damage insurance be-
cause it's comparatively cheap, so
you really don't need collision"
Big Variance In Needs.
That the informant's advice was
not based on fact is only a matter OF
the results of the above
case or thousands like 1t. The idea
of relying on the other fellows In.
surance is about as reasonable as eX.
pecting to find magic gasoline sta
tions when one has run out OF gas.
The advice of other motorists
should not be followed too literally
for the reason that the insurance re.