The article I chose to write about was recently published online on The Economist. You can take a look here if you’re interested:
https://www.economist.com/united-states/2018/07/07/why-detroit-is-the-most-expensive-city-in-america-to-buy-car-insurance
The article discusses how car insurance rates in Detroit are at four times the national average, and make up to 21% of Detroit resident’s pre-tax income, at over $5,000. This causes a lot of residents to either drive without insurance, or register at an address at a nearby city instead of within Detroit.
I previously knew that Detroit’s car insurance was expensive, but I didn’t know the exact details or why this was the case. This article sheds some light on the situation, although it doesn’t do much in the case of suggesting a way to correct or being correcting the issue.
Car insurance rates are high due to bad policy, not crime or crash statistics. Rates are also based upon credit score and education qualification along with zip code. This, paired with Michigan’s mandate for no-fault insurance, results in rates twice as high for Detroiters than for other Michiganders. The article discusses how Mayor Duggan says car insurance is one of Detroit’s most troubling issues. Although this seems interesting in a city with several other pressing problems, this kind of makes sense.
Outside of downtown, corktown and midtown, Detroit doesn’t have a reliable public transportation system, making cars and car insurance a necessity. When car insurance is so expensive, and you can’t opt out or find other options legally, it makes sense that so many Detroiters drive without car insurance. It’s something that isn’t fair and doesn’t really make sense, since according to the article it really just seems to be a matter of policy. I’d love to to know more about this issue can be fixed.
