Teen auto insurance

 

joe johnson : I heard something about a technnology geek being able to disable cars electronic system- what about this- let me know if you thnik if auto insurance companies would take away the safety car insurance discount?

Response : Joe, recently car insurance website did discuss this.

First the New Threat to your car:

One hundred car owners got an abrupt wake-up call last year when a disgruntled former dealership employee in Austin, Texas, used an Internet-based vehicle immobilization system to reach out and touch their lives.

Electronic boxes installed by the used-car dealer receive a signal through a pager system. The horn honks, for example, when a payment is due. If payments are delinquent, the ignition is disabled.

Working from his home, moving alphabetically down a list of unsuspecting — and paid up — customers, the fired employee remotely set off car horns and disabled engines.

The damage that can be done by a few malicious keystrokes grows as cars become rolling high-tech showcases.  Like any vandalism or theft, any physical damage due to car hacking is covered by your comprehensive car innsurance, , but that doesn’t reduce the creepiness of corporate monitoring, the tedium of repairing a stolen identity, or the nagging fear that your safety has been compromised.

A recently released report from the computer security company McAfee pulled together research done by several universities to evaluate the potential security threats to a cars’ electrical components, which can be found in everything from radios to anti-lock brakes to electronic stability control systems to infotainment systems.

The threat to your car and your privacy is real, the studies find.

“It’s not just theoretical. Attacks can take place,” says Tim Fulkerson, senior director of marketing for McAfee Embedded Security.

Even the auto industry agrees. The subject has “kind of been lurking under the radar,” says Peter Byk, an engineering specialist in the SAE International ground vehicle standards group, which formed a committee this spring to begin discussing safety and privacy concerns.

The McAfee report looked at the potential for cybercriminals to track a driver’s location, steal personal data from Bluetooth, disrupt navigation systems, disable emergency assistance systems and to unlock cars and start them remotely using cell phones.

So far the potential risks uncovered by researchers haven’t translated into major problems in real life.

“We’re not aware that anything like this is happening in the real world,” says Russ Rader, spokesperson for the Highway Loss Data Institute. “There’s no indication that theft claims are going up as electronic systems proliferate; theft claim frequency is going down.”

The National Insurance Crime Bureau also has not received reports of vehicles being hacked, says spokesperson Frank Scafidi. “People should not be losing sleep over the report.”

At the same time, he acknowledges “there is no such thing as a totally secure system.”

Fulkerson says the goal of the McAfee report is to raise consumer awareness of the potential security threats. In addition, as more electronic bells and whistles are added to vehicles, the potential for problems rise.

Even something as simple as an MP3 player that is plugged into your car’s stereo system should have antivirus protection, Fulkerson says.

Virtually every automaker offers some sort of onboard connectivity as mobile technology develops to meet consumer desires and needs. But what are the ramifications of being connected while behind the wheel?

We already know that drivers’ insistence on seamless connectivity with the outside world creates huge safety issues of its own.

But it’s clear that drivers are willing to give up some of their privacy as well. For navigation to work, the computer has to know where you are. For “phone home” to dial correctly, your contacts need to be accessible. Data goes out, data comes in.

More than 6 million drivers in the U.S. use General Motors’ OnStar telematics system to ask for directions, access e-mail, get weather reports and ask for emergency services. Its GPS functionality also allows authorities to track a stolen car.

(They’ll trade their information for cheaper car insurance rates  as well. An OnStar subscription is a key component to State Farm’s In-Drive program , which tracks driver behaviors and mileage and rewards low-risk drivers with discounts up to 50 percent.)

In a telling indicator of the kind of pressures the marketplace will witness in coming years, OnStar recently backed off proposed changes to its privacy policy that would have maintained its data connection to customers’ cars even after they ended their $199-a-year subscriptions. Before customers challenged the decision, OnStar had planned to keep the pipeline open and reserve the right to sell data gathered — aggregated and without private information attached, of course.

Research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and conducted by the University of California San Diego and the University of Washington found that a cybercriminal with a laptop could access the internal network of two 2009 autos “to take over a broad array of safety-critical computer systems.”

The research found, for example, that brakes could be disengaged while the car was in motion, making it nearly impossible to stop; or activated, forcing a sudden stop.

Another study, by Rutgers University and the University of South Carolina, found that radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, designed to keep track of vehicle tire pressure, can be used to track a vehicle and can pose a threat to passenger privacy if a cybercriminal uses a powerful long-distance reader.

Perhaps worse, the threats aren’t necessarily all linked to the car. A Facebook password stored in the car’s electronics systems, allowing updates on the fly, could tip off a stalker or burglar if he or she gained access to it.

 As the number of electrical components in cars increases each year, it creates an increasing number of avenues for potential hackers to breach auto security, Byk says.

For example, the idea of someone potentially using RFID tags in a malicious manner “probably wasn’t even considered” by automotive engineers, Byk says.

Andre Weimerskirch, chief executive officer of ESCRYPT Inc., one of the partners in the McAfee study, says components must be protected so any potential attacker “needs to get through a security wall.”

Weimerskirch says he’s seen an increase in concern by auto manufacturers in the past couple of years, as they try to “anticipate risks and want to mitigate them.”

The committee formed by SAE International members this year is discussing things such as  testing and design standards for embedded electronic devices, Byk says, and plans to come up with strategies to identify and prevent potential security breaches.

Another topic will be how to mitigate the potential harm if a security breach occurs.

But hacking into an auto isn’t a simple task. “It requires a certain amount of technical know-how to execute,” he says. Cybercriminals not only need to have strong computer skills, they also have to be good at hacking.

Part of the problem for the automobile industry is that the electrical components in vehicles are constantly evolving. The situation mirrors that of a home computer. You need to install various updates and patches when security flaws are found, and the auto industry now faces a similar challenge, Byk says.

“You just don’t put a flag in the ground and say we’re done,” Byk says. “It’s constantly moving.”

Auto insurance comapnies and car safety feature discounts

As an insurance person, I think that auto insurance companies would not remove this discount on the basis of this threat. The makers of cars would take the necessary steps on this alongwith the computer tech geeks to remove such threats. Overall the safety devices have stopped car insurance thefts and hence you can go on with your car insurance discount. Its nice to discuss and stay informed of all such things which are happening around us and these are just our views.

Get your car insurance quote now.

Teen auto insurance

Teen auto insurance

There’s more to think about than just MSRP, financing arrangements and dickering strategies when considering the costs of buying a new car.

[Compare car insurance quotes now.]

Factor in auto insurance expenses, too.

Consider the following factors when you’re deciding which model to buy, and get car insurance quotes online once you’ve narrowed down your choices — you may surprised how much car insurance rates can vary among models and among car insurance companies.

Spending some time up-front getting car insurance quotes before you decide on a car model can help you avoid sticker shock on your auto insurance rates.

1. Safety features

A car’s safety features are designed for two main purposes — to help you avoid getting in a crash and to help you escape a crash with the least amount of injury. Larger, heavier cars tend to be safer than small cars due to the simple laws of physics.

“Small cars have twice as many occupant deaths each year as large cars,” says Loretta Worters, vice president of the Insurance Information Institute. “In crashes involving smaller and larger vehicles, heavier vehicles drive lighter ones backwards, decreasing the forces inside the heavier car and increasing them in the lighter car.”

But while there’s a big safety difference between small and mid-size cars, the benefits of size and weight diminish after a certain point, says Russ Rader, spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Check the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s ratings online. Safety ratings among cars in the same class can vary widely.

Safety features that protect you include:

good vehicle structural design, which keeps damage away from the occupant compartment of the car restraint systems, including seat belts and airbags electronic stability control systems, which prevent rollovers — now standard in all new SUVs

Newer features include lane-departure warning systems and blind-spot detection systems. Make sure your auto insurance company knows about all the safety features of your new vehicle so that you can get discounts for them.

2. Other design characteristics

Cars designed to go fast typically have higher-than-average death rates. Combining a high-performance car with a young driver is a dangerous mix, the Insurance Information Institute says, not to mention an expensive one from the standpoint of car insurance premiums.

3. Cost of repair and replacement

Luxury cars are costly to insure because you have to pay a lot to repair and replace them. And if you drive a very large vehicle, like a Hummer, auto insurers also consider the cost of repairing the other guy’s car in case you cause an accident.

Although SUV safety has improved, thanks to newer, more compact designs and electronic stability control systems, they still can be more costly to insure because of the damage they inflict on other cars, Worters says.

4. Theft appeal

Your car insurance company also looks at how likely your car is to get stolen. Thieves tend to go after flashy, powerful cars, such as luxury SUVs and pickups. Check the latest data online from the Highway Loss Data Institute to see which cars have the best and worst theft-loss ratings.

In most states, you have to show dealerships proof of car insurance before you drive a new car off the lot. Your existing car insurance will generally cover your new car temporarily if you already owned a car, but policies differ from insurer to insurer. Your car insurance company may require that you notify it of the change within 30 days or less. As you compare auto insurance quotes from different companies, check with your current insurer about the rules for covering a newly purchased vehicle.

If this is your first car, you need to buy a car insurance policy before the dealer hands over the keys.

Teen auto insurance

Teen auto insurance

Price is an obvious factor when you’re buying a car in college, but don’t overlook vehicle safety in your drive to save money.

Safety features help you avoid crashes and reduce risk of injury if you get in an accident, and they save you money on car insurance.

Here are some guidelines:

Bigger is safer, up to a point

No amount of design features can cancel the laws of physics, which is why size and weight of a car are key safety factors.

“But that doesn’t mean you have to buy a tank,” says Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

A mid-sized car provides much better protection in a crash than a tiny compact car, Rader says, but after vehicles reach a certain size, the returns on safety diminish.

Compare models

You might want a small car, though, particularly if you go to college in an urban area and need to zip back and forth to campus easily through traffic, get good gas mileage and fit into tight parking spots.

All new cars–including small ones–have to meet federal safety standards, but some models are still safer than others.

“There’s a big difference in how small cars do in the ratings,” Rader says.

Once you’ve decided the type and size of car you want, compare Insurance Institute for Highway Safety ratings online. Search by vehicle category, make or model, and check out the institute’s top safety picks.

Used vs. new

New cars have more advanced safety features than older cars. All new SUVs today, for instance, are equipped with electronic stability control to prevent them from rolling over. Rader says he would avoid any used SUV that does not have electronic stability control.

With any used car you’re buying, look for one with side air bags, especially if you’re considering a small car, Rader says.

Once you’ve narrowed your choices to a few makes and models, get car insurance quotes on those vehicles to learn which is cheapest to cover.

Barbara Marquand is a writer with more than twenty years of reporting experience for newspapers, magazines and Web sites. She writes frequently about insurance and other business topics.

[Compare car insurance quotes now.]

Teen auto insurance

Teen auto insurance

 

Light Small Cars Safe?

Obviously one of the biggest factor or consideration for parents when buying a car for their teen or young driver is safety. Are light small cars safe? Which is the safets car?

A study¹ done some years ago exposed the fallacy of choosing vehicle safety based only on size or weight.

Crash testing and real world collisions have documented the effects of seat belts and passive restraints such as air bags and proved the benefits of protecting drivers and passengers in the event of a collision with another vehicle or another object.

Better structural engineering and technology have certainly made major improvements in the ability of vehicles to protect occupants from more serious injuries and fatalities.

But what about the ability of a driver to avoid a collision in the first place? Being able to control and maneuver a vehicle well can have a big effect on collision avoidance. Recent advances in using anti-lock brake systems also enable control of a vehicle’s steering to create electronic stability control systems that intervene with the way the driver uses the brakes and power.

By using computer control of braking and throttle a vehicle can be stabilized to avoid skidding, spin-out, and even possible rollover in spite of what the driver is doing.

The above table shows that small cars are also have a higher crash rate as the SUV’s . Although occupants of a large and possibly heavy vehicle may come off better in a collision, drivers of better handling vehicles might avoid being in collisions in the first place.

Ross and Wenzel found that SUVs are no safer for their drivers than cars. Popular midsize cars, minivans and import luxury cars have the safest records, while SUVs are about as risky as the average midsize or large car, and are no safer than many compact and subcompact models.

Other factors are obviously involved, such as driver behavior but the data shows up some interesting results for different-sized and different quality vehicles such as the Volkswagon Jetta, Toyota Avalon, Ford F-Series and Toyota Tacoma.

Measuring the combined risk, most cars are safer than SUVs, while pickup trucks are less safe than all other types of vehicle.

“It turns out that relatively inexpensive light cars do tend to be unsafe, but more expensive light cars are much safer, and are as safe as heavier cars and SUV models. In any event, the argument that lowering the weight of cars to achieve high fuel economy has resulted in excess deaths is unfounded. If designers pay careful attention to safety in vehicle design, smaller cars can be, and indeed have been, made as safe as larger ones,” said the researcher Marc Ross.

Remember safer vehicle gives you cheaper car insurance.

Auto insurance companies consider the safety of the vehicle and also the geographical data of crashes and analysis them to base thier auto insurance rates on them. The more safer a vehicle for a particular geographical location the better or lower the auto insurance rates. You need to consider the road condiitons, weather conditions of the geographical area you live in when your are selecting the vehicle to buy for cheaper car insruanece. Please also consider all the other factors as equally important like the driving skills of your teen and its best to guide them to be responsible. Cheaper car insurnace can be obtained just by getting teen auto insurance qutoe. 

 

Teen auto insurance

Teen auto insurance

 

 

 

 

Price is an obvious factor, if you buy a car in the school, but see not vehicle safety in the drive to save money.

Security features, you can avoid crashes, and reduce the risk of injury if you save money on car insurance you in an accident, and they.

Here are some guidelines:

Is more secure, up to a point

No amount of design features can which is why the laws of physics, cancel, to size and the weight of the car important safety factors.

“But this does not mean, you have to buy a tank,” says Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute for highway safety.

A medium-sized car provides much better protection in a crash when a small compact car says Rader, but after the vehicles reached a certain size, reduce the returns of security.

Compare models

You can but a small car, especially if you have to College to go and zip file and back to the campus easily through traffic, good gas mileage to fit into tight parking spaces in an urban area.

All listings-including small – comply with Federal safety standards, but some models are more secure than others.

“There is a big difference in how small cars in the reviews have,” says Rader.

Once you have decided the type and range of car that you want, you compare online Insurance Institute for highway safety ratings. Category of vehicle, make or model, locate, and see the Institute takes top security.

New vs. used

New cars have advanced more secure than older cars. All new SUVs have today, for example, electronic stability control of prevent to overwhelm. Rader says that he all used SUVs want to avoid, that does not have electronic stability control.

With every used car you buy, look for one with side airbags, especially if it a small car, says Rader.

You have the last choice is to some and to cover the cheapest models to learn car insurance quotes on these vehicles.

<h2> Student car insurance </h2>

Student car insurance is dependent on the type of car and hence you need to take care on what car you buy. A sports car would be  have very expensive student car insurance rates. For a used small car you would be able to obtain cheap student car insurances.  You would have to compare student car insurance here to get the best car insurance rates. Get them now, once you decide on what car you are going to buy.

 

 

Teen auto insurance