Minimum Insurance Requirements

[mctom987]

It all depends on the policy. I have ready many a policy and I have never read anything that would preclude coverage based on speed. Possibly on non-standard auto policies but even then I doubt it. Look at the exclusions on your own policy. I am 100% sure you will not see anything.

I wonder if excessive speed could be considered "committing a crime" and as such be excluded? I've seen exclusions along that line - i.e. if you wreck your car in the process of robbing a bank I don't think they pay out.

That's along the lines of what I was thinking. If you're flying down the freeway doing 120 while traffic is stopped… that's not just speeding that caused an accident. It's gross negligence for safety. Likewise if you see stopped traffic and do nothing to slow down, "I thought he would get out of the way" isn't going to hold up very well.

Just to be clear, policies on this will vary wildly. Company to company, and moreso state to state.

 

[MikeinDenver]

It all depends on the policy. I have ready many a policy and I have never read anything that would preclude coverage based on speed. Possibly on non-standard auto policies but even then I doubt it. Look at the exclusions on your own policy. I am 100% sure you will not see anything.

I wonder if excessive speed could be considered "committing a crime" and as such be excluded? I've seen exclusions along that line - i.e. if you wreck your car in the process of robbing a bank I don't think they pay out.

That's along the lines of what I was thinking. If you're flying down the freeway doing 120 while traffic is stopped… that's not just speeding that caused an accident. It's gross negligence for safety. Likewise if you see stopped traffic and do nothing to slow down, "I thought he would get out of the way" isn't going to hold up very well.

Just to be clear, policies on this will vary wildly. Company to company, and moreso state to state.

Both of those things would be covered. Some states have a specified contract that cannot be altered. Yes policies vary from state to state which makes determining coverage and claims a pain in the rear but most large carriers have a generic ISO form they use and other than specific add on coverages are about word for word. In most states policy language has to be approved by the department of insurance and as such using a generic form is easier and cheaper. Now non-standard auto is a different animal.

As for the crime, yes most policies will exclude coverage for use of a vehicle in the commission of a crime. But I was not going to get into every nuance in my post. General speeding that non criminals do is not excluded. Racing is of course. But if I went down the highway near my office at 120 and crashed into the back of a car, my carrier is not going to be happy and I may get a ticket but the damages will be covered. Hell, people that drink and drive are covered.

The problem with listening to anecdotes and random stories is there are always details left out that are necessary to correctly analyze the situation. If that alleged person that was doing 120 and was denied coverage was racing or in a speed contest that makes sense. Every claim has to have coverage examined based on the facts. I handled plenty of claims and read plenty of polices and denied coverage sometimes because of exclusions. I'm sure glad I don't handle them anymore though that is for sure.