In a recent article in the Detroit Free Press, Auto insurance in Michigan highest in U.S., it was suggested that Michigan is woefully out of step with the rest of the country when it comes to our no-fault auto insurance laws:
“Michigan auto insurance rates led the country — $2,541 a year for a hypothetical 40-year-old man with a clean driving record — in an annual survey released last week by the consumer insurance information site insure.com.”
The article is slanted and misleading. It gets its information from the insurance industry. The author fails to mention that Michigan has the very best insurance coverage in the nation for those suffering injury in an auto accident. Secondly, the article has it wrong: Michigan does not have the highest insurance rates. The calculations used to justify this claim are not reliable, even the article points out that in another study Michigan ranks 11th. Thirdly, the article claims that medical expenses are “unlimited” for those injured in an accident, driving up cost. Not true. They are unlimited only in case they are reasonable and related to injury caused by the accident. That’s fair and it is as it should be.
Michigan should not have to apologize for having the best auto insurance coverage laws in the nation. Any attempt to change these laws is going to be backed by insurance companies that don’t want victims to recover damages fully and fairly.
According to the article, Pete Kuhnmuench, executive director of the Insurance Institute of Michigan, said he expects there will be efforts in the legislature to make unlimited personal injury protection optional rather than mandatory. Though, he admits, prospects for insurance change are uncertain since Governor Rick Snyder and the Legislature appear to be focusing almost exclusively on jobs and business-climate issues.
We’ll see.
