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SMALLER INSURERS MAY TURN OUT TO BE MORE... GENEROUS By Larry Haverkamp (Doc Money) [email protected] 08 July 2008 IF you drive a car, you need car insurance. It's the law. The problem is, it's hard to know which insurer offers the best deal. There is more to it than just comparing the first-year premiums. To find out, an important statistic is 'claims to premiums'. That's 'claims an insurance company pays for accidents' divided by the 'premiums it charges'. I have just completed a study which calculates this important ratio. Policyholders benefit from a high ratio. But insurance companies need to keep it low to boost their profits. They call it an 'incurred loss ratio'. The ratio is highest for insurers that are generous in paying claims and charge low premiums. By this criterion, Mitsui came in first among the 12 largest auto insurers. Next came China Insurance then Tokio Marine. These firms paid out $96, $90 and $83 in claims for every $100 they collected in premiums. The auto insurance market is concentrated. The 12 largest insurers have more than 85 per cent of the market and the three largest have 70per cent. They are NTUC Income, AIG and AXA which, surprisingly, placed rather low in our ratio - in 6th, 10th and 12th places. Why didn't the big boys do better? Possible reasons: (i) Large insurers may be able to get customers on the basis of their name. They don't have to cut premiums as much to get new business. (ii) They are able to capture business by offering generous commissions to car dealers who tie that firm's auto insurance to the car sale. (iii) Some, like NTUC Income, have reduced claims payments by requiring workshops to use second-hand, reconditioned parts when repairing cars more than 3years old. The cheaper parts reduce the claims to premiums ratio. Small car insurers typically lack the muscle to do this. They must fight for new business by offering lower premiums, which raises their ratio of 'claims to premiums'. There are drawbacks to the ratio, such as a one-time surge in accidents or a fraudulent claim. These can usually be remedied by averaging the data over a few years. My study looked at the period 2005 to 2007. Despite the flaws, 'claims to premiums' is the best we've got. No other number gives as comprehensive a picture of 'value for money' in car insurance. Don't drive that much? One day, you could pay less PAYING annual car insurance premiums may be a thing of the past. The future may be 'pay as you drive' (Payd). In the scheme, you have to install a device on your car that monitors how far you drive each day, the speed at which you drive and even how hard you step on the brakes. It means you will pay for car insurance per kilometre instead of per year. Infrequent drivers will no longer end up subsidising those who drive alot. A study by the Brookings Institution in the US estimates the scheme would lower premiums for two-thirds of households. Payd is already in use by two large US car insurers, Progressive and GMAC, where it has lowered premiums by up to 60 per cent.

Wonder if anyone in MCF made good money from stock market... cos its really bad at the moment.. since surgence of subprime issues in US.

As above. Any good/bad experience? Comments? Thanks!

Hi all, just got this email circular: "DEAR FRIENDS If you have ever paid or are thinking of paying ' Coffee Money' when stopped for traffic or other offences, DON'T EVER Do This Again. The traffic department (JPJ) has recently started a campaign to be rid of corruption. Every Officer on duty will be rewarded with RM100.00 if they report each case of bribery to the department. This is how they do (trick you into) it. They will note down the details of your IC/MyKad, and ask you how you want to settle ( "Macam mana nak selesai?") If you indicate yes or even offer to give them any money, they will report the incident by rejecting your 'Kopi Money' and get the RM100.00 instead as an incentive for their integrity and "Honest" pubicity. This means that You will end up having a summon issued to you and perhaps a charge for bribery. SO DON'T PAY DUIT KOPI AGAIN, especially i! f you hope to go free with a lesser amount of money compared to the fine. Even if you want to pay over RM200, t he JPJ Officers would rather have a 'good' name than to take your kopi money. Just beware of their trick because the cops are now accumulating 'cookies' points for their promotion and pay increment - with your help if possible. They should have done this to stop corruption long time ago... but anyway it's better late than never, right? SPREAD THIS MESSAGE AROUND TO EDUCATE OTHERS ON THIS NEW ANTI-RASUAH POLICY! AND DON'T YOU DARE TO CORRUPT ANY JPJ OR EVEN POLICE OFFICERS AGAIN! " So.. how ah.. catch 22 already.

The CashCard reader in labour chief Lim Swee Say's car beeps four to six times a day. This is because he passes through that many Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) gantries along busy city roads to get to and from work. He was driving home the point that ERP exists solely to control road congestion and not to enrich government coffers or raise the cost of living for Singaporeans. Mr Lim was responding to a question at a dialogue on why the Government was raising ERP rates by as much as $2 and adding five new gantries from July 7 in a climate of rising inflation. The new gantries along the banks of the Singapore River bring the total number of gantries islandwide to 65. Mr Lim said Transport Minister Raymond Lim had told Parliament previously the Government does not make any money from the ERP increase. The reason: It will collect $70 million a year from the ERP increase, but will lose $110 million due to the 15 per cent reduction in road tax from next month. That is, in fact, a net loss of $40 million, he said. So motorists who do not use congested roads will be 'net gainers', said Mr Lim, pointing to Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Inderjit Singh. This is because Mr Singh, who shared the stage with Mr Lim at the dialogue with Sengkang West residents yesterday, works in Changi. Mr Lim is not so lucky as he works in the NTUC Building at One Marina Boulevard. Relating his driving experience to laughter from the audience, he said: 'Every morning when I come out of my house, it's one beep along Bukit Timah, then another beep entering Marina South. From July 7, I'll be getting another beep just along the road to my office. 'The amount I pay through all this beeping will be more than the road tax rebate I am getting. Why? Simply because I am one of those who always go to busy areas.' Do U Agreed ?

For those people who harbor some unexplainable confidence in the myriad of "snake oil" products in hopes of achieving better fuel economy, a quick read of these articles may actually educate you enough of what many informed people here already know: such "miracle" devices don't work despite all the so called technical figures as proof to convince you. http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive...age=1&series=19 http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive...to/4264939.html Of course, it's your money at the end of the day to experiment and perhaps attain a "feel good" sensation from adding something to your beloved car. Have a good weekend everyone.

Even 10cents reduction to help the motoring public is too much for the Govt to bear. So what ways can you think of to minimise the Govt "salary" aka tax. This is my take, please add on! 1. Earn less so pay less Income Tax or be a tax avoiding hawker 2. Drive Holiday or Fly less so they would earn less Airport Tax 3. Rent your property or better still stay in JB so no need to pay Property Tax! No Stamp duty, Development tax, refuse tax, toilet tax, or @ least you pay in ringgit! 4. Dont drive so no Road Tax, no Radio License for car, no COE, no ARF, Car registration tax, no GST, Petrol tax, ERP, Registration tax, Excise duty 5. Dont listen to Radio or TV no no need to pay TV License for home 6. Drink water & bath in office so pay less Water Conservancy Tax 7. Dont buy things/shopping to let them earn GST! 8. Dont die till Estate Tax is abolish! 9 No more mor mor KTV to let them earn Liquor Tax! 10. Give up smoking so dont kena Cigarette Tax 500%! 11. Off aircon, off light, go naked to save Electricity Tarrif tax! 12. Use condom so no need to pay Maid Levy, University fee (50k?), food, tuition, clothing, XBOX, Child care, milk powder, diapers, medical fees etc etc. 13. Keep a cat to avoid Dog license fee! 14. To keep entertained read books! Library is free!

Hi guys, Which do you think is a Value for money conti brand among these brands and why? Thank you. Regards,

Your future wife makes a certain demand for wedding and you cant afford it. She suggest that you borrow money (with interest) from her so that she can have the wedding she wants. Interest rate: 50% of the total loan = must pay back 150% of loan to her. What will you say eh?

AFTER much fanfare and many 'oohs' and 'ahs' from visitors at the opening of Changi Airport's Terminal 3 (T3), one question needs to be asked: Is T3 an architectural achievement but a commercial failure? T3 has failed in three areas. Firstly, by building such an expensive new terminal, we have failed to recognise the current explosive growth and future market domination of budget carriers. How can Singapore and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) attract more airlines to operate from Singapore in the future with such a costly new terminal? Singapore's aim to become a competitive air hub will be hindered if low-cost carriers avoid Singapore because it is too expensive to operate at Changi. The game of becoming the next air hub in the region is not just about capacity but also about cost. Secondly, only Singapore Airlines for now is using the new T3, because of the new aerobridge for its Airbus 380 aircraft. But SIA is also keeping most its operations in the older T2. When T2 was launched, SIA was able to shift its entire operations to T2. I do not believe T3 or any single terminal is unable to handle SIA's entire operations. It is the higher cost of operating in T3 that will create future problems for SIA's operations. A handful of other carriers will operate from T3 only from May. I cannot help but wonder how much money will be lost while T3 is under-utilised and when T3 will turn in a healthy profit. Thirdly, we have failed to realise that fuel prices, a key cost component in the transport industry, have been rising since the oil crisis in the 1970s. Many airlines around the world have filed for bankruptcy. Cost is a major consideration for all airlines, and the global trend is to build low-cost terminals. Budget carrier JetBlue is building a new 26-gate 20 million capacity terminal (Terminal 5) at John F. Kennedy International Airport for only US$550 million (S$788 million). Mind you, that is in New York where building costs are among the highest in the world. Another waste money project by our high pay minister. What is new in spore,everything is inflated by our dear govt,maybe even the price of building it is inflated. We are a country with rich govt who will squander all our $$$ to attract the rich and FTs not sporeans,ok!!!!Even our upgrading of life cost an arm and leg, what more about a airport terminal.Everything is expensive in spore [/color]

Hello ICE experts, i scan through some of the threads in this forum and found that most of the recommended HU are quite ex. If i have a budget of $400 (Inclusive installation), is that any good and value for money units that you could recommend? For new car, is it also advisable to change all the cabling? Saw in some magazines that one can get reasonable cabling works for $80. Hope to hear from everyone soon. Cheers

Dear all fellow car owners, I would like to invite you guys to share your experience on the agents when servicing claming Warranty etc. Please share base on any of the following Cat. 1) Agent Name 2) PRICE of basic maintence Service. 3) WORKMANship quality 4) Ease of claiming warranty 5) Is the warranty easily Void 6) If we choose to void warranty, will we save more when we get outside Service centre? 7) Any Unhappy Experience with Authorized Agent or even PI. 8) The competency of the Service Crew. Seasoned or Green on the job training crew. I like to share one of my negative experience as a Consumer point of view. I felt that Agent gave the 3 years warranty is to give them the opportunity to earn even more then the Cars that they sold. I when to C&C to service my Lancer, I wanted to bring in own Engine oil. They say cannot, told me will void warranty. I bring in same brand same specs of Engine oil. Shell Hylix Ultra. They won't even allow. I can get it cheaper from outside, I do not mind paying labour charges. When I service by them. They have Engine Oil in OIL DRUM, which means they buy in bulk and then RIP us off, made us pay more for the Shell hylix Ultra than we pay for off the shelves Shell Hylix Ultra. CourFour, during Sale sold @ $60 (4litre bottle) Currently the Basic maintence Package cost $162. It is really expensive. It is really upsetting to see your car being molested by in-experienced on the job training Trainee Crew. The price outside cost cheaper , like $130 with Engine Oil plus get an EXPERIENCEd Old bird to do for you. Sigh! Anyway please feel free to Recomend Value for money Worshop for servicing. The aim for this Thread is to let fellow drivers know what they are getting from the Authorized agent and PI. Is that really worth it. And also share the good news among drivers when they wanted to have a good deal . Please do not zap me or anything I just want to create a sharing of information so that All END user can all benefits from The purpose is to take agent into consideration when choosing cars 1) When Buying Car, take into consideration the reputation of Agent and the quality of the service team. 2) Obtain good and value for moeny information Auto Car service like, spray paint cost, Repair cost etc. 3) Know who are the bad hats in the Authorized agent and PT. 4) Discuss on : Should we buy cars without warranty ? So that we buy at the cheapest price possible? Cheers Happy Sharing Gimmy

Hi all, Just wanna see how many of you wash your own cars ,send them to petrol or let ah nei wash your car. I personally wash my own car cause i very scared of swirl marks left by commerical car wash.

wHAT DO YOU THINK? Conservancy charges: Is HDB giving value for money collected? Tue, Feb 12, 2008 The Straits Times A RESIDENT of a five-room HDB flat pays $73.50 a month in service & conservancy charges and another $90 in parking charge. A resident of a similar-size flat in a typical condominium pays about $200 per month. But that includes water, electricity, maintenance, mandatory lift check, cleaning service every day, clean lift, pest control, pleasant landscape, security, security cameras, covered parking lot, swimming pool, tennis court, function room, barbecue pit, recreation events, managing agent fee, some surplus for sinking fund at year-end and so on. The HDB resident gets a parking lot and a not exactly clean environment. Is the HDB overcharging residents or is it not doing enough to get value for residents? My friend lives in a condo, pays $200 a month and get all the things I mentioned, while I pay $163.50 in service & conservancy charges and for a parking lot. I get a dirty lift and floors. Furthermore, the HDB collects parking fines and hourly parking charges and keeps them. As a big buyer, the HDB certainly has better bargaining power than the condo. The $163.50 paid to the HDB is excessive. The HDB must explain how it spends the money it collects. Richard Lim Poh Chuan

Planning to have a reunion dinner in a Oriental Restaurant in Genting, any recommendation based on the above-mentioned? All comments welcomed. Ming Ren is at Level 2, Highlands Hotel Lake View is at Level 2, First World Plaza Happy Valley is at Lobby Floor, Theme Park Hotel Good Friends is at Level 2, Highlands Hotel Genting Palace is at 2nd Floor, Genting Hotel Thank you very much. Regards,

- u can buy a house but not a home - u can buy blood but not life - u can buy books but not knowledge - u can buy a position but not respect - u can buy a bed but not sleep - u can pay a doctor but cant buy health - u can pay for sex but not for love - u can buy a clock but not time - u can spend for wedding but not marriage

What are your views on this.. yes money is a very important factor in our daily lives.. without it, a lot of things cannot be done. so does it mean the poor will forever stay single? students that doesnt earn shouldnt be dating? retrenched man should all divorce? what say you?

hi.. where can i get a beta rate for TWD currency now?

hi guys~!my fren is tinking of buying a wira 1.3.so i need to noe some info n feedbacks from wira owners.how's de FC?any problems wif de engine or any other parts?n if he wants to install full set of bodykit...how much wil it cost?...any other info is welcomed.thanks~!

you got better excuse to gimme?

Hi all, After trying out and sat in quite a number of cars for the past few years, I came about some findings on the above topic. Would like to share with you guys what I feel and also maybe you guys can chip in your views too. The below is comments are purely on cabin spaciousness (front and rear passengers) and price, ignoring performance as well as looks. 1. Toyota Corolla Altis - Good front/rear legroom and headroom. Indeed one of the top few in the 1.4/1.5/1.6 category. A safe choice for those who are practical and prefers to stick to a proven brand. 2. Nissan Latio - Surprisingly good rear legroom. One of the best I would say. Airy cabin design makes the whole interior feel even bigger. With price lower than Altis, I think this is one of the best value one can get for the 50+k segment. 3. Mazda 3 - Looks big on the exterior but disappoint on interior space. Front passenger feels cramp due to the protruding dash. Rear legroom is also very limited. Only very marginally better than the Sunny. Thou price has come down alot, I find still not worth it if you're the family man who wants good cabin space. 4. Nissan Sunny - Decently-sized exterior, but rear legroom is the worst among the 1.6L I tried. Front passenger space is still decent thou. Cheapest among all 1.5/1.6 around but from the spaceiousness perspective, the Lancer GLX is a much better choice if you top up just a little. 5. Honda Civic FD - Smart interior design allows excellent rear passenger space. Very roomy rear legroom, thou rear headroom is a tad low. Pricey beauty and highly recommended only if you can afford the extra cash. 6. Honda City - Overall spaciousness is good with rear flat floor. Rear legroom I would say slightly loses to Altis. This is always being labelled as the Vios version in Honda's line-up, but I find it is more in the same class as Latio/Altis. However, the price tag is too high even for the basic version. 7. Toyota Vios (old) - Front passenger is still ok, but rear legroom is pretty cramp. Very comparable to Sunny. Rear headroom is the worst of the lot. Good for the couple or single. For family guy with young children, I would not recommend it. 8. Honda Airwave - Initially thought it is basically a Honda City with upward-extended boot. Front space is very similar to City, but rear legroom seems slightly better. Headroom is decent and ample. Lots of room on the rear and boot space but rather pricey also. Pity it is not a 7-seater. 9. Toyota Corolla (G9) - Feels similar to the Altis in terms of space, but somehow the rear headroom and legroom seems marginally better. Good old trusty model. 10. Mit Lancer GLX - Front and rear legroom is very good, infact I find slightly better than Altis. Headroom however is shorter but still very ample. This is definitely the best value currently, combining good roominess and price tag. 11. Toyota Yaris - Front feels like old Vios. Rear is probably slightly better than the old Vios, thou headroom is much better. Overpriced I find. The new Vios would be a more worthy buy. 12. Hyundai Verna - I own this car and honestly the rear headroom and legroom is much better than Sunny and old Vios surprisingly, esp headroom. Of coz its nowhere near the likes of Latio/Altis. Still, it is a great value if you do not mind that its a kimchi 13. Kia Rio - Very similar to the Verna in all espects, but somehow the rear headroom seems slightly lower. Quite a bit cheaper than Verna now. Highly recommended I would say, esp for value hunters looking for a sedan in the mid 40k region. 14. Hyundai Matrix - Very spacious interior. Legroom is very ample. High headroom + large window panels makes the interior impressively airy. Price has tumbled a bit also but then it is no longer popular. 15. Honda Jazz - Initially thought it is just like a City hatch. Front passenger space seems slightly tighter. Rear legroom is also not as good as City, thou quite decent. Extremely popular nowadays thou i still find its a little overpriced. 16. Mazda 2 (old) - Surprisingly the interior is more spacious than Sunny and even slightly better than Mazda 3! Maybe in terms of shoulder room its not as wide. The new version should be better I guess. A pity I did not manage to try out some other cars like Avante, Cerato. Maybe someone can help add on? :)

Hi all, I am actually considering Schaeffer 70000 SAE 5W-30 for its value. Was wondering if any guru can help?

Hi Guys, 1. I'm sure you have something in mind that you have either positive experience or perception on a particular brand and model when come to a value for money 17" Ultra High Performance (UHP) tyre. 2. So far I've gathered that Goodyear Eagle F1 remain a popular choice in local market as a UHP due not only of its price tag but also its consistently good review in car magazines and tire centric websites. 3. So come share your experience and the cost. Thank you very much. Regards,