Stolen Catalytic converter

People driving 12 year old cars who can't afford a cat theft are not going to be paying big money every month on comprehensive car insurance. We're the kind of folks who buy the minimum liability coverage required by law and too many of the younger folks in higher risk bracket can't even afford that.

 

It's the "You pay now or you pay a lot more later."

 

It takes alot of wealth and privileged to say stuff like that. 70% of adults in the US have less than $1k in emergency savings. If you can't afford to pay now, you certainly can't afford to pay way more later. It's very frustrating how extreme the denial of poverty is in this country.

 

Have you really known poverty? For the first 7 years of my life, I never sat on a chair at the dinner table. We were very happy to get a new crate or wooden box.

That taught me that I did not stay in the class of "indentured servitude" which is wage slavery. It took me 40 years of denying myself of what everyone took for granted to prepare me to get me out of "indenture servitude," which unfortunately a majority participate in from the cradle to the grave,

 

Getting back to your original point, did that denial include comprehensive car insurance? If so, how did you respond when people told you "You pay now or you pay a lot more later"?

You don't really have to respond. I just had to comment on what looks like a bit of contradictory and circular reasoning.

 

Comprehensive insurance is part of the cost and responsibility of owning a car. It's like not affording and foregoing an oil change, because you can't afford it.

The rich and well off are the only ones who can't afford to get it, because they can cover any damages out of pocket.

 

Is comprehensive really that expensive? I think I'm paying $10 extra per month to get comprehensive coverage with a $250 deductible, which would end up being less than fitting an aftermarket cat out of pocket.

 

I haven't had an accident claim on my car insurance since 1990 and in 2012 when I got my '07 Prius It was $100 a month for comprehensive... Then as the car lost its value and I did the math in 2018 I downgraded to minimum liability required by law in my state for $37 a month.
'

 

I believe it was no more than £150. It was also replaced by insurance - and I believe they wisely decided to install a non-OEM CC to reduce the risk of a recurring theft. I believe it cost my insurance more providing me with a top of the range Hyundai i20 Auto for about 16 days - the time it took to repair my Gen 2 Tspirit - than it did for the actual repairs.

Overall, I was extremely pleased with my insurers response. Mind you, a few weeks later, lots of UK Gen 2’s were being written off by many insurers, instead of repairing them.
Many perfectly serviceable Gen 2’s went to the scrap yards, methinks!


Source: iPhone 12 Pro Max 512GB ? Pro

 

Have you check out what it cost for comprehensive, now? it should be a lot less, unless you are in a C.A.R.B. state like California that requires an OER cat replacement. For insurance companies, it's all about the cost vs. loss in numbers.

 

For my 2009 Prius, comprehensive coverage (listed as “other than collision” on my policy) with a $250 deductible is $114 a year. Collision coverage with a $500 deductible is $268 per year. My insurance covered the 2 times this year my catalytic converter was stolen, paying out a total of over $5000. I haven’t paid them any more than that in the 4 years I’ve owned the car. Getting your money’s worth = good insurance.

 

Just remember....
Insurance companies like to get THEIR money's worth too.

 

Do you blame them? They are not charities. They are in business to make a profit.

How many of us were taught that the Mayflower was a chartered ship insured by Lloyd's of London?

If it wasn't for insurance, none of us would be here, unless we were native American.

 

Of course. But different companies handle that differently. My insurance could have given me a run around or totaled out my car when I filed a claim, or chosen not to renew my policy after paying out an amount approximately equal to the worth of the car in 1 year, but they didn’t do that. They paid both claims promptly and renewed my policy as they have before, with no fuss. And because they treated me well, I am happy to remain a loyal customer and recommend the company (Amica) to others. Essentially it’s a good deal for both parties.

 

I think this may be the way to go. Those of us that can, proactively replace our OEM cats with good aftermarket units and sell the OEM CAT's to those that need them.

 

Yea... Of course this is a shady option at that price point... The folks on Ebay selling them seem to appear to sell 10 or so and then shut down their account. I ordered one a week ago on Sunday on Ebay from Walnut, California and when they sent me the "your item has shipped" notification I looked up the tracking number all week and it never got past the "shipping label was created" status and USPS still doesn't have the package in their possession. What's worse I choose to buy from these folks because Ebay said Item location was California and packages tend to show up a few days early if I order on west coast. However tracking info say item was shipped from Kentucky. Grr... And granted USPS does have a history of failing to track packages and they show up anyway, but at this point I sure am glad ebay is going to protect me from what seems like a scam thus far.

 

what?....

 

Not sure if my last message got approved by moderator - wondering if this could be a "fix" for states that allow aftermarket:
switch out OEM and put in aftermarket, then store OEM at home? If there's a high probability that aftermarket gets stolen, then its not a $2k part?

 

Or spend $300 or so on a catalytic converter shield that prevents it from being stolen

 

Yes, but they can also cut through that as it some of the members here have shared. It slows them down but not sure if it can stop any willing thief. Unless I'm missing something...