Hybrids Safer Than Gas

New report shows that Hybrid cars on average are 25% safer than comparable gas powered cars. Weight appears to be the biggest factor, since Hybrids typically weigh more. Read the entire article, here.

Hazardous Weather Likely Today

The Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Louisville this afternoon. Heavy rain and lightening with winds as high as 32 mph likely. If you do not have to be on the roads, stay home.

Do Siri and Other Voice to Text Messaging Apps Promote Safer Driving?

Do Voice to Text Apps Promote Safer Driving?

The recent release of Apple’s long awaited iPhone 4s brought with it an exciting new feature called Siri, a natural voice interface that uses artificial intelligence to interpret user commands and answer questions.  Ask Siri to text a contact and the commands are completed without any physical input by the user.  Elly over at Appchat has a short Youtube video demonstrating this Siri function, here.

While Siri is only available on the new iPhone 4s, there are other 3rd party voice to text apps available for other phones in both iTunes and the Android App Store.  These apps allow a user to record a message and turn it into text.  The user can then choose whether to email or text the message or send it as an update to Twitter or Facebook.  Other 3rd party apps read text and emails aloud, allowing you to respond with voice commands.  While these apps do turn voice into text and can initiate simple commands, they typically require a much larger amount of user input to function.

So, with this understanding can we say that functions like Siri and 3rd party iPhone and Android voice to text apps promote safer driving?

It’s clear that the a decrease in user input reduces the amount of time a user is distracted by his mobile phone.  Voice to text apps that eliminate the need to type or read text are clearly a better alternative than actually typing or reading the text itself.  However, that does not mean that these apps eliminate distractions themselves.

The US Dept. of Transportation maintains a website at distraction.gov that discusses the facts of distracted driving and the statistics on distraction’s role in car wrecks.   According to distraction.gov there are actually three main types of distractions:

• Visual-taking your eyes off the road
• Manual-taking your hands off the wheel,
• Cognitive-taking your mind off what you’re doing

According to distraction.gov among other statistics:

• Texting is the most alarming distraction, because it involves all three types of distraction
• 20% of injury crashes in 2009 involved reports of distracted driving
• The under 20 age group had the greatest proportion of distracted drivers
• Drivers who use a handheld device were four times likely to be involved in crashes serious enough to injure themselves.

Anything that takes your eyes, hands or mind off the task of driving is considered a distraction.  The higher the level of distraction, like text messaging, the better the likelihood that the distraction will play a role in a serious injury causing crash.

Any app or function that reduces or eliminates distractions  clearly promotes safer driving.  Among all the voice to text apps and functions, Siri would appear to hold the most promise.  However, while Siri and other 3rd party voice to text apps may reduce the amount of visual and manual distraction involved in sending a text message, they do not entirely eliminate all the distractions that can contribute to a car wreck.  The more a user is required to look at his device or physically input information into his device, the more visual, manual, and cognitive distraction that occurs.  The more distractions, the bigger the risk of an injury causing wreck.

Remember the safest way to drive is to avoid all distractions, including using your cell phone, whether or not you use Siri or other third party apps.  Do not under any circumstances manually text message someone while driving since this act is the most distracting, most dangerous and likely illegal.

Women More Likely to Get Hurt in Car Wrecks Even When Wearing Seatbelts.

Women More Likely to Be Hurt in Car Wrecks

US News just reported on findings by the American Journal of Public Health that revealed that women who wore seatbelts were more likely then men who wore seatbelts to be injured in car wrecks.  The report only looked at cars from 1998 to 2008, so newer cars may not provide the same results.

According to the report women were 47% m0re likely to be injured then men.  However, men were still more likely to die in a crash.  The reason?  Experts believe that women’s smaller size makes them more vulnerable due to their seating position and interaction with the safety restraints.

While newer safety technology may or may not reduce these findings, the fact remains that both men and women will continue to be injured in car wrecks.  The fact that cars are safer, doesn’t eliminate all injuries.  That’s because the dynamics of car wrecks still involve an intolerable amount of stress to the human body.  The human body simply is not designed to undergo impacts such as those in car wrecks.

Cars are a relatively recent industrial phenomenon.  The fact that cars have drastically improved in both design and safety does not remove the fact that a collision causes significant stress and force to the human body.  While seatbelts, headrests, and airbags have reduced the chance of the human body impacting hard stationary object in cars, they have not reduced the force at which the human body travels before it hits the restraint.

Safety features are a good thing and they continue to reduce the likelihood that someone in a car wreck will be seriously injured or killed.  However, that does not necessarily mean that they prevent all injuries.  Don’t be surprised if studies continue to show that injuries and deaths continue to occur in car wrecks no matter what safety features are involved.   Unfortunately, for women who are generally smaller then men, their size and muscle build may make them more likely to be injured in a car wreck, even while wearing a seatbelt.

How to Transport Children in Cars Safely

Transport Your Child Safely

USA Today recently published an article discussing a recent study by  the non-profit group Safe Kids USA that shows that most parents aren’t using child seats correctly. Only 30% are using the tether straps that keep the tops of child seats — and children’s heads — secured in crashes, and many are not using the safest seats for their children’s ages.

In light of this report USA Today published a follow-up article showing How to Transport Children Safely.  The article discusses the appropriate stages of child car safety from rear facing car seats to booster chairs for younger children, and when each is appropriate.  According to the guidelines:

• Children should ride in the back, facing the rear in safety seats until they are 2 or until they exceed the weight limits of the safety seat.
• Children above the age of two should ride in the back in forward facing safety seats until they exceed the weight limits.
• Children who have exceeded the height and weight limits of safety seats should ride in a booster seat until the lap and shoulder belts fit property, usually between 8 and 12.
• Seat belts fit correctly when the child can remain with his or her back against the seat and the knees bend naturally over the edge of the seat.  The lap belt should fit comfortably across the hips and the shoulder belt across the mid chest.
• Children under 13 are 40% safer in the back seat, whether or not they have airbags.  Never put a rear facing child safety seat near an active air bag.

These are must read articles for parents who transport children in cars and who might be unsure how their children should be secured or whether or not their child is ready to move to the next safety level.

Data Shows Health Insurance Denial Rates Routinely 20%

Bad News Regarding Your Health Insurance

USA Today posts an article on data compiled by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) pursuant to the recently passed health care law, showing the denial rates for health insurance.  Using this data a Government Accountability Office study of 459 insurers published earlier this year found an average of 19% of applicants nationally were denied coverage.  The study showed a wide range of denial rates.  A quarter of insurers had denial rates of 15% or below and a quarter had rates of 40% or higher.

The article noted that a House Energy and Commerce Committee investigation into four large for-profit insurers last year found that the denial rates have steadily increased from 11.9% in 2007 to 15.3% in 2009. The companies reviewed were Aetna, Humana, UnitedHealthcare and WellPoint.

The article quotes Kentucky resident Amanda Hite who says she felt “really healthy” when she applied recently for health insurance. But Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield denied her, because she had seen a chiropractor a few months earlier for a sore back and later had visited an emergency room because of back pain.  Hite’s case isn’t unusual. Many of the plans offered by Anthem Blue Cross in Kentucky reject about one in five applicants, according to data provided by insurers to the HHS. Rival insurers in the state have even higher denial rates: Humana rejects 26% to 39% of applications in Kentucky, while UnitedHealthcare denies 38% to 43%.

This is yet another example of how insurance companies seek to avoid risk.  Health insurance companies only want to insure healthy people who don’t use their benefits.  Car insurance companies only want to insure people who don’t get into accidents.  The difference?  Well, most states require insurance companies to offer minimum car insurance, while also requiring all drivers to have this minimum insurance.  Health insurance companies for the most part were not so obligated.  However, the recent Health Care Law bans health insurance companies from denying coverage for health reasons starting in 2014.

Insurance companies are in the risk business.  The more risk a person has, the more premiums that person will pay to offset the risk the insurance company takes on by insuring that person.  Mandatory insurance requirements favor consumers, because they inherently spread the risk among a larger group of people, while denying insurance companies the luxury of cherry picking only those consumers who carry the lowest risk.

Good Neighbors Are Hard to Find When It Comes to Insurance.

Good Neighbors Are Hard To Find When Filing Claims

By now we’ve all seen the commercials where some catastrophe befalls an insurance customer for a national insurance company.  Surprisingly, the customer is not too worried.  They sing a little jingle about “good neighbors” and poof! an insurance representative shows up to handle the situation.  This representative calls the person by name and tells them not to worry, they will handle whatever problem has presented itself.

The commercial is meant to give the viewer the impression that if you have insurance with this particular insurance company that any problems you might have will be met by a known, friendly, and helpful insurance agent.   This scenario couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Consider a typical situation when you first buy car insurance.  You go to a local insurance agent and request insurance for your car.  You might have had a previous relationship with this agent over many years.  He is a representative of the insurance company.  The agent’s job is to take down some information, have you fill out the necessary paperwork, and submit your application, along with your first month’s premium to the insurance company.  He then receives compensation in the form of commissions based on each application he submits that is later approved by the insurance company.  Your interaction with an insurance agent is likely to be very pleasant.  Does this commercial show anything remotely similar?

Now consider a typical situation when you file a claim against an insurance company after some type of loss, such as a car crash.  This might be your insurance company or somebody else’s.  You get a call from the insurance company adjuster who says he will be handling your claim.  It is doubtful you have ever met this person before.  Unlike the agent who is an independent representative of the insurance company, the adjuster is an employee.  He is paid a salary by the insurance company.  His job is to get information about your claim, review the damage (called adjusting), and then offer to settle your claim.   Your interaction with an insurance adjuster isn’t likely to be as pleasant.  But, the commercial comes a lot closer to showing this scenario doesn’t it?

The purpose of the commercial is to make you identify with something about insurance that you like, such as your insurance agent, while giving you the impression that your agent is involved in the claims process.  Well, they aren’t.  The unknown, potentially adverse, and likely biased insurance adjuster is.

The insurance agent facilitates  your purchase of insurance with the insurance company.  The adjuster is the insurance company. The insurance adjuster’s job is not to facilitate anything, but to make sure the insurance company doesn’t pay out anything unless it has to, and only then as a little as possible.  Insurance companies don’t make money paying out claims.

But what if you disagree with the adjuster about the value of your claim?  What if you believe the adjuster is improperly delaying or denying your claim?  What if you think the adjuster is being unfair?  What if you think the adjuster has undervalued your car, or other property?  Do you think the insurance company is acting like a good neighbor then?

Don’t be fooled by commercials or catchy jingles.  Insurance companies are in business to make money.  They do not make money by paying out more on claims than they take in on premiums.  Adjusters know this.  The next time you suffer a casualty loss or turn in an insurance claim, remember no amount of catchy singing is going to make your dealing with the insurance company pleasant.  When you ask an insurance company to settle your claim remember good neighbors are hard to find.

Why Lawsuits Aren’t the Reason Your Insurance Premiums Are Rising.

Is Your Money In Good Hands?

USA Today is reporting that Allstate Insurance Company is suing Goldman Sachs saying more than $122 million in mortgage-backed securities the insurance company bought beginning in 2006 were fraudulent.  According to the article; “Allstate says it purchased more than $122 million in mortgage-backed securities from Goldman Sachs and affiliates in 2006 and 2007.  The value of those securities plunged as the housing market bubble burst.”

Still think that lawsuits by personal injury lawyers are the reason your auto insurance premiums keep rising.  Think again.  Think a $122 million dollar hit in a bad investment by Allstate didn’t effect its bottom line?  The truth is that insurance companies don’t really make most of their money from premiums.  While accidents due play a part in an insurance company’s risk analysis and in the premiums people will pay, their increase year over year is tied more to a company’s investment portfolio then to actual losses.

There is an excellent article over on Weakonomics that discusses how an insurance company’s investment losses in the stock market effect your premiums.  So, you can imagine what a $122 million loss did to Allstate and its decision on whether or not to raise premiums for its customers.  You can also imagine why it is now moving to recover some of those losses from Goldman Sachs.  Of course, none of this is related to the claims Allstate had to pay out on its policies of car insurance.

Remember the next time someone tells you that car insurance rates are going up because of lawsuits, that such a statement simply isn’t true.   In fact, such a statement was probably perpetrated by the insurance companies, their lobbyists, or their politicians as part of a campaign to influence public opinion in their favor.

The next time your premiums rise don’t be too surprised to find out that your insurance company took a hit on its investments or the stock market suffered some loss.  Don’t blame it on the victim of a car wreck or his lawyer.

Flash Flood Warning Issued Thursday

The National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Warning for Louisville, Thursday through Friday morning. Heavy rains expected. Up to three inches in Louisville alone. Low lying areas are prone to water accumulation so drivers should avoid these areas or exercise extreme caution.

Government Investigation Fails to Find Electronic’s Flaw in Toyota Recalls

No Electric Flaws for Toyota

The government investigation into Toyota’s recent recalls failed to find a causal connection between Toyota’s electronic controls and the unintended acceleration problems reported. The investigation revealed that prior issues, including stuck gas pedals and defective floor mats were the likely cause of the complaints. Click the link to read the entire article, including government recommendations to reduce the likelihood of future accidents.