Three Things That Could Happen If You Fail To Keep Your Car Insured
When you get a car loan or choose to lease a car, you have to carry auto insurance. The insurance does much more than just protect you and the car from injuries and damage in the event of a car accident. You should know all that could go wrong if you do not keep your car insured.
Mechanics Can Refuse to Repair Your Vehicle
It does not matter if you lease or if you have a monthly car payment. If you do not have insurance, a mechanic can refuse to repair your vehicle. That is because any damage your vehicle incurs while sitting on the mechanic's lot awaiting repairs could result in a lawsuit against the mechanic, and a mechanic does not want to take that chance (even though the mechanics would not be the ones causing any damage). When you are insured, then the mechanics feel more comfortable about making repairs because they know that vandalism and other damages not related to them or their business will not come back on them. They know that insured drivers can simply file a claim with their insurance companies.
Lenders Can Repossess the Vehicle
When auto insurance is a requirement to secure the car loan, and you stop carrying car insurance, the lender can repossess your vehicle. It poses a serious financial risk to your lender when your vehicle is not insured because an accident could total the vehicle and/or seriously injure you, creating a major financial loss for the lender. Car insurance would recover most of those losses, but only if you carry the insurance continuously. Hence, you could be in danger of having your vehicle repossessed if you do not carry insurance on the vehicle.
You May Be Forced to Pay for the Vehicle in Full, Even If It Is Totaled
In the event of a car accident, if the car is pronounced "totaled" or it is clear that it is too damaged to repair, your lender has to be notified. That means that if you do not have insurance, the lender can take action to ensure that the terms of your lending contract are enforced. That translates to paying for the vehicle in full, even though you no longer have said vehicle or that vehicle is not drivable ever again. If you still have thousands to pay on the vehicle, that could be a very long and painful way to learn a lesson about carrying auto insurance.