How come insurance companies are allowed to get away with charging different rates based on gender?
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Sexist car insurance
- Thread starter Mass Hysteria
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Because they say teenage/young men drive like asswipes and tend to get in accidents more than ladies.
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Erp, when I saw this title I thought it said "Sexiest car insurance" and I was thinking, you know, that pink-haired cartoon chick from the Esurance commercials is pretty cute...
I also saw it as that but i'm blind and i'm not wearing my glasses and i cant trust my sight right now.
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iGary said:"Statistics."
yeah, probably
Generalised on something you are born with and cant do anything about, not on how you are.
what would happen if it was based on ethnic origin?
iGary said:I thought it said sexiest, too.
me three.
everyone knows teenage boys are lousy drivers.
i keeed i keeed.... or do i? 
vniow said:
iGary said:I thought it said sexiest, too.
Glad I wasn't the only one to take that read of the title.
Now we know where our minds are located.
Loge said:
As well as age and marital status too.
Blackheart said:
Not if the insurance companies could show through actuarial tables that certain ethnic groups show a greater risk.
Chip NoVaMac said:
Yeah, imagine the adverts for that! especially if they were based around the themes used for women - wonder why they dont do it!!
I cant believe that big companies get away with this without a fuss. Could I use the same criteria if say employing someone? for example:
- sorry love, youre female you see, and therefore statistically youre going to drop a sprog at sometime in the near future and want loads of time off, so im going to give the job to a man instead. Dont take it personally, I dont know if he's good enough for the position, all I know is hes male and youre not.
Is this analogy right or am I extreme ranting due to tiredness
Still, shouldn't complain, cant see em putting the price for men down, probably just put the womens up in line and call it being fair!
Mass Hysteria said:
No, it's not right.
First of all, insurance rates have much less to do with gender than age and driving history. Should insurance companies charge flat rates across all policy holders? I'm up for that. Then again, I'm also up for socialism.
Or, to look at it another way, why shouldn't a teenage driver have to prove themselves a safe driver before they are rewarded with reasonable rates? I have no problem with teenagers having to earn discounts on car insurance, just as one has to earn a raise in one's employment.
I fail to see any connection between a teenager having higher insurance rates and an issue so fundamental as equal opportunity to employment for all people. One is a minor annoyance over which the individual has control (safe driving will gradually bring rates down), the other is an act of large scale social oppression that seeks to preclude individuals from taking any control over their own lives (and which would, in effect, "keep women in the kitchen").
More simply: The insurance company doesn't refuse to cover teenagers, and women are generally paid less than men. So, no. Your analogy doesn't work.
I'm beginning to think some people are serious about the "flat rate for all" concept. Are there actually people who think this would work?
Mass Hysteria said:Yeah, imagine the adverts for that! especially if they were based around the themes used for women - wonder why they dont do it!!
I cant believe that big companies get away with this without a fuss. Could I use the same criteria if say employing someone? for example:
- sorry love, youre female you see, and therefore statistically youre going to drop a sprog at sometime in the near future and want loads of time off, so im going to give the job to a man instead. Dont take it personally, I dont know if he's good enough for the position, all I know is hes male and youre not.
Is this analogy right or am I extreme ranting due to tiredness
Still, shouldn't complain, cant see em putting the price for men down, probably just put the womens up in line and call it being fair!
You are not far off, at least here in the US. Our age, race, and sex discrimination laws are there; but it is hard to prove. A company only has to prove they hired the best candidate. And as long as there is some diversity in that workplace, then all is well.
A growing number of people over 40 are being "downsized", and passed by for jobs. Why? Because they represent a growing cost to benefits.
Our company was hit with a 29% increase in health insurance costs. I attribute it to the fact in the last year we had a stroke victim, an associate that fought a battle to cancer and lost, a difficult pregnancy, and major back surgery - and these are the ones that I know about.
Add to that the company currently rewards longevity, so the average age of the employees is probably near 40+ years old. Heck, I have been there six years and I am still the "baby" of the company!
An aging workforce is a drain on medical costs. Hence you are seeing other companies that are trying to limit their "exposure" by using "downsizing" and hiring practices to reduce their costs.
There are many questions that can't be asked directly in the hiring process. But there are ways around it. And in the eagerness of wanting a job, we tell it all.
Example:
Interviewer: So how do you unwind after a stressful day? I love going out to the park with my two boys and practice some soccer moves.
Interviewee: My daughter is into swimming. (Or I take my dog out the dog park each and every time I can).
Interviewer: That is so great. How old is she? Mine are 7 and 10
Interviewee: Well, she is our first. And she is 5 yo. (warning sign - she is our first - more to come)
You get the idea. Yet, holding back on personal details during the relationship building of the interview can back fire too.
A tough road ahead, where $ and not the people matter for many companies.
iBlue said:me three.
everyone knows teenage boys are lousy drivers.
Allow me to defend myself.
I don't know how to defend myself.
Drat.
*goes off to find some gears to grind and some shopping carts to sideswipe*
Actually...I've only ever ground the gears once and it was last night...
Me four.iBlue said:me three.
everyone knows teenage boys are lousy drivers.
It really is ********, And I beg to differ that men are the worst drivers. I have never had a friend, or myself, that wasn't involved in an accident caused by a woman. All three of mine were caused by women. Every one I see on the road involves a women, whether they caused it or not, I don't know.
Let's not forget more woman read books, do their makeup and hair, and chat on cell phones in the car than men do. It's lies. LIES I TELL YOU!
Let's not forget more woman read books, do their makeup and hair, and chat on cell phones in the car than men do. It's lies. LIES I TELL YOU!
OutThere said:Allow me to defend myself.
..
Actually...I've only ever ground the gears once and it was last night...
What's gear grinding?
katie ta achoo said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manual_transmission_driving_technique#Grinding_Gears
I was talking to my mom one day when I was in high school, and I was like "I don't get why boys have more expensive insurance, all of the girls I know are horrible drivers." She responded something to the effect of: "Girls are more likely to do something like run over their mailbox, but boys have the whole testosterone thing so they're more likely go 120mph and get themselves killed."
