Arizona Car Insurance
How do Arizona car insurance laws protect you?
For years, we have carried on a love-hate relationships with legislators who write the laws concerning Arizona car insurance, and, of course, there hasn't really been any love lost with the companies that actually offer the insurance either. Most often, we feel as though we are innocent pawns in a big game of financial and political chess, but more often than not, these rule makers & the companies that operate within those rules, are providing a valuable and much need service to us, the public at large. We may disagree with the way that things are carried out, but we have to respect the system, especially when it proves that it is indeed set up to protect us. We often times see our Arizona car insurance rules as a way for "Big Brother" to intrude into our lives, and for greedy insurance companies to intrude into our wallets, but these laws are not set up to make us the victim, but rather the victor.
Arizona State Flag
One prime example of how the system watches out for the little guy, occurred to me as I sat in a Tempe hospital room wondering how I was ever going to be able to afford all of the various monitors, IV lines and very expensive pain medications (not to mention the private hospital room with round-the-clock care). Just two days before, I had been strolling down the street (on the sidewalk, mind you), when suddenly, everything went a little black. Upon awaking in the emergency room of this very same hospital, I was told that I had been the victim of an unfortunate car accident. "I wasn't IN a car, I wasn't even walking in the street - I was on the sidewalk!" I exclaimed to them - how the heck had I been in a car accident - when the last thing I remembered was Walking down the street? They went on to further explain that I was actually Hit by car that had swerved to avoid a child running out into the middle of the street, chasing after a pop-fly from a game of baseball in his yard. While I commended the swift actions of the driver - attempting to spare the life of a child, I couldn't help but have some mixed feelings, as I ended up being the victim after all.
So there I lay in the hospital adding up my best estimate of just how much all of this medical attention was going to cost me, when my lawyer shows up. The first thing I think is "jeesh! I'm being sued for leaving a divot in someone's front lawn - when I did a face-plant with my rough landing," but the lawyer was actually bringing quite different news. He informed me that the driver of the car was, fortunately for me, properly covered with Arizona car insurance, and that I would not see any part of a hospital bill for this stay. The state minimum requirement for personal injury was being carried by the driver, meaning that he had a minimum of $15,000 in coverage to take care of my medical expenses that arose from this unfortunate accident.
And, just in case I did leave a divot in someone's lawn when I stuck the landing like a javelin at an Olympic event, his Arizona car insurance also covered at least $10,000 in damages to that property. We seldom look at insurance in this proper light, but at its very core, our Arizona car insurance is a method making sure that when an accident does occur, we are returned to our whole self - that is kind of the story in a nutshell; insurance helps to make you whole again.
This was a very welcome relief - to find out that I would not be on the hook for all of the expensive care that I was receiving for the days that I was hospitalized. If I had been forced to come out of my pocket for that stay, I very likely would have been more than just a physically broken man at the time, that care and treatment would have broken my personal little piggy bank as well. Arizona car insurance laws may seem a bit stiff and highly regulated at times, but I owe my well-being to the authors of those laws - who determined that the citizens of our wonderfully sunny state should be protected from the mistakes (and sometimes reckless actions) of each other. I don't blame the driver of the car one bit for trying to avoid hurting a naive child - I am actually happy that things turned out the way that they did; I would much rather see myself temporarily inconvenienced by some bumps and bruises - than to have to see a neighborhood child seriously injured or worse.
Arizona Car Insurance
I guess the lesson to take away from this experience is to recognize the value that is inherent in any type of insurance plan. Though we may not agree with the rates or with the way that the laws are written - requiring us to be insured at all times when behind the wheel - these laws are written just for such unfortunate occasions as mine. Now I have regained my full mobility and am right back to strolling down the very same stretch of road that once saw me flying through the air like Superman - only to land with all of the grace of rock falling off of a cliff & rolling down the side of a jagged hill. Thanks to the Arizona car insurance laws and to the driver of the vehicle at least being intelligent to adhere to those insurance laws; I can move on with my life.
