Unsafe driving increases LW insurance premiums
FROM THE GRF
Maureen Habel
GRF Director
What’s the most dangerous thing that seniors do every day? You might think getting up on a ladder or showering is dicey, but the fact is that the riskiest thing we do is drive. Every time I step on the accelerator of my 3,500-pound Ford Escape, I try to remind myself that I’m operating a potentially lethal weapon.
Making a mistake while driving can change your life and the lives of others in an instant. Unsafe driving habits have not only caused great suffering and death for some of our neighbors, but have also significantly raised GRF and Mutual insurance premiums, a cost borne by every resident.
We recently found out that the best deal we can get raises our insurance premiums from $3.29 million in 2023 to $5.49 million this year, primarily due to huge increases in liability and property damage coverage. Although statewide calamities have alarmed insurance carriers, our claims due to motor vehicle accidents have a direct effect on raising shareholder assessments.
The Seal Beach Police Department conducts traffic enforcement and traffic accident investigations inside the community. They issue approximately 300 moving violations a year; the most common citations are for failure to stop at posted stop signs, failure to obey a directional sign and cell phone use.
Ask yourself: Is speeding or running through a stop sign or not yielding the right of way worth it? Studies show that speeding saves very little time and the risks far outweigh any benefit.
When you don’t drive safely, you increase your chance of injuring or killing another person or yourself. After an accident, you risk paying hefty fines and can expect a huge auto insurance bump. You could even lose your driver’s license.
Ironically, I decided to take a break from writing this article to see what’s new at Home Goods. While driving east on Golden Rain, I saw a woman blow through a stop sign on Thunderbird at a very fast rate of speed.
Had I not been reminding myself “this is the most dangerous thing I will do all day,” and anticipated that she might not stop, I would not have escaped an accident in my Escape.
For good reason, insurance carriers view Leisure World as a high-risk client. We have five to eight traffic incidents a month, of which 40% are hit and runs.
We have residents who should no longer drive. According to the AAA Senior Website, “Seniors are outliving their ability to drive safely by an average of seven to 10 years.”
The combination of mobility, hearing, vision and cognitive impairments that come with older age and a history of fatal and serious accidents means that insurers must raise premiums to offset their risks. Even when GRF isn’t at fault, we are considered a deep pocket. Frankly, it’s unrealistic to expect that Seal Beach police will ever have the resources to catch every driver breaking the rules. It’s up to us and our choices. If you are reading this and know you should stop driving, please do the right thing and stop driving.
In every town hall meeting, people speak passionately about unsafe driving, especially speeding. The GRF Board hears your concerns and is doing as much as possible to improve road safety. We just installed a speed cushion on a major Trust street, and last month, we approved funds to develop construction plans to the Golden Rain Road and St. Andews traffic signal system.
These efforts are necessary but very costly. The most practical and inexpensive way to maintain a safe driving environment in our community is to adopt the old habits that were drilled into us with first license—observe the speed limit (25 mph in Leisure World), make a full stop at every stop sign whether you see anyone else there or not, and follow right of way rules. Please encourage your visitors to help us keep our residents safe and our costs down by following these same rules.
