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#1 Rule Before You File Auto Insurance Claims (10 30 23)

#1 Rule Before You File Auto Insurance Claims (10 30 23)

Sally McDonald
October 30, 2023

🚘️ Car Payments Breaking the Bank for Some

Some Americans are struggling to keep up with their auto loan payments.

Car repossessions were up more than 20% year over year as of July.

Now, 6.1% of subprime auto loan borrowers are 60+ days behind on their payments. That’s the highest rate in a dataset that goes back to 1994.

Of course, the price of new and used vehicles skyrocketed after COVID-19 reached the United States. At the same time, Americans were temporarily saving more of our income than we have since the 1970s.

We felt empowered to spend money on vehicles at inflated prices as we enjoyed stimulus checks, a pause on student loan debt payments and historically low interest rates.

Now, subprime borrowers face auto loan rates of 14 to 21%. The personal savings rate has fallen from 5.3% in May to 3.4% in September — near all-time historical lows.

The good news is that just 0.27% of prime borrowers are delinquent.

One of the best ways to avoid that situation? Limit your loan to a maximum of 42 months.

“If you can’t afford the payment on a 42-month loan, then you should buy a cheaper car,” Clark says.

💵 Today’s Top Stories

Clark Howard’s #1 Rule Before You File an Auto Insurance Claim

Auto insurance exists so you can file a claim for anything, right? Not so fast. Clark says you should never file any claim for less than $1,500, and you should almost always try to avoid claims. Read more.

Should You Spend an Extra $5 a Month for a Costco Executive Membership?

Here’s how much you need to spend at Costco annually in order to make the top-rung membership worth it. Read more.

Get T-Mobile’s Network for $15/Month With These Sacrifices

You can get an entire year of cell phone coverage on T-Mobile’s network for just $180. Here are the stipulations. Read more.

How To Prevent, Report and Repair Identity Theft

“Identity theft” doesn’t have to be a mysterious nightmare. In today’s world, protecting against it (or repairing your finances if it happens) is part of life. Here’s what you should know. Read more.

Should I Avoid Callable CDs?

Did you know that Certificates of Deposit come in two flavors, callable and non-callable? Here’s why Clark “hates” callable CDs, and what they allow banks to do. Read more.

📊 Stat of the Day

🏡 52%: The premium you pay on the average new mortgage payment right now vs. the average apartment rent. The data goes back to 1996 and the previous high peak came in 2006 at 33%.

💰️ Deal Alert: Today’s Top Deals

The best early Black Friday deals at Target

Get this deal.

Costco’s Black Friday ad: The best deals + deals starting now!