- Totally hear you on the randomness. I drive over 100 miles a day for work and there’s just no way to predict what’ll happen, no matter how careful I am.
- I’ve had one claim in 15 years—hailstorm out of nowhere, car got pelted. Didn’t matter where I parked or how slow I drove that day.
- The math never feels straightforward either. Sometimes the difference between high and low deductible premiums isn’t even that huge, but the risk if something does happen is massive.
- Does anyone actually feel confident with their choice, or is it just crossing fingers and hoping you picked right?
Does anyone actually feel confident with their choice, or is it just crossing fingers and hoping you picked right?
Honestly, most folks are just crossing their fingers. Deductibles are a bit of a gamble, but you can tilt the odds a little by thinking about your savings and risk tolerance. If paying $1k out of pocket would sting, maybe the lower deductible is worth a few extra bucks a month. But yeah, even after years in this biz, I’ve seen people who never claim and others who get hit with hail, deer, you name it. No crystal ball here... just the best guess for your situation.
I hear you—every time renewal comes up, I try to make it a “logical” decision, but it still feels like rolling dice. I commute over 50 miles a day, so I ran the numbers on average repair costs and my emergency fund. Ended up with a $500 deductible because, honestly, if something happens during rush hour (and it has), I want to minimize the financial pain. Still feels like guesswork sometimes though... just trying to stack the odds in my favor.
Honestly, I get that “rolling dice” feeling too.
For me, I went with a higher deductible once to save on premiums, but then hit a deer on the way home (of course). Ended up dipping into my emergency fund more than I’d wanted. Now I stick with $500 as well—it’s not perfect, but at least it doesn’t wreck my budget if something goes sideways. It’s always this weird balance between what you can afford monthly and what you could actually stomach paying all at once.Still feels like guesswork sometimes though... just trying to stack the odds in my favor.
Honestly, I see this all the time—people pick a higher deductible thinking they’ll pocket the savings, but then life throws a curveball. I’ve had clients swear they’d never file a claim, then get sideswiped in a parking lot two weeks later. It’s always a trade-off. Personally, I lean toward a $500 or $1,000 deductible, depending on how much “pain” I could handle if something happened. The premium savings on super-high deductibles just don’t always add up, especially if you don’t have a big cushion set aside. It’s less about luck and more about knowing your own risk tolerance, I think.
