I get asked about extended warranties, which I regard much the same as I regard health insurance. Both are mostly of psychological value only and – often – of negative value, financially.
Both are a form of bet. The “house” – i.e., the insurer, the company offering the extended warranty – is betting they won’t have to pay you. The policy/warranty is structured accordingly – i.e., to maximize the odds in favor of the house. It is of course sold as a boon, a way for you to “save money.” But to believe this is to believe insurance companies (and car warranty companies) are a kind of charity, looking out for your best interests as opposed to theirs.
In other words, a fool’s bet.
Thus, the policy has many asterisks, caveats and lines of fine print – all designed to limit the likelihood of the issuer’s liability to have to pay out – whereas you are certain to pay in.
And that’s the hinge, the fulcrum – the point of consideration to . . . consider.
How likely is it you’ll be filing a claim – as opposed to the certainty of the cost of the coverage?
With regard to health insurance, the answer will largely depend on your health and habits, which are related and very much under your control. Assuming you have no chronic or congenital problems and assuming you maintain healthy habits such as eating healthy food in moderation, maintaining a reasonable body weight, exercising and are sensible about the risks you take (e.g., do not rock climb freestyle, without ropes) then it is a reasonable bet you will need not any “health care” whatsoever and thus, buying health insurance is a poor bet in that the “house” will clear the table of your chips and leave you with nothing – except your good health.
A way to even the odds in your favor is to bet on your own health – by keeping your chips.
Instead of sending the insurance company several hundred dollars each month (or more; many people are betting the equivalent of their rent or mortgage payment on health insurance each month) put those dollars aside. Now you win the bet regardless. If you need to pay for some incidental thing – some stitches, let’s say – you can just pay for them and not for anything else. If you don’t need to get those stitches – and the odds are, you won’t – then you will still have those dollars. Which will then be available to spend on something else you may actually need.
Car extended warranties should be regarded much the same.
Assuming you have a sound car (this is where due diligence comes in; you have an obligation to yourself to avoid buying a new car that is known to be high-maintenance and problem prone and to do all you can to assure that any used car you are considering buying is of good stock and in sound condition, as by reviewing service records and having it once-overed by a competent mechanic you trust) and assuming you practice due diligence by taking good care of it, the odds of a major problem happening – one that costs more than the extended warranty on offer – are likely low.
In the same way that a healthy 39-year-old is unlikely to suffer a heart attack anytime soon. It is possible, of course. It is also possible Trump will be reinstated as president this year. Do you want to bet on it?
Keep in mind – again – that extended warranties (and health insurance polices) are based on actuarial calculations, which is a fancy way of saying they calculate the potential cost of a payout and adjust what you pay accordingly. Thus – in this case of an extended warranty – if they know it will cost them say $2,500 to replace a transmission that is likely to fail (and they are well-aware of what is likely to fail, based on their own due diligence) then that is probably what the warranty is going to cost you.
They are also well-aware of what is not likely to fail – and those things they will generously cover, since it is unlikely they will ever have to pay to fix them. This operates on the same principle of health insurance policies for single, childless men that offer excellent maternity/child care coverage.
If you practice due diligence, financially, you will know before you buy whether a car you’re considering has a weak link and you can either avoid buying that car (sensible) or you can put aside a sum sufficient to cover yourself in the event the weak link breaks. This reorients the odds greatly in your favor since you cannot lose the bet.
If the weak link breaks, you have the money to fix it. If it does not, you have the money.
An even better bet is to start with a healthy car and keep it healthy by taking good care of it. If you do both, the odds of ever having to spend more to fix it than the cost of an extended warranty are as low as the odds of that healthy 39-year-old having a heart attack.
Or the Orange Man resuming his office by Christmas.
Insurance sells fear, chiefly – in order to get you to buy psychological security. The health insurance mafia wants you terrified of constantly imminent sickness, in order to sell you coverage – which probably won’t actually cover it (or all of it) if you actually do get sick. The extended warranty people want to sell you a policy on precisely the same basis.
You should only be scared – and buy – if you actually are unhealthy and unwilling to do anything to change that (or unable to). And only if you’re not careful about the car you buy – and how you take care of it.
Remember: The house always wins. Which is why it is good to be the house.
. . .
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Being in my 70’s I tell anyone attempting to sell me an extended warranty that I don’t really need whatever I’m buying to last longer than I will. Gotta love the stunned silence and the look on their faces 😆
I have an idea for how society should work: no insurance at all, not even allowed by law:
For home insurance, if peoples’ homes get wrecked then the society’s treasury will print free money to pay for it.
For car insurance, I have become a total believer in Eric’s philosophy of not requiring car insurance because I figured out a way for this to actually make sense — if people cause some damage then they pay for it, and if they can’t afford to pay cash then they get a 0% loan from the treasury/bank for up to 10 years or so, and if that still doesn’t cover the damages then the treasury pays for the rest with free printed money, but the bad driver gets a ‘strike’ added to their driving record so if they get ~3 strikes then they lose their license for some amount of time.
And for health insurance — also not allowed, everyone just pays cash and that (a free market) will keep the providers’ costs fair, and if people can’t afford what they need then they can get a 0% loan for up to 10 years, and if that still doesn’t cover their medical costs then the treasury/bank will pay for the rest with free printed money.
The bank owners & govt have been printing trillions of free money for themselves, but we die by every dollar — it’s time we have control over our own treasury/money so we can print money for the public services we need. The people will obviously vote to approve what we print free money for, so it’s a fair system — no individual or small group can just print their own money for their own selfish desires.
Hi Harry,
This is a subject worth addressing at length; stay tuned!
Insurance, as a financial tool, is not evil in its own right. I think a government-free anarchist society would still have insurance, just as the original insurance company, Lloyds of London, existed before governments were all-powerful. Insurance, like equity-based limited liability ownership of stocks, spread the risk and reward across multiple parties, limiting liability for all parties, and enabling pioneers to take more risks. Our modern world was built on these financial tools.
The problem is when force is involved. Government = force. As soon as government, using its monopoly on violence, puts itself between consenting parties, the motivations of all parties gets distorted.
Insurance is just another good idea that has been corrupted by the violence of government. Don’t blame insurance as an instrument; blame the people who use government violence to get between two consenting parties in any transaction.
I’ve yet to buy (or need) an extended warranty in my entire life. They are as Eric stated a sale made based on fear. I also haven’t had medical insurance in 20 years Gasp! I’ve saved somewhere in the neighborhood of $150,000-$200,000 conservatively by not paying premiums. I have not had a medical expense for myself, wife , or children that was not paid in full to date. My “healthcare” consists of actually (caring about my health) exercise, clean diet, good rest, staying the hell away from pharmaceuticals and doctors. At 45 I’m in better physical condition that many people 20 years my junior. ( I know… these days that’s like bragging about having the best teeth in Hazard KY… but it’s true!)
Warranties and insurance tend to nudge people into indicating responsibilities and liabilities onto others. I’ve thought “yeah go ahead and run into me retard I’ve got good insurance” Seriously. I carry excellent insurance on my work van since if it were a total loss I’d have a helluva time replacing it. Extended warranty? No chance.
Another timely article. I’m in the home stretch of paying off my Tacoma. I’d be closer if I had not gotten the warranty. And that makes it sound like I wanted it. I kept refusing it but they kept selling. I do not remember approving of it, but it sure was in the paperwork once my name was signed. I did not blow up about it once I noticed figuring that, at minimum, I have peace of mind should something go wrong. But when I was talking with a neighbor about the warranty (auto mechanic), he laughed and said “of course they wanted to sell you a warranty on a Tacoma, it’s just cash in the bank”.
Margins on new car sales are very low. That’s why they send you to the financial guy to finalize your paperwork. He’s more a salesman than anything else. Car dealers make money on extended warranties and kickback from the banks for loans.
To get the best deal on a new car (if that’s what you need to do), tell them that you will be getting a loan from the dealer, and that an extended warranty sounds really good. Then, when you’re in with the financial guy (after negotiating on the price of the car) , say you’ve changed your mind and you don’t want the extended warranty after all, and that you will just write them a check for the full negotiated value of the car.
Of course, you don’t need to have the cash, but if you think ahead, you can get pre-approved from your bank or credit union so you have the cash available.
There is one exception to the rule.
If buying a used luxury brand automobile known for reliability problems that run into the thousands of dollars every few months sometimes a dealership will offer a warranty for far below what it will cost to keep the beast on the road. Of course there is still the pain of taking it in. However my guess is most have become wise to this considering the articles written a few years ago.
They’re on to this. Remember, the house never loses.
Years ago the extended warranty on electronics at a big box retail club was such that it covered accidental damage 3 years after purchase. It was a great deal on laptops which go obsolete fast and are non-upgradable. Accidentally dropping said laptop within the warranty period resulted in a replacement with a current model of equal value. A very cheap upgrade for soon to be e-waste. Doubly so if you fancy gaming laptops.
As far as health insurance goes just remember the majority of people bankrupted by medical debt have health insurance. Learn from the illegals. They can’t deny you for emergency medical care. You can’t bleed a stone.
That only works because the “undocumented persons” (in the libtard mantra, a person is not “illegal”) have SPECIAL protections that law-abiding, ostensibly PRODUCTIVE CITZENS don’t have.
The trouble with “free” health care is that it’s an illusion, physicians and nurses don’t work for “Free”. Hospitals are facilities than easily run into the hundreds of millions if not billions of dollars. SOMEONE has to pay, and it’s the typical libtard mantra: SOMEONE ELSE, usually the unidentified “rich”, pay for others. In the end, no one pays, and no services are actually rendered, save it be by bribes, or they get done in the underground economy.
Seems to me that insurance and warranties are really screwed up at the moment. Automobiles can run for 100,000 miles or more with nothing but oil changes, and have been this way for at least a decade, probably more. But even a minor finder-bender, if the airbags deploy, will result in damage to the vehicle that might render it totaled. People, cars, devices weren’t ever thought to be viable for this long. That has to be having an effect on actuarial assumptions. The replacement value on a stolen cell phone far outstrips the actual value of the old phone, especially if it is several years/versions old. And what if the SD card of the camera is full of pictures? What’s the loss valued at for your memories?
With auto maintenance, it’s true that most cars, with diligent adherence to the maintenance, will give 100-150K miles of usually trouble-free service. Most engines/transaxles will easily last that long. The reparability issue often crops up with electrical and/or computer issues, not only are the contraptions so damned complicated, they’re DESIGNED to be unserviceable. A vehicle that you paid $35K for about eight years ago might now be worth about $5K to $7K, at beast, even if faithfully maintained, with reasonable mileage (about 12K per year or less), and a new “computer” or emissions part. or extensive diagnosis may run well into the thousands, and then what do you have? Still an old car, with the risk that more trouble may be afoot.
The beauty of the older rides was that they were easily understood by the “shade tree” mechanic, and you’d have a fairly simple time to diagnose even bothersome electrical problems. Plus, in general, you could GET AT the offending part!
As for collision damage, for the insurance company, they don’t give a damn IF the vehicle can be restored, nor by what means, only HOW much to repair versus the fair market value. What you’re typically insuring is not what it’d cost to replace it with a NEW equivalent but what the damn thing is actually worth. So, if some bozo smashes up your precious ride that you’ve lovingly maintained over the years, at best, his insurance company, assuming he IS insured, will at best give you “top dollar” for its current value, and that more to make you go away; insurance companies don’t get that stingy about property replacement, it’s the bodily injuries or deaths that will cost them. Else, they just want to expedite the claim and move on. But it won’t replace that the destroyed vehicle was worth more to you as transportation than it’s “Blue Book” value, else, you’d have sold it, right? That you now have to replace it, with hopefully enough for a down payment on its successor, ahead of when you’d planned to do so, that’s the RISK you run.
As for something like losing personal info on a lost SD card or similar device, hence why to NOT keep them and definitely NOT anything sensitive on a portable device! How about your BANKING info? Or other things a thief would like to know?
Properly designed insurance avoids big financial hits in your life that can otherwise sink you without ripping you off in the process. So certainly theres a place for it. If you work out, eat well, etc well designed medical insurance would factor in those variables. To my knowledge it doesnt and is in fact forced to cover pre-existing conditions for perrmission from the state to operate distorting the market. Imagine how cheap medical insurance and in turn routine medical care might be with a special high deductible, catastophic coverage plan with regular physical exams required. Alas the government forbids such plans. So we all get to pay for gender reassignment surgeries for mentally ill kids and heart surgeries for McDonalds customers.
also if we ‘re financially comfortable why cant’t you get a new car cheaper and forgo the warranty? Folks would probably treat their cars better. Likely because the broadly financially illiterate population couldnt comprehend it.
I actually love it when I’m buying something and the sales person pitches an extended warranty. “You mean this product is so unreliable it needs an extended warranty?” Whoops! Of course this doesn’t apply to those pitches you receive in the mail, created from data mining the DMV regarding your out of factory warranty vehicle.
What, you got a problem with rock climbing? 🙂
I’m 59 years old, and I haven’t had health “insurance” in a couple of years. And have no intention to start now. If they offered a catastrophic-only policy, I’d consider getting one to cover chopping off a finger or something by accident. Otherwise, I have no use for the modern medical system. I got turned off to it quite a few years ago.
Insurance is always a tricky topic because statistics come into it. Yes, the company offering the insurance always works profit into the actuarial tables, so on average, they win. However, each one of us isn’t an average, and some of us could have an unlucky car which will definitely be a good idea to insure, but we just don’t know ahead of time! The way I see it, is that I never insure against something that I can afford to pay, even if it’s uncomfortable to pay if. I do carry insurance against things that would destroy me financially.
When I was buying my Focus RS, the dealer offered me a “tire warranty”. I asked whether it covers wear and tear? Yup. Is there a limit on the number of tires you replace? Nope. $2800 for three years. Now, I have a track car, and the primary wear and tear item is tires. So, I’m thinking, this is a screaming deal, because if I track this car, big and heavy as it is, I’ve got free tries for three years, so I bought it. It took me two weeks to break in the car, then I took it to the track, and naturally, used up a whole set of tires. I went in, and got a new set, covered by warranty, it was great! When I showed up in another two weeks needing new tires, they installed them, but dropped my warranty coverage and refunded my warranty money. Bummer, but hey, I got two free sets of expensive 19″ tires.
In general, insurance isn’t supposed to be literally a “free ride”, it’s supposed to provide coverage against an unlikely financial calamity that, due to large numbers of premium-paying insured, statistics, and having healthy enough reserves, at least in the eyes of the regulating state, would prove devastating to the insured.
Like poor credit, those that should have it the least (due to the need to cultivate better financial discipline and habits, including having an emergency funds to deal with the little “hiccups” in life) get charged the MOST for these “dodgy” insurance plans and extended warranties. In sales, they’re typically called “add-ons”, as the salesman has strong incentives to move them (indeed, those that don’t sell a lot are usually ’86ed, pronto). While in a very few situations the consumer may win out, there’s a REASON these outfits push them!
The best financial advice is to avoid purchases in the first place that you absolutely have to “insure”, it’s a sign that you’re taking on too great an obligation for your means. If you cant’ afford to fix it, you can’t afford it, PERIOD. Save your dough and eschew these “add-ons”, as the best “assurance” is having a healthy RESERVE of funds. Note I don’t necessarily say “money in the BANK”.
My son had an RS, and with the ultra-low profile tires I advised him to get the tires wheel insurance which he did. It wasn’t that much though, I think around $800-1000? He ended up with 2-3 bent rims, 4+ blowouts, etc…. Way, way over $800. But this was in the NE, where low profile tires don’t do well.
Maybe that’s why they raised it so much, cause of him, haha………..
I wouldn’t have advised him to buy it for $2800 though.
He eventually ended up in a truck, because even though he didn’t pay much (800) to be covered, the time to deal with these problems out way the benefits (to him, and me).
Mine was offered through the dealership service department, perhaps it wasn’t the same thing.
Anyhow, these rubber bands on steel drums are ridiculous. I bought a set of 18″ wheels, which is the smallest that can clear the brakes, and that 1″ makes the ride comfier and tires a lot cheaper. My track car runs 50 profile tires, and those are better in every way.
They don’t offer extended warranties because there’s no money in them.
A great many of the sins of insurance of all kinds is the State regulation of them. Designed specifically to prevent both competition, and customer choice. For example, in most, if not all States, you are legally prohibited from buying catastrophic, high deductible health insurance, except as addendum to a “legal” policy. Health insurance CANNOT be sold across State lines because the regulation isn’t consistent from one to another. “The regulations of State X are inferior to our regulations”, as in they don’t require pregnancy coverage for men.
Once upon a time, I was a State licensed agent, in both property and medical. There is a LOT of money in it, as the agent gets a cut of every premium you pay, as long as you pay. Fortunately, I discovered I had a moral foundation, and ethical standards, and bailed out before I needed to renew my license.
Eric, while I agree with you in principle, I’m going to disagree with you on this one from a perspective of ‘it depends’.
For me, I buy basically one vehicle a year, for the past 25 years +/-. If the factory extended warranty is what I think affordable or fair, then I do it. Recent Ford F-150 certified buy at $34K, extended warranty for as long as I own it was $800, or 2%. Recent new Ram, $52K, factory warranty for as long as I will own it was $1500 or 3%.
I play the averages. Had a certified Suburban 2500 that turned out to be a flood car (shouldn’t have been a certified car, someone got snookered), total cost to repair was well over $10K to GM. New Durango touch screen went out, $3K+ to FCA, Caddy DTS certified turned out to be in a bad wreck (again shouldn’t have been certified, someone got snookered), needed a total engine replacement, cost to GM $8-10K, etc……….
Some will say, ‘you shouldn’t have bought those’, and I say if I can get a factory warranty it doesn’t matter to me. Also saves me tons of time not to have to be concerned at all (time is money).
Most 20+ cars were fine with minor issues.
So in the long run, I’ve probably broken even or paid a little more than I got back, but and this is a big but, I don’t ever have to be concerned knowing that wherever I am (all over the country), I am better off a majority of the time to be taken care of by a local dealer vs. potential unknowns.
Just my situation and two cents.
On average, it’s a bet that you lose. Odds favor the house…just like any financially viable casino.
I still like the anecdote of many moons ago, when my then-g/f and I were playing blackjack at some “off strip’ casino in Reno, NV. The dealer was nice enough, and she did the obligatory pitch about the side bet (a pair on the first two cards dealt), then she “walked it back” by saying, “honestly, sir, it’s a ‘house bet’ “. I replied, “sweetheart, the WHOLE GAME is a ‘house bet’, else, you wouldn’t BE here!”. Got a nervous chuckle out of her, I hope the Pit Boss didn’t give her shit about it.
Can’t say I disagree with you for most. Just giving an example of a situation were it works (for me).
I could give many other examples of when I got stuck somewhere/somehow, that good dealers have bailed me out and saved me countless thousands and thousands of lost wages due to circumstances of a broken car.
Insurers wouldn’t be in business if the odds weren’t set to ensure a profit.
Speaking of which: “It is also possible Trump will be reinstated as president this year. Do you want to bet on it?”
Depends – what odds are you offering?
🙂
Hi karlan,
LOL. I am intrigued. In what possible scenario could Trump be reinstated?
Not too sure, actually. But give me 1000:1 and I’ll take that bet!
Even if fraud and a false result were clearly proven, there doesn’t seem to be an actual path towards re-instatement. At least it would have to be an entirely unprecedented process/event.
Not under anything IAW the US Constitution and the rule of law, unfortunately. The chance to stop the “Steal” lay with the respective GOP legislators in the State houses in WI, MI, PA, and GA, since THEY have the authority to not certify the election if they believe it to be “tainted”, and had they simply refused to do so and certify any electors, the election would have had both Xiden and Trump short of the needed 270 electoral votes, throwing the election into the House. Of course, it still would have required party solidarity to follow through with that, even though the GOP held (and still holds) a majority of the state delegations of representatives in the House. Be assured that with the usual corrupt politicking and fear of violence, i.e. AntiFa and other goons, no assurance that Trump would have been elected in a contingent election.
There is no mechanism to undo an election, even one with massive cheating. Since Biden himself would have had no direct or even indirect role in it, not only for deniability bit also because of his condition the most that could possibly happen is those who carried out such acts if proven, would serve time in club fed.
The only way to reinstate DJT is for him to win a future election.
The sheepeople didn’t know they would become the extended warranty for the vaccine experiment that is failing….time for your booster.
In my professional world there’s a science/art/black magic called (Reliability, Availability, & Maintainability). It’s real booger eatin’ nerd stuff but the upshot is they develop pretty accurate models on failure modes, root causes, timeframes, and such. It’s because of my experience with the RAM geeks that I laugh at the ‘extended warranty’ offers. The manufacturer’s know within some standard deviation when systems and/or widgets will likely fail & shift the warranty to the left. Et voila, they just made $$$ for doing nothing.
Indeed, Mike!
Whenever I hear someone trying to sell something on the basis of “saving money” – as opposed to the merits of the whatever it is – I know they are trying to make money by selling stupidity and fear.
A point I repeatedly made to my former wife, who was always coming home with something marginally useful, or useless, claiming to have “saved money” because it was marked down so much. “My dear, you cannot save money by spending it”.
Sometimes insurance is sold as “assurance”, to allays fears of risk and/or the unknown. READ THE DAMN FINE PRINT, for in there, you’ll find, as the late Robin William’s awesome version of Aladdin’s Genie cited, “limits, provisos, quid quo pros” (Imitating William F Buckley, for some reason the Disney animators had in mind).
In general, it means you’ve bought something you CAN’T AFFORD…or at least, can’t afford to “eat”. For example, my “little goil” (youngest kid in the Self tribe) recently returned home from her Mormon mission, and is starting school (just moved in with her friends into a place with three other girls, split between BYU and Utah Valley U). Kid wants a laptop, and it just HAS to be a MacBook (augh), but the “best” part is when she shops one at “Best (Worst) Buy”, and they try to sell her the “Apple Care”. More or less, ADD 25% to the cost of the product, to “care” that the machine will be fixed/replaced if dropped or otherwise damaged. Ahh…but what of THEFT, a not uncommon problem plaguing campuses and vicinity, even in “Yew-Tah’s” “Happy Valley” (Payson-Spanish Fork-Provo-Orem-American Fork-Lehi, all in Utah County south of Salt Lake).
I’ve tried to appeal to the kid to just save her dough towards other things she’ll need, or the laptop’s eventual successor. As for me…well, there’s a big advantage when #1 son is a tech geek, as I’ve got SEVERAL desktops and laptops, all cobbled together out of Gawd-knows-what, running not just “Winders” but also several different builds of Linux, the South African Ubuntu being the fave. All of ’em run whatever needs to be run w/o a hiccup. It’s all a matter of a little knowledge, at least enough to be “dangerous”, at least to predatory marketers.
Remind me to tell you of my recent experience with a catastrophic blowout (not as bad as Travolta’s) and my experience with Ford’s Roadside “Assistance” for my 2020 Ford (con)Fusion. Led straight to the stealership and numerous attempts to greatly thin my pocketbook. Definitely NOT an incentive to ever buy a new ride again!
‘The extended warranty people want to sell you a policy’ — EP
Do they ever. A couple of simple criteria suffice to rule out dealing with the extended warranty scammers.
One thing they do is buy state motor vehicle records to target their victims. They used to mail letters to me warning urgently in LARGE CAPS that ‘your warranty coverage is about to expire.’ That was complete, on-its-face b.s., as the warranties on my older vehicles had expired before I ever owned them.
Obviously, I’m not going to do business with a company whose first communication is replete with easily identifiable, flat-out lies.
Now, extended warranty scammers have become the main source of noxious telemarketing calls. They spoof area codes in the caller ID to make their marks believe they’re local.
I despite telemarketers. Never have I bought anything — not one damned thing — from a stinking telemarketer. Again, the area code spoofing proves right up front that the extended warranty scammers are mendacious chiselers and weasels, who will take your money and run.
No doubt state and federal regulators have compiled troves of complaints about the extended warranty scammers, who necessarily try to focus their marketing on simps and suckers who wouldn’t know how (or bother) to perform any due diligence.
The extended-warranty telemarketing pests can take their fake, fraudulent ‘coverage’ and shove it where the sun don’t shine. If I could get my hands on one, I’d do an ‘attitude adjustment’ with a 36-inch Louisville slugger.
A couple observations.
1. Lotteries are taxes on those bad at math. Extended warranties fall in the same category.
2. As you said, Eric, “Insurance sells fear”. In the Bible the phrase (or some variation) “Fear Not” is the most common admonition of God, and others with Him, in the entire text. Would that not make the Insurance Mafia tools of the Devil?
Hi Mark,
When I got my first serious salaried job – as an editorial writer at The Washington Times – I was offered the option to buy health coverage. I was a single guy, 25 years old, in excellent health. Why would I spend money on something I almost certainly would not need? And so I didn’t. Rather, I put the money I saved toward the purchase of my first house. It is why I currently own my house. And the reason why so many of today’s 25-year-olds will never own a house of their own is precisely because they are made to buy “coverage” they don’t need.
They are also, basically, subsidizing old people.
Why should they? The old people have all the money (statistically speaking).
Socialist Security, Medicare, Obamacare, now Covid…as a society we are sacrificing the young for the personal convenience of the old.
As a Millennial rapidly approaching middle age, I for one am sick of it – and frankly I have no qualms about kicking Grandma off the cliff. Grandma had her chance, and took mine while she was at it. So sad, too bad.
Old fart here. I will take SS benefits, because its just a tax refund on a grander scale. I would also abandon my refusal to vote, if there were a candidate with any chance of winning that proposed to do away with it. As in Ron Paul. SS is corrupt in its fundamental design. It isn’t insurance in any way shape or form. It’s welfare, and as such should be means tested. I have no idea what the limit is now, and don’t care, but the wealthy pay SS tax up to a certain not terribly high level of income, and thereafter pay none. And are still eligible for benefits. It’s a regressive tax.
Or, at least some very minimal cost to provide only catastrophic coverage, in event of accident or serious, unforeseen, sudden illness, should have been proffered. A single man, 25 years old, in excellent health, shouldn’t need to see a doctor at all; his medical needs will likely arise more from accidents and acts of violence. A young fellow that’s college-educated and hasn’t shown a propensity for getting into trouble, especially if he’s a veteran and/or Reservist/Guardsman, will likely exercise reasonable caution.
The point is, like to get the “Jab”, or NOT, should be a matter of personal CHOICE, with no implied “rescue” should it go to shit on you. Instances where things “go to shit”, even though they hurt at the time, can be great teaching moments, in ways that knuckleheads like yours truly seem to have to learn.