Anyone who is trying to take personal responsibility for his impact on the globe and his wallet will find this story to be incredible. After my car was damanged beyond repair in an accident I called my insurance agent to cancel my auto insurance. I found that it is cheaper insuring a car that I don't possess than it is not to insure it. Incredibly, the system set in place to help a person live his life to the fullest actually limits his ability to do so.
My midnight blue, 1995 Subaru Legacy, a.k.a. the "Bluebaru," was involved in a bumper to bumper collision. The front end of the car was destroyed rendering the vehicle dead in its tracks. With over 210,000 miles on it, I kissed the Bluebaru farewell. It was towed to an impound lot and sold to a recycler for the fair price of $150. Although unplanned, this event seemed like an omen to lessen my dependence on my gas-driven car. I thought wrong.
Up until this event I was in a two vehicle household. Now seeing as I no longer had a second car I decided to reclaim any money that was being paid towards the vehicle. I made a phone call to my insurance representative. He explained that even though I didn't possess one of the vehicles, my rates would be cheaper to insure both cars. By insuring two cars instead of one, I could save up to $50 on car insurance a month! (There's a slogan for you, Geico.)
I thought I could take personal responsibility for a higher standard of living that included saving money and lowering my impact on the environment. However, thanks to the insurance system, to achieve one goal, I'd have to sacrifice the other. If I want to lower my impact on the environment, then it's going to cost me. If I want to save money, then I need to get another car (which doesn't even make sense).
The insurance system is one of many that fails to meet people's needs. It stands in the way of progress for people who want to change the way they impact the world. What is reassuring is that if enough people push for the same changes, the system will catch up. Hopefully it catches up before we lose something more valuable than my car.
