Lawmaker: Arizona should raise insurance requirements for drivers
Jan 24, 2015, 11:58 AM | Updated: 11:58 am
Matt Smiley was at a stop light on the Val Vista Drive exit ramp on U.S. 60 when another motorist slammed into the back of his BMW and drove off.
Authorities caught the hit-and-run driver and discovered that he did not have insurance.
Fortunately, Smiley had uninsured driver coverage, and the 45-year-old Phoenix resident did not have to pay out of his pocket for the 2007 incident.
However, many other motorists do find themselves paying big bucks when they get into wrecks with uninsured – or underinsured – drivers, no matter who causes the crash.
Arizona is one of 25 states that does not require uninsured driver coverage.
“I just think it’s ridiculous,” Smiley said. “I also think that the minimum coverage that’s required by the state is way too low.”
An estimated 10.6 percent of Arizona drivers don’t have insurance, according to a new study by WalletHub.com, a Washington, D.C.,-based consumer advocacy group. This fact, combined with lenient minimum liability insurance requirements, put Arizona among the most financially risky states for drivers, the study said.