Retirees moving to Washington (Seattle, Sammamish: fit in, 2015, how much)

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

What do y'all think about the news report today, that the legislature approved up to a 24% hike in car insurance rates? Apparently insurance companies asked for the rate hike to cover higher repair costs, and also a spike in accidents. Fatal accidents are up, too, and expected to increase even more.
https://www.king5.com/article/news/l...d-dd2bf161d50c


This doesn't seem to make WA very retiree-friendly...

People are driving like maniacs. Cars are bigger, more expensive, and less agile. I think that is the bigger problem. Insurance rates are just a symptom of that fact.

What do you want the government to do? Put the state on a road diet and reduce speeds everywhere?

[Arktikos]

Originally Posted by M3 Mitch

Well, King County has its weather, and the East side has mostly different weather. Actually for someone who is OK with overcast and light rain, Seattle area weather is mild, the winters are much less harsh than we have near Yakima and Tri-Cities. Summer is cooler on the West side as well.

All of WA is not like Seattle. Living here, you should realize that.

A friend of mine from the Sacramento area for decades always maintained that the PNW has the best climate in US. From my days at WWU, I tend to agree. Not too hot (or very rarely), not too cold, no snow at sea level and a nice mix of clouds and sun. Wet? LOL. It’s a desert compared to SE Alaska.
And btw, tons of Alaskans from all parts of our state have retired or will be retiring in Washington.

[CalWorth]

I had to go yet again to Swedish Seattle, pay $13 for underground parking & watch an idiot in a giant spaceship, also known as a lifted Ford F250, go backwards & forwards 4 times just to get around the support column in the parking garage. Those vehicles are too big for Seattle urban driving.

I saw my insurance jump astronomically last fall, then again this spring, & talked endlessly to a agent about decreasing my coverage to afford my insurance on my modest vehicles

In conclusion, the entire state is supporting the driving habits of one urban area..

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by CalWorth

I had to go yet again to Swedish Seattle, pay $13 for underground parking & watch an idiot in a giant spaceship, also known as a lifted Ford F250, go backwards & forwards 4 times just to get around the support column in the parking garage. Those vehicles are too big for Seattle urban driving.

I saw my insurance jump astronomically last fall, then again this spring, & talked endlessly to a agent about decreasing my coverage to afford my insurance on my modest vehicles

In conclusion, the entire state is supporting the driving habits of one urban area..

You don't think people drive just as much if not more in suburban and rural parts of the state?

And you don't think there more lifted F250s in redneck towns like Longview than in Seattle?

[CalWorth]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

You don't think people drive just as much if not more in suburban and rural parts of the state?

And you don't think there more lifted F250s in redneck towns like Longview than in Seattle?

You missed my point. A lifted redneck truck has no purpose in a limited-space area like Seattle. Stick with your pricey Teslas & Rivians. Also, drivers in Seattle are insane. I see at least 2 wrecks every time I am there. Seattle drivers make LA drivers look like grannies.

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by CalWorth

You missed my point. A lifted redneck truck has no purpose in a limited-space area like Seattle. Stick with your pricey Teslas & Rivians. Also, drivers in Seattle are insane. I see at least 2 wrecks every time I am there. Seattle drivers make LA drivers look like grannies.

Oh, I agree. Those ridiculous enormous trucks (lifted or not) have no place in cities. Or anywhere really.

Seattle also has 10x more drivers than anyplace else in Washington. Are Seattle drivers more likely to get into wrecks on a per-capita or per-mile driven basis than folks living in rural Washington? I have no idea. But statistically speaking, rural highways tend to be the most dangerous in both Washington and elsewhere in the country.

When I have taught at rural high schools there was always annual student carnage on the highways. At urban high schools? Almost never. And when it happens it isn't as deadly.

[xPlorer48]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

People are driving like maniacs. Cars are bigger, more expensive, and less agile. I think that is the bigger problem. Insurance rates are just a symptom of that fact.

What do you want the government to do? Put the state on a road diet and reduce speeds everywhere?

There seems to be a serious accident on I5 or arterials almost every day, many of them fatal. People are looking at cellphones, one way driver committing suicide, inexperienced truckers, left lane campers, speeders, reckless drivers, no deterrence of bad driving. This one breaks my heart: https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/wha...OPZIZBZAVZ4MM/

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

People are driving like maniacs. Cars are bigger, more expensive, and less agile. I think that is the bigger problem. Insurance rates are just a symptom of that fact.

What do you want the government to do? Put the state on a road diet and reduce speeds everywhere?

I was just asking for people's thoughts. These big insurance rate hikes aren't happening in other parts of the US, except maybe CA and a couple of other states, I'm guessing.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by CalWorth

I had to go yet again to Swedish Seattle, pay $13 for underground parking & watch an idiot in a giant spaceship, also known as a lifted Ford F250, go backwards & forwards 4 times just to get around the support column in the parking garage. Those vehicles are too big for Seattle urban driving.

I saw my insurance jump astronomically last fall, then again this spring, & talked endlessly to a agent about decreasing my coverage to afford my insurance on my modest vehicles

In conclusion, the entire state is supporting the driving habits of one urban area..

Thank you. This is helpful to know.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

I was just asking for people's thoughts. These big insurance rate hikes aren't happening in other parts of the US, except maybe CA and a couple of other states, I'm guessing.

My insurance broker is on the WA ins board.

He says... Watch Out! 60% of the WA registered cars coming at you are not insured. 20-30% of those drivers are not licensed (for various reasons). One of my neighbors has not been licensed or insured for 30+ yrs. How often have you been stopped and asked? Likely never. So why bother. (Not my viewpoint, but there's).

Thus, the rest of us pay dearly for those expressing their USA freedoms. In many, many realms.