The No-Fault Initiative makes every accident your fault. No-Fault means that when someone runs into you, it's not their fault anymore. Good drivers will pay for bad drivers. And you pay more.
If a reckless driver causes an accident, no matter how badly people are injured, good drivers and their passengers can only file a claim against their own insurance company for their injuries.
If Proposition 200 becomes law, you lose your right to sue reckless drivers . . . even if they cause a wreck which kills your child.
This No-Fault initiative puts the decision about how much you will pay for auto insurance back in the hands of the insurance industry and their allies in Sacramento.
In states with some form of No-Fault car insurance, liability rates went up an average of 40% in 4 years, even for good drivers. In California, rates have gone up less than 1% in the last 4 years.
It's not surprising that many states have already repealed mandatory No-Fault. Connecticut. Georgia. Nevada. And the District of Columbia.
What is surprising is that Californians are being asked to approve a no-fault, no responsibility system, while the rest of America is moving toward more personal responsibility and accountability.
The No-Fault Initiative is 19 pages long. It has as much fine print as your insurance policy.
1. When you are injured, your doctor will not have the final say over your medical treatment. You will have little choice.
2. If you get hit, you must file two separate insurance claims. First you have to make a claim against your own insurance company for injuries to yourself or your family. Then you must file a claim against the other driver's insurance company for damages to your car.
3. The No-Fault System will be partially administered by the Department of Motor Vehicles.
The companies pushing the No-Fault initiative say it will cost you less. But they didn't include that guarantee in the initiative.
No-Fault. No Fair. No Guarantee. Vote ``NO'' on Proposition 200.
WENDELL PHILLIPS
President, California Council of Police and
Sheriffs (Cal-Cops)