Staged Accident Claims Up 46% in the States

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB; I can already see Bruckheimer behind this) reports that "staged accident questionable claims", or QCs, grew a whopping 46% over the years 2007-2009 (probably due to the recession).

As proof that something is awry, BI (Bodily Injury) and PIP (Personal Injury Protection) claims have decreased.

Here's what the report revealed:

"The top five states that generated the most staged accident QCs were: (1) Florida, 3,006; (2) New York, 1,680; (3) California, 1,619; (4) Texas, 792; and (5) Illinois, 433.

The five cities that generated the most staged accident QCs were: (1) New York City, 1,304; (2) Tampa, 562; (3) Miami, 511; (4) Orlando, 422; and (5) Houston, 376."

For more ways on how to avoid (...or avoid getting busted for) these Questionable Claims, the NICB has made some public service announcements for your entertainment that you can check out here.

By Phil Alex

Average CO2 Emissions of New Cars in Europe Fall 12% in 6 Years

Average European new car CO2 emissions have fallen by around 12% since 2003, according to a new study from auto consultancy JATO Dynamics. The volume-weighted European new car average is now 145.9 g/km, almost 20 g/km less than 2003, when JATO began collating European CO2 emissions data.

In addition, the study finds that half of all new cars sold in the 21 European countries analyzed by JATO had official CO2 emissions of 140g/km or less, compared to only 23% in 2003.

"The pace of improvement is remarkable and shows just how rapidly the industry has reacted to environmental demands," said David Di Girolamo, Head of JATO Consult.

"In 2003, only 24% of the market achieved an average of 130g/km. This was 40% by 2007, 51% in 2008 and 69% last year, already ahead of the 2012 EU target. This achievement is even greater when set in the context of new cars becoming larger, safer and better equipped, as consumer demands reach ever higher," he added.

According to the report, the decline in new car CO2 emissions is due to three key factors:

1) Vehicle Developments - including more efficient petrol and diesel engines, hybrid powertrains, more sophisticated transmissions, low rolling-resistance tires, improved attention to detail, aerodynamics, stop-start technology and regenerative charging systems

2) Taxation – guiding demand towards these models and technologies CO₂-based purchase and/or ownership taxes, in some countries have been introduced in tandem with higher taxes on fuel. Significant rises in fuel prices (due to global oil prices) continue to influence consumers' choice of vehicle.

3) Scrappage schemes – during late 2008 and 2009, scrappage schemes in a number of European countries have benefitted the purchase of smaller, more efficient cars, in some cases with customers directly incentivized towards cars with low CO₂ emissions.

Even non-scrappage sales have seen a marked shift towards smaller cars, with the largest rise in B-segment vehicles, an effect of recessionary pressure on family budgets pushing many customers across Europe to consider fuel efficiency ahead of other factors, for the first time.

Di Girolamo added that the rate of improvement been increasing since 2007, through more low-CO2 technology and specific low-CO2 models on European roads.

"Looking at year-on-year trends, it appears that, if the current momentum can be maintained, 130g/km by 2015, as required by the EU legislation, is achievable," Di Girolamo concluded.

Source: JATO

Porsche and Lincoln Top J.D. Power's 2010 Dependability Study, Cadillac DTS Has the Fewest Problems in the Industry

J.D. Power & Associates' latest vehicle dependability study says most cars are getting better. In fact, J.D. Power tests showed that 25 of 36 brands (69%) improved their long-term durability. Reported problems decreased from an industry average of 167 per 100 vehicles last year to the current 155 (+7% in reliability).

The study, which measures problems experienced by original owners of three-year-old (2007 model year) vehicles, said that Porsche was the highest-ranking brand with 110 problems per 100 vehicles followed by Lincoln (114 problems) and Buick (115 problems).

The Cadillac DTS is the model with the fewest problems in the industry, with just 76 issues per 100 vehicles. This marks the first time in more than a decade that a model from a domestic automaker has achieved the lowest PP100 score in the Vehicle Dependability Study.

Interestingly, seven of the 10 models with the lowest incidence of problems in the industry are from Ford and General Motors, including the 2007 model-year Buick Lacrosse, Buick Lucerne, Cadillac DTS, Ford Five Hundred, Lincoln MKZ, Mercury Milan, and Mercury Montego.

The biggest losers in terms of increases in problems per 100 vehicles are: Land Rover (+27), Audi (+25), Mitsubishi (+20).

The brands with the most problems per 100 vehicles in the industry are: Volkswagen (225), Suzuki (253) and Land Rover (255).

Source & Charts: J.D. Power & Associates

New Study Says that Every GM Vehicle Sold in the States Costs Taxpayers $12,200 - In Theory...

It's 'bailout talk' time again as a new study that was conducted by Thomas D. Hopkins, a Professor of Economics at Rochester Institute of Technology, for the 362,000-member strong National Taxpayers Union (NTU), finds that the American taxpayer will have put up $12,200 for every GM vehicle, and $7,600 for every Chrysler, sold from the beginning of 2009 to the end of 2010. Together, the taxpayer subsidy for Chrysler and GM, will theoretically exceed $10,700 per vehicle sold.

But that's only if, and we repeat if, the two companies fail before 2011 and don't repay their government loans. That's a big 'IF', if you ask us, but anyway.

Hopkins came out with these figures by making guesstimates on the 2009 and 2010 combined yearly sales of GM (5.06 million vehicles total) and Chrysler (2.3 million units total) and then dividing the numbers with the loans received by the two automakers, including GMAC's bailout money as the company now provides financing services to both GM and Chrysler.

The professor says that the result is a GM/GMAC bailout of $61.5 billion ($52.9+$8.6), and $17.4 billion ($13.5+$3.9) for Chrysler/GMAC, which amounts to $12,200 for GM and $7,600 for Chrysler on a per vehicle basis.

Hopkins does note however that for each year of survival beyond 2010 and as long as no additional government loans are provided, the taxpayer burden per vehicle would decline.

"Of course one could adopt a more optimistic set of assumptions, developing a scenario in which this rescue turns out so successfully that most (but certainly not all) of the taxpayers' investment ultimately is returned, perhaps indeed with some profit," says Hopkins. "In that event, most of the taxpayer burden would disappear."

"But the plausibility of such rosy assumptions is not easy to defend. For starters, some $6.4 billion of the bailout funds, in the form of loans to the former (now bankrupt) GM and Chrysler, are not legal obligations of the newly-structured GM and Chrysler," Hopkins added.

Pete Sepp, NTU Vice President for Policy and Communications, was even more aggressive in his commentary about the report:

"Every time someone in your neighborhood drives home in a shiny new Chevy Silverado, remember that it cost American taxpayers more than $12,000," said Pete Sepp.

"Between this and GM's plan to payback their bailout debt with other taxpayer funds, I wonder if all those Americans without work right now could think of any better ways to spend that money. This is a play out of the Bernie Madoff ponzi scheme playbook, and would be the equivalent of paying your Master Card bill with your Visa."

Leaving aside the fact that the 'taxpayer burden' per vehicle is based on the assumption that neither company will pay back any loans and that they will both fail by 2011, the report also does not take into consideration any other factors whatsoever including the cost for taxpayers if both companies went bankrupt leaving tens of thousands of workers directly and indirectly employed by GM and Chrysler without a job.

Link: NTU

Daihatsu, Alfa Romeo and Mercedes Top Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study in Germany

For the first time since the launch of the study in 2002, Daihatsu has claimed the top spot in J.D. Power and Associates' redesigned 2009 Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study (VOSS) in Germany with a total score of 843 on a 1,000-point scale. The Japanese brand was followed by Alfa Romeo and Mercedes-Benz that tied in second place with 835 points, BMW was third with 834 points and Audi and Toyota that tied in fifth place with 831 points.

On the other side of the scale, Ford (796 points), Opel, Kia and Peugeot that tied with 790 points, Fiat (778 points), Chevrolet (775 points) and Smart (772 points) occupied the last five places in J.D. Power's 2009 German vehicle ownership satisfaction study. The industry average is 814 points.

Model-wise, Daihatsu's Sirion captured the top rank position in the small car category while Toyota received awards for the Aygo city car and the Corolla lower medium car. In the upper medium segment, Renault's Laguna finished first while Mercedes-Benz topped the executive / luxury and sports car segments with the E-Class and CLK Class models respectively.

Also receiving segment-level awards are the Skoda Roomster in the MPV group and the Nissan Qashqai in the SUV category.

J.D. Power and Associates' finding are based on 16,200 online interviews with German vehicle owners after an average of two years of ownership. According to the firm, German owners are asked to provide detailed evaluations on their cars and dealers covering 67 attributes grouped in four measurements of satisfaction including: vehicle appeal (32%) which covers performance, design, comfort and features; vehicle quality and reliability (26%); ownership costs (22%) including fuel consumption, insurance and costs of service/repair; and dealer service satisfaction (20%).

European and Asian Automakers to Build More Cars than Detroit's Big Three in N. America by 2012

According to a new study from financial advisory firm Grant Thornton LLP, European and Asian automakers will churn out more cars in North America than Detroit's 'Big Three' by 2012. The study expects that after the completion of the restructuring of the domestic auto industry, the combined capacity of General Motors, Chrysler Group LLC and Ford in North America will fall by more than 4 million units or a 35 percent reduction compared to 2008, for a total of 7.5 million units in 2012.

At the same time, all other foreign automakers combined are expected to increase their North American production by around 1.5 million a year or 20 percent, to more than 8 million units.

"A new order is emerging where the Detroit companies may no longer be the volume leaders in their home market," said Grant Thornton LLP Principal Kimberly Rodriguez, co-leader of the firm's global automotive practice.

Grant Thornton LLP reports that Volkswagen and BMW will nearly double their combined production, increasing their output capability to around 1 million units a year while Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Hyundai are projected to expand their combined production by 20 percent, or nearly 1 million units.

The study finds that the dramatic shift in production will have a large impact on North American parts suppliers that will need to secure more business from European and Asian makers.

"Suppliers largely dependent on Detroit OEMs will have to present a new value equation to potential customers from Europe and Asia if they want to participate in the accelerated shift that is coming," said Kimberly Rodriguez.

Source: Grant Thornton LLP

New Study Predicts Global Vehicle Sales Will Drop 13% in 2009

Global light vehicle sales could fall as much as 13% to an estimated total of 56.8 million units in 2009, according to a study released by R. L. Polk & Co, a Michigan-based firm that collects and interprets automotive data. The report forecasts that after experiencing a 17 percent drop in 2008, U.S. light vehicle sales are expected to decrease by another 19 percent in 2009 to a total of 10.7 million units split between 8.5 million units for consumer retail and 2.2 million units for the fleet market.

Polk's study find that while Western Europe is showing less volatility than the U.S. auto market, sales are still expected to shrink by 12% over 2008 to 13.5 million units in 2009. As for the Asian market, with the exclusion of Japan, Polk is forecasting 12.4 million units in 2009 compared to sales of 13.3 million units in 2008.

"As domestic automakers are hard at work on their respective turn-around plans, they have to estimate overall industry volume, individual market shares, and vehicle mix to project their revenue potential and align their global cost structure," said Lionel Yron, director of Consulting & Analytics at Polk. "With the inability to use rising home prices to generate liquidity and tighter lending rules, Polk sees the U.S. market stabilizing around 16 million units within 3 to 5 years depending on the efficiency of the government stimulus package," Yron added.

Source: Polk

Fancy That: Study Shows Sportscars Arouse Women

And to think all those times we saw women drooling over exotic sports cars we actually believed that their real interest was about the owner’s bank account - how foolish of us… Believe it or not, according to scientific study performed by Bermuda based luxury motor insurers Hiscox (it’s not ours, we swear), the sound of a luxury car engine is actually more appealing for women than men.

A total of 40 participants, 20 men and 20 women from professional backgrounds, aged between 22 and 61 years of age, took part in Hiscox’ (they couldn’t have picked a worse name) experiment. The participants were exposed to a 30 sec recording of the engine sounds of a VW Polo, a Maserati, a Lamborghini and a Ferrari. After 20 minutes their response was measured by the amount of testosterone found in their saliva -now, don't get perverted boys. The result? -Continued

Hiscox –this is getting really stupid but we can’t help it- found that the Maserati had the biggest impact on women with 100% of the female participants showing a significant increase in testosterone secretion. Surprisingly, only 50% of male participants showed an increase in testosterone in reaction to the Maserati. The boys seemed to get a bit more turned on with the Lamborghini as 60% showed an increase in testosterone levels. Not surprisingly, 100% of the female participants showed a decrease in testosterone in reaction to the Polo’s engine sounds

David Moxon, the psychologist who conducted the study commented: “We saw significant peaks in the amount of testosterone in the body, particularly in women. Testosterone is indicative of positive arousal in the human body so we can confidently conclude from the results out today that the roar of a luxury car engine actually does cause a primeval physiological response.”

Thanks for the tip Alex! , Study Source: Hiscox

America’s 10 Most Leased Vehicles: It’s All about German Luxury Cars

The easiest way to get behind the wheel of an expensive luxury / sports car if you can’t afford to buy it cash or through a loan is to lease it. Basically, what you do in leasing is that instead of putting a loan for the entire cost of a vehicle, you borrow an amount for the cost of a car brand new minus what it will be worth (estimated value) at the end of the leasing period. This results to lower monthly payments even though you’ll have to pay an extra amount if you want to keep the car.

Even though most automaker’s in the U.S. are beginning to either cut back on leasing like BMW and General Motors or quit it altogether like Chrysler, this form of ownership remains quite popular in the luxury car segment. According to a study from .D. Power & Associates' Power Information Network (PIN) that was published on 'BusinessWeek', the 10 most commonly leased vehicles in the U.S. belong to the luxury segment. -Continued

From the 10 vehicles with the highest lease share, seven belong to German automakers with four of those being BMWs. The 7-Series tops the list with a lease share in 2008 of 85.3% (!) followed by Saab’s 9-7x with an equally mind-blowing, 82.2%.

BMW 7 Series

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 85.3%
Starting price: $77,625
Sales through July 2008: 8,190
Sales through July 2007: 8,634
Percent change: -5.1%

Saab 9-7X

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 82.2%
Starting price: $41,145
Sales through July 2008: 2,321
Sales through July 2007: 3,259
Percent change: -28.8%

Audi A6

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 74.1%
Starting price: $42,950
Sales through July 2008: 6,321
Sales through July 2007: 6,410
Percent change: -1.4%

BMW Z4

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 70.7%
Starting price: $37,525
Sales through July 2008: 4,116
Sales through July 2007: 5,420
Percent change: -24.1%

Mercedes-Benz E-Class

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 70%
Starting price: $52,775
Sales through July 2008: 25,101
Sales through July 2007: 25,473
Percent change: -1.5%

Land Rover Range Rover

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 69.6%
Starting price: $78,450
Sales through July 2008: 4,775
Sales through July 2007: 6,610
Percent change: -27.8%

BMW 6 Series

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 68.6%
Starting price: $77,425
Sales through July 2008: 4,218
Sales through July 2007: 5,190
Percent change: -18.7%

Audi A4/S4

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 68%
Starting price: $32,700
Sales through July 2008: 26,770
Sales through July 2007: 25,205
Percent change: +6.2%

BMW X3

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 67.3%
Starting price: $39,425
Sales through July 2008: 11,257
Sales through July 2007: 16,926
Percent change: -33.5%

Jaguar XJ Sedan

2008 lease share through Aug. 10: 65.8%
Starting price: $64,500
Sales through July 2008: 1,514
Sales through July 2007: 2,500
Percent change: -39.4%

Via: BusinessWeek , Data: J.D. Power & Associates' Power Information Network

Used Large Pick-Up & SUV Prices Tumble in the U.S.

As long as you don’t mind being best pals with your local gas station owners, now’s the time to buy a used large SUV or a pick-up truck. According to a report from Manheim Consulting, an Atlanta-based provider of used-vehicle data, wholesale auction prices for used large SUVs in July averaged $10,187, down a whopping 26% from year earlier and 1.7% from June. Likewise, wholesale auction prices for large pick-up trucks averaged $8,825, a 20% decline from last year and less than 1% from the previous month. Prices for all used vehicles in the U.S. in July averaged to $9,297, a 4.3% drop from a year earlier but about 1% up from June.

Via: Bloomberg

Parking Prices Study: London and Sydney Top the List

If you happen to own a car and for any reason decide to rent a parking space in the centre of London or Sydney, rising gas prices will be the least of your worries. According to a recent study performed by Colliers International, a property consultancy, London is the most expensive place in the world to park your car - the City topped the list at $1,167 (₤600 or €733) a month with the West End in second place at $1,136 (₤584 or €714). In third spot is Sydney, Australia at $775 (A$825 or €486).

Surprisingly, three more Australian cities made the top ten list with Brisbane at number five and Perth at number eight –Melbourne is eleventh. The most high-priced area to park in Asia is Hong Kong which takes fourth place at $742 (€467) a month while midtown New York City is ranked fifth most expensive at $585 (€367).

In terms of daily parking costs, London’s City submarket tops the list at $68 (₤35 or €43) followed by Amsterdam, London’s West End submarket, Moscow and The Hague. The cheapest city to park in the world is Delhi at a mere $1.75 (€1.1) for the whole day! See the complete Top 25 list along with analytical data on parking prices around the world after the jump. -Continued

Source: Colliers International