Mexican Insurance – Travelers Lifesaver!
A car accident in Mexico is much more of a hassle than having an incident take place at home – especially if you are an American tourist, as Mr. Bill K. explains. Mr. K. has recounted his experiences of an accident that took place in Mexico and the following week he experienced with the Mexican police. It is his hope that he will encourage all Americans to come prepared when driving a car in Mexico.
Mexican car insurance tops his list, for reasons that will become obvious as you read his story. Bill Kitto was not traveling for his first time in Mexico when he got into an accident near San Vincente, Mexico while driving his friend’s truck.
Bill is a very cautious driver and, since the road conditions were getting very bad because of a rain storm that was moving in, he was at the wheel. This meant he was dependent on the coverage of his friend’s Mexican insurance being adequate.
Bill was traveling at a cautious speed when he rounded a corner to find a Mexican military vehicle full of soldiers hurtling towards them partly on their side of the road. Unable to avoid a crash, the two vehicles impacted head-on left, sending the personnel scattered down a cliff and Bill and his friend into the wall on the opposite side.
In moments, the Mexican police arrived on the scene and immediately transported an injured Bill to a site that he was unfamiliar with. At the time, his friend did not know of his intended whereabouts, as he was left on the roadside. In Mexico, they do not follow the policy of ‘innocent until proven guilty’ – it is exactly the reverse.
Bill finds himself in a Mexican detention cell without any contact and without any knowledge of his fate, in part because at this point he has no way of knowing whether his friend even carried Mexican auto insurance.
After several hours, the guards took him back to the scene of the accident. His friend was there with his Mexican auto insurance policy. This would have been the end of the story in the US, but in Mexico it was just the beginning.
Bill’s complete story is long and involved-and not a little discomforting. Bill spends a week alone in a Mexican hospital trying his hardest to stay injured enough to avoid the inside of a Mexican jail; he’s at the mercy of the local government, questionable legal representatives, and muddled technology that makes what amounts to paying his way out an act in futility.
Much of the time, Bill was not sure if he could get free of this mess or if he would be able to afford the ‘fines’ to get out. Eventually, Bill was able to regain his liberty but it cost him in excess of $28,000 US. Fortunately for Bill, he was able to get the money to buy his freedom. This is not the case, though, for many Americans. They just don’t have access to that much money.
Because of the mountains of red tape and the corrupt officials he dealt with, Bill is not sure if he will ever see any of his money back. Using the lessons he learned from his experience, Bill works to educate Americans planning to travel in Mexico.
Bring a cell (or satellite) phone into Mexico and learn how to place a phone call while in the country.
Stay in contact with family and friends residing in the states, as they can help you lock in money if ever needed, as well as contact Mexican insurance companies when applicable (because you will have limited resources to do so).
And most importantly -
ALWAYS HAVE MEXICO AUTO INSURANCE – the kind that delivers good protection and adequately covers personal injury and damage to property.
Verify that your Mexico auto insurance is from a quality insurance company.
Always carry proof of Mexican Insurance in your car, which is easy to reach whenever needed! (Also if you are separated from your car, don’t forget to carry your Mexico car insurance ID cards)
The horrendous experience Bill went through proved just one thing – it is money that matters in Mexico. There, it doesn’t matter how they get it or where it comes from, but if you can grease their palms with enough cash, it makes a difference in being seen as guilty or innocent.
Most people can only dream of having $30,000 plus readily available to them, so it is best to have very good Mexican car insurance to and adequate limits protect yourself.
Related Stuff:
Sweat the Small Stuff: A Comprehensive Approach to Improving Your Independent Insurance AgencyA Comprehensive Approach to Improving Your Independent Insurance Agency.
This entry was posted on Sunday, May 18th, 2008 at 6:53 am and is filed under Car Insurance Agency. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.