cop magnet?

[Peter B]

The true red is super sexy. I got the metro gray which I like as well because it was generally thought that red would be suicide for my driving record.

Red is a popular color for cars like vets and porshes. Maybe less so now then it used to be, but lets face it.. you dont see alot of bright red minivans, or SUVs. A red sports car zipping down the highway sticks out.. and alot of people, including cops are going to assume they driver always drives fast a if they catch you speeding. Why else have a sports car right?

Anyhow
Insurance companies have done studies. Red cars get pulled over more and are in more accidents than other colors. For this reason many insurance companies charge more for red.

-Pete

 

[kneedragger241]

I had a s*** brown Jeep Liberty and drove fast/like an asshole all the time. Not a single ticket for four years..

Since owning my ridiculously red MS3 in January and driving it with the knowledge that it's a cop magnet, I've been pulled over 4 times for the tint (need to get that changed when I get back from FL), got popped once for careless driving, and have been tailed by cops numerous times while doing the speed limit.

I'm kinda pissed that the dealer sold me a car with illegal tint without notifying me of the modification. I've never had a car with tint before, so I didn't know the laws.

But on the subject of red... I've had a lot of red cars and True Red is redder than most reds. It's practically day-glo!

 

[Zimmer]

^^^ I agree. I'm starting to believe that red cars attract more cops. I've had some stupid problem some of which never would have happened I'm sure if I was in my accord with 164K miles or my truck. However to go against my argument I drive the same way I always have. (I don't weave I don't cut ppl off etc)... the only thing I changed was the car. Now its either the bright red and the nice exhaust sound or its that the car's performance exacerbates my driving style. Stomp on gas on my S10 nothing happens stomp on gas on ur bright red MS3 ..."woohoOOOOoooo" or a combination of both

 

[ecniemann]

Anyhow
Insurance companies have done studies. Red cars get pulled over more and are in more accidents than other colors. For this reason many insurance companies charge more for red.

-Pete

This is a fallacy. It may have been true 10-15 years ago when more red cars use to be on the road, but with updated insurance stats, accidents/tickets follow typical patterns. When there were more red cars on the road, stats will show a lot of red cars getting tickets or in accidents. Currently, with a predominance of black or silver/gray cars on the road, updated stats show more of these colors getting tickets or involved in accidents. It's all about percentages and probability.

 

[camrycev6]

This is a fallacy. It may have been true 10-15 years ago when more red cars use to be on the road, but with updated insurance stats, accidents/tickets follow typical patterns. When there were more red cars on the road, stats will show a lot of red cars getting tickets or in accidents. Currently, with a predominance of black or silver/gray cars on the road, updated stats show more of these colors getting tickets or involved in accidents. It's all about percentages and probability.

This actually has never been true. Insurance companies never ask for the color of your vehicle and it is illegal for them to use the color to influence your rate. This is one of the most popular urban legends out there.

If it were true, I would look up the "safest" color and tell them I had my car repainted to that color so please feel free to lower my rates by 50%!

 

[fkmp5]

is red really a cop magnet? submit to MYTHBUSTERS to find out!

 

[camrycev6]

Here is at least something on the insurance myth:

http://www.carinsurancerates.com/news/167-car-insurance-urban-legends.html

 

[ecniemann]

This actually has never been true. Insurance companies never ask for the color of your vehicle and it is illegal for them to use the color to influence your rate. This is one of the most popular urban legends out there.

If it were true, I would look up the "safest" color and tell them I had my car repainted to that color so please feel free to lower my rates by 50%!

Yeah, this is totally true regarding insurance rates, but I was referring more to reports cops keep. They always do record car color on the tickets, and I think there are statiticians out there that have compiled this info. My original post was from info I saw on a show similar to Mythbusters (can't remember the name of it though). The stats say that whatever predominant color is on the road is more likely to be involved in accidents or ticketed.

 

[Peter B]

I should restate what i said before about red cars and insurance companies.

What I read and I cant remember where is that a higher percentage of the cars that are red get pulled over and in accidents. But I cant remember where I read that so i could have all just been BS.

 

[caspeed]

This actually has never been true. Insurance companies never ask for the color of your vehicle and it is illegal for them to use the color to influence your rate. This is one of the most popular urban legends out there.

If it were true, I would look up the "safest" color and tell them I had my car repainted to that color so please feel free to lower my rates by 50%!

While the US has more laws than any other country it is unlikely that there is a law against car color discrimination. I think the registration number spells out color so an insurance agent wouldn't necessarily need to ask.

snopes.com says the red color probably does not receive more tickets. It quoted an insurance executive saying driving record is important and color of vehicle is not.

snopes.com also sites a small sample, unofficial study done by a reporter in Florida that indicates white cars receive less tickets, grey cars receive more tickets per registration and red cars receive as represented.

That could make inverse sense. I bought the grey color because I wanted to drive faster and I like the way grey blends into traffic. So I drive faster but receive fewer tickets per infraction but receive more tickets than other colors.

Plus, most of the owners of white cars, I know are older or the white car is the company car. Both groups tend to worry more about safety than (wow).

So buy what you want and keep one eye on the road.

 

[UHATEIT]

I work for a car insurance company, I've never seen anyone ask about the color of the car when calculating rates.

When I have bought my cars and I pay for insurance they have never asked me the color of it either.

 

[UHATEIT]

Hah I just got my first ticket in my MS3... not saying that I didn't deserve it but the cop wouldn't budge at ALL... I got clocked at 76 in a 65, on I-81 in VA... there were cars allllll around me, including a red RX-8 in front of me. But the cop picked the little red station wagon to pull over I wasn't very happy.

wow that cop must have been an asshole to pick you out of a group of RX-8! Lucky you arent in CA they would have popped your hood and seen your intake and turbosmart and then slapped you with a referee ticket and a modified motor violation of some sort. Requiring you to go wast half your day at a referee station having them do a full inspection of your parts and then you have to pay them for a damn smog check to make sure its in legal limits.

Yeah CA is a b****!

Ive received over 60 tickets in my lifetime. Most of them for fix-it tickets for having mods on the car that the cops do no like. Examples: tint, colors headlights, colored license plate lights, no front plate, undercar lights, s*** like that. Thats all back in my ricer days

 

[MTuning]

i agree, color probably doesn't matter in insurance but they dont ask is probably because they can find out with the vin#. I hope u guys are just having bad luck cause one of the reason i got this car was it doesn't stand out like my other car. to the untrained eye its just another mazda 3...i hope lol

 

[coololddude]

dont worry about red being a cop magnet, unless you are carrying a bag of doughnuts.

 

[dan1101]

I fully believe that red cars are noticed more than say, silver. My silver MS3 is stealthy.

I also think that red cars can be SO noticable that if you're coming down the road and someone who wants to pull out sees you coming, they will look at you, look the other way, and still pull out right in front of you. It's like their brain just assumes the red is so noticable they don't need to remember you're there. My mom used to have a red car and it happened to her all the time and it happened to me when I drove her car too.

 

[camrycev6]

I should restate what i said before about red cars and insurance companies.

What I read and I cant remember where is that a higher percentage of the cars that are red get pulled over and in accidents. But I cant remember where I read that so i could have all just been BS.

This is true... However, the insurance companies don't associate the color red with higher rates. It simply a fact. Maybe because people like red sports cars more than blue ones...

Did you read the link I posted:

http://www.carinsurancerates.com/new...n-legends.html

ecniemann.... sorry, you are wrong on this one. The color of your car is not in your VIN or your registration number either.

Red cars are in more accidents --- True.
There are more red sports cars sold than any other sport cars (by % of total volume) --- True
Sport cars are involved in more accidents (by percentage) than non-sports cars (regardless of color) --- True
Sport cars (and high value cars) have higher insurance rates than others --- True

People who drive red cars pay higher rates --- False
People who drive sports cars pay higher rates --- True

 

[Donas64]

Hah I just got my first ticket in my MS3... not saying that I didn't deserve it but the cop wouldn't budge at ALL... I got clocked at 76 in a 65, on I-81 in VA... there were cars allllll around me, including a red RX-8 in front of me. But the cop picked the little red station wagon to pull over I wasn't very happy.

same thing happened to me in VA. huge 18 wheeler in front of me. We following flow of traffic. I get pulled over, truck accelerates and passes slower traffic. I was upset.

 

[Peter B]

Here in MA i think most insurance companies ask for or at least have record of your car's color. It is listed on MA state registrations so that means the insurance company knows about it.

But I dont think it affected my rate at all. I do think they could charge more if they wanted to based on color. I am pretty sure that is legal. Its like charging more for a turbo or other feature. The auto insurance rules here in MA were completely retarded until just recently. There were only a few companies that were legally allowed to offer insurance here, they had the system rigged to their benefit and the consumer was getting bent over and railed.


Anyhow
A couple of tips for avoiding cops.

Don't go toss empty beer bottles at cruisers on the side of the road.
Don't pull up next to a school bus full of 1st graders and moon them
Don't go screamin down the highway blasting Slayer with your middle finger out the window.

Werd has it these things attrackt cops.

 

[jred321]

While the US has more laws than any other country it is unlikely that there is a law against car color discrimination.

while i can't say for sure whether car color is a factor or not i do know that every state requires every variable used in a rating system to be approved by the state. if there is not statistical backing behind car color as a rating variable it's not allowed to be used. it wouldn't be discrimination but instead a rating variable and most rating systems are significantly more complex than just saying "you drive a red car you pay extra." if it is a factor it's a small one compared to your driving record and area of residence

 

[camrycev6]

I am sure it was all part of Bush's new spying program....

W says no to reds! It reminds him of communists...
;-)