I'm sure most of you have enough sense to not ride without insurance but I had a little thing happen yesterday that jarred me and thought I'd share just incase anyone ever thought about skipping the insurance that never gets used.
My bikes are insured with liability and the only reason I have any insurance on them is because I know I am likely to get stopped on a sportbike much more than a car.
The car is 14 years old and has maybe 5000 miles left in it before something quits. There are too many things that need replacement to justify the cost of repair. The engine light is on. The car needs to be inspected to have the registration updated. That all adds up to I've been driving it with 2015 registration tags for almost 3 years. Last couple times I got an insurance bill I considered not paying it. I'm extra careful driving it for obvious reasons and have never made a claim since I was 17 years old. At the end of last summer, I just decided to cut the insurance. I won't be driving this car for long anyway.
The expired registration was what got me pulled over. Insurance was next on the list. The car must be towed from where it sits. I get arrested. Yes, frisked, cuffed and off to the station for fingerprints and mugshots. I have court in two weeks. I hope the judge is somewhat sympathetic.
If you ever think about trying what I did, don't. If you're short on money, there's no reason you can't restart the coverage after a short lapse. If the car dies and you still have coverage, That can be applied to another vehicle. Whether your car is a piece of crap or a nice new car, the 'right to drive extortion fee' is the expense of operating it.