Are you a safe driver? Yes, we know this is an insulting question. Everyone who gets behind the wheel of a vehicle is safe. But, in the quiet moments when no one else is around, do you ever have doubts? Well, now may be a good time. Across America, cities are finding themselves short of funds. Costs are rising (particularly on the pension front), but there's no political will to raise the taxes necessary to pay them. So, if there's no increase in revenue, the only option is to cut services. Just taking California as an example of a growing trend, some fifty cities have given themselves the power to bill insurance companies if you have a crash and a tender or ambulance responds to your emergency call. Watch out! These vehicles don't come cheap. We're talking hundreds, sometimes, thousands of dollars depending on how much work is necessary. And, guess what. If your insurers refuse to pay, collection agents turn up on your doorstep suggesting you might like to hand over some cash.

Now you might say all public services are paid for by the public and, anyway, it's heartless to bill people for rescuing them. Well, try saying that to the taxpayers who were not in any crashes but ended up paying for them. Why should taxpayers pick up the bill when a truck spills its load of dangerous chemicals all over a highway? If industry players are moving goods of any kind around on public roads, they should pay for all the clean-up costs if anything goes wrong. People who use the roads should always carry enough insurance to pay for the losses they cause. That's why it's mandatory for the private driver to carry some liability insurance. So, from now on, if you are the party at fault and you have not bought insurance to cover against these new fees and charges, you are going to be chased for payment. These are desperate cities who need the money to keep their basic services going.

So expect to see insurance premiums start to rise as coverage expands. Except, of course, some people argue that these are not charges, they are crash taxes. Just as a sales tax is paid by someone who buys goods or services, so this is a tax paid by someone who is involved in an accident. There are challenges going through the courts based on the patchwork nature of the "tax". If this was something approved by the state legislature, it would apply to all citizens who decide to drive, but the liability is in the luck of where the accident happens. While you wait for all this to be resolved, you have the burden of dealing with it now. If you think you may be driving in a city where these charges are imposed, read the small print on your auto insurance policy carefully. If these charges are not covered, get more auto insurance quotes and find which insurers do offer coverage. Now it's up to you to decide whether the extra premium is going to be good value. Just how good a driver are you?