There’s rarely such a thing as a minor fender bender when cars and SUVs collide according to a new report from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Their bumpers don’t match up and that means what could have been a minor collision turns into a massive repair job for everyone involved.

In the study the Insurance Institute set up low-speed crash tests. They had SUVs and small cars collide at ten miles per hour. Seven pairs of the vehicles were used including one SUV and one small car from seven manufacturers. They drove the SUV into the back of the car at ten miles per hour and then drove the car into the back of the SUV. “We picked vehicles from the same manufacturer because we think automakers should at least pay attention to bumper compatibility across their own fleets,” Nolan said in an announcement according to CNN. “The results show many don’t.” Here’s the damage they recorded:

• When the Honda CR-V SUV rear-ended the Honda Civic a total of $2,995 worth of damage occurred.
• When the Toyotal Corolla hit a Toyota Rav 4 in the back a total of $9,867 in damage was racked up.
• They also found that the bigger vehicle didn’t always win. At times it was the SUV that came out with more damage.

Test officials say even at $3,000 the damage was higher than it should have been. “Of the seven car-SUV pairs we tested, we can’t point to a single one as a model of compatibility because combined damage estimates ran into the thousands of dollars even for the best performances,” Nolan said according to CNN.

During one of her normal weekly press conferences, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had harsh words for both health insurance companies and those who current stand in opposition to the concept of public insurance.

Pelosi made it clear that she felt the desire for a quality public insurance legislation was strong. It was equally clear that insurance companies were rallied against the public option.

After the conference, Pelosi even questioned the morality of insurers in opposing the public insurance option. “It is somewhat immoral what they are doing. Of course, they have been immoral all along how they have treated the people that they insure.”

She went on to say, “They are the villains in this. They have been part of the problem in a major way. They have been doing everything in their power to stop a public option from happening. The public has to know that.” Speaker Pelosi was adamant that one of the main issues really comes down to the insurers’ fear of government competition.

Pelosi then said this about the health-care reform legislation: “This is the fight of our lives for the people that we represent, for their health.”

House Speaker Pelosi was asked questions about the most recent deal created by members of the Blue Dog Coalition, part of the Energy and Commerce Committee, during the conference. She noted that current proposal contained similar language to one offered by Senator Kennedy that was making rounds in the Senate.

The battle continues to brew over the extent of the debate over health care reform. Both sides are bringing their guns to bear on any piece of legislation that seeks to offer public solutions for a system that is certainly out of control. Pelosi is a tough proponent of any bill that offers a strong remedy.

With October winding to a close, and the weak state of the economy still looming large in peoples’ minds, it’s nice to know that some businesses are trying to find ways to keep things going while providing great incentives to customers. Premiere Insurance Services is a prime example.

People who rent a place to live need insurance just like homeowners do. Before buying a policy, you would be wise to take the time to do some research first. That way, you can be certain that all of your personal property is well protected as well as being covered against a lawsuit if someone were to injure themselves on the property that you are renting and decided to take you to court. The best way for you to find out what the different insurance companies are offering is to get a quote from several of them.