Stressed to the Limit
I know, this is a first-world problem.
With what is happening in Venezuela, Ukraine, Gaza, and with the threat to the rest of the free world, I sound like a whiny child. My problems pale to nothing, by comparison.
Still, my issues are within my realm and I need to deal with them. They are real to me and stress me out.
As you may know, we lost one of our vehicles to a traffic accident, last month. Everyone involved is safe and uninjured: the casualty seems to only be our SUV.
My insurance company (I won't name them—yet) was very good in assigning us a rental car and took in our vehicle to have the damage assessed. As Christmas was approaching, we were thankful that we weren't down to only one vehicle.
It took a while to hear back from our insurance agency, getting the news of the total loss the Monday after Christmas, nearly two weeks after I filed my claim. Again, I understood the delay with the holiday but DW and I were also under a clock.
Next week, we're leaving the country.
As soon as we learned that our CR-V was a write-off, we started the search for a replacement vehicle. The CR-V was in DW's name but Kid 1 drove it often (we wanted her in a nice, safe vehicle). We considered having our daughter buy her own vehicle but because she's not yet 25, when her rates would drop, we decided to keep the replacement vehicle in DW's name, under our insurance policy.
I don't know about you but for me, buying a car is stressful. Until 2019, I used to get help in buying cars from my father, who sold them for more than 40 years. Whenever I needed a car, he would see what his dealership had on the lot or he would contact associates at other dealerships to get me the best price on what I was looking for.
I never had to negotiate a price: I always bought used and either my father or one of his friends sold me the vehicle either at cost or only slightly above. Even when I bought my first new car, in 2012, my father new the manager at that dealership and I was able to get a great price.
It wasn't until I bought our Kia Niro, new, that I went without help from my father. By then, he was retired, as were many of his contacts. He knew no one at the Kia stores, and DW and I had set our sights on a hybrid.
I hated the negotiation and feel that I didn't get a very good deal. Thankfully, the Niro has surpassed my expectations so I'm thankful that we have it.
This holiday was only the second time that I've shopped for a car without my father's help. And this time, there was added stress because we were looking for a good used car and I wasn't sure how to negotiate.
I watched lots of YouTube videos by people who gave sound advice but not until after we had been to a couple of dealerships. I learned, from these videos, that I made all sorts of mistakes in talking to the salesperson: never talk financing until you have the all-in price; never give your budget (know what they have that fits within it before you see them).
By our fifth dealership, I knew the tricks of shopping and I was able to negotiate a good deal on the car that we chose. Some of my stress was relieved.
But there were still more factors.
The car didn't have winter tires, so we had to do some shopping. After calling several shops, and making a visit to the Kia dealership where we have had our Niro serviced (the new car is also a Kia), I was able to get a good deal on excellent tires. The appointment to have them installed was scheduled for this coming Monday.
Three days before DW and I leave town.
The day after I booked the tire swap, the dealership that sold me the new car told me that one of the parts that it required to bring it up to standards had to be put on order. We were supposed to pick up the car tomorrow but it's now been pushed out to next Wednesday at the earliest.
The day before we leave the country.
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| Image: ChatGPT |
If we couldn't take the car, Kid 1 would pick it up on Saturday. My fingers are crossed that the car is ready on Wednesday.
I contacted my insurance brokers to add the new car to the policy but I've hit a bump: because our Niro is in my name as principal driver and DW is listed as the principal driver on our totalled CR-V, neither of us could be the principal driver on the new car (a Forte5). But if Kid 1 was listed as the principal driver, the insurance rate would be expensive because she's not yet 25.
We can't remove DW from the Honda until the settlement is dealt with. But I'm in dispute with the claims adjuster because the value being applied is below what I can find for a 2012 Honda CR-V.
Meanwhile, the clock ticks.
My stress levels are so high that even writing this post out, I can feel my pressure rising.
Yesterday, I started shopping at other insurance companies and learned that I'm paying too much each year with my existing insurer. I'm thinking that if we can't release the Honda by the end of today, I'm going to insure the Forte5 through another company (and bring my house and Niro along for good measure).
All of my hurdles must be crossed by Wednesday, if not sooner. I still need to pack, need to test my video gear (I got some new stuff), and make sure we have currency exchanged and passports at the ready.
I don't deal well with conflict and avoid it at all cost. All of this has had me running around and spending hours on the phone. Added to the fact that I'm in mourning over the loss of the CR-V. I visited it this week to remove the license plates and remove all personal effects, and it was sad to say goodbye to it.
I know: this is a first-world problem. I have so much for which I am thankful. No one was hurt in the accident. I'm fortunate to have the means to replace the car, with or without help from our insurance company.
And, I'm getting away from the Ottawa winter for a couple of weeks.
The world as it is, right now, brings its own chaos and stress of which all is beyond my control. But in my own meagre world, I am stressed to the limit.
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