The life insurance policies advertised on the radio with the line "You cannot be turned down for this coverage!" are actually saying, "For policies this small, it would cost us more to decide whom to turn down than simply to accept everybody - and make them pay through the nose."

Andrew Tobias

Categorized in : Noses Cost Lines

No wonder lawyers, who control the legal system, have fought so hard, and with great success, against "no fault" insurance. No fault, no lawsuits. No lawsuits, no lunch.

Andrew Tobias

legal-system faults lunch

There were no jobs created in America from 1945, when the war ended, through 2003. How could there be? Taxes were too high. Preposterously so under Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon, Reagan (who left office with a 28 percent rate on long-term capital gains) and Bush the Elder.

Andrew Tobias

jobs war america

Nobody wants campaign finance reform more than me. It would save me a fortune.

Andrew Tobias

reform campaigns want

The first American insurance company was the Friendly Society for the Mutual Insurance of Houses Against Fire, founded in Charles Town in South Carolina, in 1735.

Andrew Tobias

fire house friendly

People don't need to find reasons to justify their not giving. What they need to find is the inspiration to give. And those who don't, but could afford to, are missing out on one of wealth's greatest luxuries.

Andrew Tobias

luxury inspiration people

But successful investors tend to be not too self-destructive. They tend to be patient, they tend not to follow the crowd, and they tend not to be too guilty about winning.

Andrew Tobias

successful self winning

What kind of bank gives back 65 percent-often less-of what you deposit? Indeed, when you compare the services of a bank and an insurance company, common sense suggests something is out of whack.

Andrew Tobias

common-sense kind giving

The life insurance industry is filled with good people who believe in their work and their companies, but who may never have challenged the assumptions underlying their efforts.

Andrew Tobias

effort believe people

The larger the deductible you choose, the less insurance you are buying. Insurers want to sell insurance.

Andrew Tobias

sells buying want

Having no national system of catastrophic health insurance, we have, through the courts, managed to patch together pieces of a not very satisfactory one.

Andrew Tobias

court pieces together

There's no question young drivers have far more accidents than older ones - but is it our aim to keep them off the roads? Or to allow only rich young people (who can afford the premiums) to drive?

Andrew Tobias

rich young people

Man's natural life span, 75 to 90 years or so, has not increased. It is the number of us who manage to attain it that has increased.

Andrew Tobias

numbers men years

Hay fever suffers tend to be above average in intelligence.

Andrew Tobias

hay-fever suffering average

Not surprisingly, the insurance lobby recoils in horror at the prospect of automatic coverage (including, when it was first proposed, Social Security), no matter how efficient it may be. Automatic coverage eliminates sales commissions and profit.

Andrew Tobias

matter may firsts

Life insurance in America has traditionally been dominated by mutual insurers. Twelve of the fifteen largest life insurers are mutuals.

Andrew Tobias

twelve fifteen america

It's very nice to be able to be who you are.

Andrew Tobias

be-who-you-are able nice

Now listen. You can't fool all the people all the time-- but I want you to try.

Andrew Tobias

want trying people

You want 21 percent risk free? Pay off your credit cards.

Andrew Tobias

credit risk cards

I think a lot of people would rather have more control over their life than less.

Andrew Tobias

people thinking

Still, most people don't have much money. So finding ways to come out a couple of thousand dollars ahead every year still matters.

Andrew Tobias

couple people years