[q2]I've only been in 2 accidents where the car was totalled
ONLY two totals?
Well, um, yeah.
I've driven more than half a million miles in my life, the worst accident I've been in (I got hit by a travel trailer. Really. My fault. Long story.) did $150 damage to the trailer, $250 damage to my Porsche.
Of course, there are more automobiles on the road within downtown Pittsburgh than there are in the entire state of Alaska, so maybe your driving environment is a wee bit less friendly than mine...
Well, neither was downtown. The recent one was "wrong place, wrong time". The previous one I suspect the other driver may have been slightly careless, but I put myself in a bad situation, and I won't do it again. Why assume the other person is paying attention?