“Protect your investment”

I have been looking around a car insurance quotes for when I get my big pickup truck. I am focusing getting insurance to protect my assets from liability and catastrophic loss after an crash (such as totaling a new vehicle within a few years).

Today, I saw a insurance ad that advertised “protect[ing] your investment“.

That triggered me on so many levels, as an automobile is not an investment but a consumption item. Maybe a car is an pricey item, but it something you buy to get enjoyment out of temporarily, use it up, then send to scrap yard and ultimately the landfill. I do blame marketers, especially who foist advertising for financed automobiles and extended warranties as furthering the public’s confusion between the two. Also, it is a terrible way to buy insurance – which should focus on preventing catastrophic loss – not pain.

Google Gemini AI often has excellent summaries of concepts.

In simple terms, an investment is an asset you buy today with the expectation that it will grow in value or generate income in the future. Unlike a regular purchase (consumption) where you spend money for immediate use, investing is about putting your resources—such as money, time, or effort—to work to create a greater benefit later. 

In economics and personal finance, a consumption purchase is the acquisition of goods and services for current utility or immediate satisfaction. Unlike an investment, which is intended to grow in value or generate future income, consumption is generally “used up” or depreciates over time.