I posted a question in another thread about how I am getting crappy treatment from Allstate regarding a minor accident my wife got in last week with her car, so I will be shopping our insurance around for the first time in 17 years. Having never done this, I’m told in the other thread I can expect to have my current claim and other details of my life/risk passed around to other insurers via a system called CLUE. My question is:
Is it easy to get an “apples to apples” comparison of one bundled insurance package to another? Or are there all kinds of exclusions and tricks I have to watch out for?
I just want to be told that I can get the same X coverage under the same conditions with the same Y deductible for the new (lower) Z price on the house and both cars. As long as Z is lower than what I pay with Allstate by a significant amount, I will switch. Even if I can get an equivalent policy, I’m particularly concerned that they may use some kind of scam pricing trick where they offer me a lower price to get me to switch, then conveniently raise my rates (even with no new claims) because their underwriters “re-evaluated my policy” and decided I was more of a risk 6 months later. Also Is switching relatively easy even if you have your homeowner’s insurance paid through an impound account?
If you, or your either of your parents, were members of the armed services, talk to United Services Automobile Association (USAA) immediately. They are about the best of the lot. I’ve been with them for 58 years and have never had a problem.
When you contact other companies, have your policies in hand and have them provide a quote based on identical coverage amounts as listed in your current policies. Often, they may wish to amend the coverage amounts for whatever reason they explain but be upfront with them and advise that you wish to compare apples with apples before you make a decision to go with them. I’ve been in the insurance business for years and have seen very little game playing with rates on the sales end of the business. Rates are set by the Underwriting Dept and those who sell must abide by these rates.
Rates are determined by coverage amounts, deductibles, type of risk (sports car vs sedan, home located in a tornado or hurricane prone area, etc.) and personal loss history (bad driving record, home has experienced several recent claims, etc.)
When an agent provides the initial quote, there’s usually a disclaimer explaining that it’s subject to change. This simply means that they must first verify that the information you have provided is correct before it’s a firm quote. As an example, if you said you live in a brick home but this was in error, the premium may increase for an all wood exterior home after the policy have gone into effect. Usually, all of the information stated on the application is verified before the policy is issued but some information can fall through the cracks so be as accurate as possible.
When you talk about an “impound account”, I’m guessing you mean the premium is paid by a third party mortgagee from your monthly mortgage payments. I’ve never known changing policies to be an issue because the mortgagee or lien-holder simply wants to be assured a valid policy is in effect and that they are protected for their insurable interest in the property.
Finally, it’s likely your auto premium quote may be higher then your current policy because of the recent accident yet to be considered with the upcoming renewal with Allstate.
Thanks Dereknocue67 - I plan to be totally upfront and honest with the insurance folks I speak to about the cars and the house as not doing so presumably opens me up to a situation where I file a claim and they use any inaccuracies as an excuse not to pay it in the future. I just wanted to make sure the insurance business wasn’t like the used car business and it sounds like it isn’t.