How Do You Know You Have The Best Price On Your Insurance?
Wow, it’s been a very busy month here. A lot of people are feeling the financial crunch from the rising gas prices and are looking for lower car insurance rates. I’ve also seen a few people shopping for insurance quotes after buying motorcycles and hybrids as another way to help lower their gas expenses.
As an independent insurance agent it’s very interesting to see the price difference in car insurance or home insurance from one company to the next.
Here’s an example:
I recently quoted one family for their three cars and home insurance . They also have a 16 year old teenage driver.
- With three of our insurance companies the car insurance alone was around $4000 for the year ($333/month).
- With two other companies the rates were $2200 & $2800 for the year ($183/month).
- They’re currently paying around $3600/year with an ‘on the corner’ insurance company.
- All are ‘A’ rated companies.
So, why is there a $2000 difference in price?
Well, every insurance company has a different taste for what they consider an acceptable risk. While you may be a good driver
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What Would You Do If Your Home Caught Fire At 12:55 In The Morning?
· by Matt Fox · posted June 30, 2008
· filed under Homeowner category.
My bride hasn’t been sleeping well since she had surgery 11 days ago. She woke up again from discomfort (and our screaming cat) and then wakes me up.
"Matt, I smell smoke."
I did too. It was strong. I immediately jumped out of bed.
Kathy runs to check on our 3 yr old and 1 yr old and call 911 while I start searching the home for the source. She says the kids are safe and nothing in their rooms is burning.
Now that I know the kids are safe I begin thinking about our home insurance policy and the coverage for additional living expenses, changes in building codes, the cost to rebuild our home and replace everything in it. Yes, we’ll have enough coverage for the ‘stuff’ but there’s no insurance for the major disruption and stress on a family from a major loss…Maybe
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It’s Just A Windshield, Right?
· by Matt Fox · posted June 27, 2008
· filed under Auto category.
I was reminded recently about the importance of the glass in your windshield in your car or truck.
A friend, and client of our firm, was having their car washed before heading out of town last week. In the windshield there were two dime size rock chips. Naturally, the friendly windshield repair company that rents the opportunity space from the car wash quickly runs over and says, “We can replace that windshield while you wait and if you have full glass insurance it won’t cost you anything. We just need to call the insurance company with you and we’ll get it done.” (If you’ve been to any car wash you’ve seen the nice smiling young kid running up to your car and running his finger over spots on your windshield with scientific precision.)
Well, my client agreed. While talking with the insurance company the adjuster said they wouldn’t pay to replace the windshield but if the glass company would repair the chips they would gladly pay for it. Of course, the glass company only wanted to replace the windshield so nothing was done at the time.
Now you may be screaming about the injustice of the insurance industry and what a scam it is to pay for all this coverage and the insurance company won’t even pay for a simple and obviously damaged windshield. And, you will be partially right but read on…
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Rising Gas Prices And Low Cost Auto Insurance?
· by Matt Fox · posted June 23, 2008
· filed under Auto, Homeowner, Motorcycle category.
Recently, I’ve been receiving more and more calls from people shopping their auto and home insurance. (Of course, this makes me happy because a very large percentage of the people that call become our client.) One question I usually ask is, "Why are you shopping your insurance today?" I have been getting a new answer I hadn’t received before…rising gas prices.
With the price of gas over $4 a gallon right now, I’m not surprised to find more people trading in their gas guzzling SUVs and buying hybrids, motorcycles and scooters. I’m also not surprised to find more people changing their grocery and clothes buying behavior too. I don’t know why it surprises me to have the large amount of people using the price of gas to shop for insurance.
Don’t get me wrong, it makes sense. You have to drive to work. You need to drive to the grocery store. You need a home to live in. And, you have to insure these things to keep your
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Switching Insurance? You Have To Cancel The Old Policy
· by Matt Fox · posted April 30, 2008
· filed under ATVs, Boats, Other Toys, Auto, Business Insurance, Homeowner, Personal Insurance, Teenage Drivers category.
I think most people are afraid to switch their insurance because they’re afraid to tell the old agent “goodbye.” Leaving relationships is difficult. Nobody wants to be the bad guy. You also don’t know if the other agent is going to try and “sell you” on reasons to stay. Then you’ll have to say “goodbye” to the new guy.
I often think most stay because of “The devil you know may be better than the devil you don’t know” attitude. It’s kind of like election time. You always hear how nobody likes any candidate but they’re voting for the person they dislike the least, the lesser of the two evils.
Well, when you finally do decide to switch insurance carriers,
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Auto Theft Rate Dropping
· by Matt Fox · posted April 23, 2008
· filed under Auto, Personal Insurance category.
According to an article at CNNMoney.com, FBI crime data shows vehicle theft dropped for the fourth consecutive year. While that’s good news, the West coast leads the country in thefts per capita. The easy access to move cars quickly across the border to Mexico and Canada where it’s more difficult to track the car seems to be the reasoning.
At the National Insurance Crime Bureau website they list the top 10 cities by number of vehicle thefts per capita for 2007 (2006 ranking is in parenthesis). They are:
- Modesto, CA (#5)
- Las Vegas/Paradise, NV (#1)
- San Diego/Carlsbad/San Marcos, CA(#11)
- Stockton, CA (#2)
- San Francisco/Oakland/Fremont, CA (#12)
- Laredo, TX (#22)
- Albuquerque, NM (#13)
- Phoenix/Mesa/Scottsdale, AZ (#4)
- Yakima, WA (#9)
- Tucson, AZ (#10)
NEW-Home Replacement Cost Estimator Form
· by Matt Fox · posted April 20, 2008
· filed under Homeowner, Personal Insurance category.
I just added to the site a Home Replacement Cost Estimator Form. This form will give you an idea on what it would cost to replace you home if it were a total loss. Since it’s your responsibility to keep your home insurance policy up to date, this could be incredibly helpful to prevent inaccuracies in the event of a total, or partial, loss. Remember, the standard home insurance policy does NOT guarantee full replacement cost of your home! (For more on this see, Home Insurance, Don’t Be Fooled By The Use Of “Replacement Cost”)
If you haven’t had a discussion with your agent in a few years, it’s time to look at your coverage. Access the Home Replacement Cost Estimator Form. Then, get your policy and check the value against what’s listed on your policy.
Let us know what you think.
Leave a CommentYour Home Insurance And The Finer Things In Life
· by Matt Fox · posted April 18, 2008
· filed under Homeowner, Personal Insurance category.
The traditional home insurance policy covers things most people own: the home, furniture, clothing, etc. It’s a nice package policy with very basic coverage. If you own things like jewelry, guns, art, silverware you may have a shortage in coverage.
The traditional home insurance policy (which most people carry) has the following special limits on these common items (these can vary from one company to the next but this is a good guideline to refer to):
- $1,500 for theft of jewelry, watches, furs, precious and semi-precious stones
- $2,500 for theft of silverware, gold ware, platinum ware, pewter ware
- $2,500 for theft of firearms and related equipment
There are eight other items with special limits but these
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Dateline NBC And Insurance Agents Taking Advantage Of Seniors
· by Matt Fox · posted April 17, 2008
· filed under Insurance Agents category.
Last night Dateline did a hidden investigation to, “see what insurance agents say, and what they don’t, when they think they are alone with a senior.” I didn’t see the show but read the article at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24095230/.
Unfortunately, there are people in every industry, including the media, which should be taken out and shot for their behaviors. We all know that there are also honest people that deserve real recognition for the honor they bring to their industry. However, that doesn’t make a good news story.
I’ve been a critic
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Where You Live Can Affect Your Car Insurance Rates
· by Matt Fox · posted April 14, 2008
· filed under Auto, Homeowner, Personal Insurance category.
Your home and car insurance rates can be greatly affected by what zip code you live in. If you’re an insurance geek, like me, you’ll find it fascinating to learn of the many factors that drive insurance rates. I won’t bore you with all but here’s another one of the biggies…your zip code.
If you live in a suburb like Queen Creek, South Chandler, Surprise or Buckeye your car insurance rates can be drastically less than someone who lives in Phoenix. One factor that plays into this is the number of accidents in a zip code. So, if you live in downtown Phoenix where thousands of cars travel every hour there’s a much greater chance
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Dog Bites, Home Insurance And You
· by Matt Fox · posted April 11, 2008
· filed under Homeowner, Personal Insurance, Personal Umbrella category.
I remember skateboarding as a kid down the street. My younger sister was right behind me on her skates. The neighbor a few houses down had his two Dalmatians out while washing his car. The dogs looked scary to my sister so she crossed the road. Being the big brother I had to prove it was okay so I kept skating by. One of the dogs came walking out to me. I ignored it and kept skating. It then came up behind me and bit my leg hard.
Every home insurance company wants to know if you have pets and what type. Why? If your dog decides to eat the neighbor’s kid for lunch, they’re going to be the one defending you in the liability lawsuit.
According to DogBiteLaw.com here are some statistics. In the US:
- Dogs bite more than 4.7 million people annually.
- There are over 30 dog attacks per year that result in
Read the entire article here Leave a CommentInsurance Claim Time. Delivering On “The Promise”
· by Matt Fox · posted April 10, 2008
· filed under Business Insurance, Insurance Agents, Personal Insurance category.Allstate recently released approximately 150,000 pages of documents from a review of its claims practice in the 1990s. Many people claim the documents reveal an “us” against “them” (Allstate vs. policyholder) mentality of the claims departments. Allstate’s not alone. I’m sure you can find it in various companies’ employees. Unfortunately, it appears to simply be another ding in the credibility of the insurance industry as a whole.
As much as I’d like to attack Allstate I won’t. There are bad apples in every company and in every industry.
What can you do to protect yourself?
The Arizona Department of Insurance has great
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Read the entire article hereATV and Boat Insurance, You’re Still Not Covered
· by Matt Fox · posted April 8, 2008
· filed under ATVs, Boats, Other Toys, Auto, Personal Insurance category.I had a few comments sent to me on my last article about ATV and Boats not being covered on your home insurance. One person said, “I didn’t know it wasn’t covered under my home, I’ll just leave it hitched to my truck so it’s covered under my truck’s policy.”
I love the human ability to try to find wiggle room. Here’s the best, most clear way, I know how to say it…
ATVs, boats, jet skis, motorcycles, etc. aren’t covered unless you have a separate policy for them…period.
It’s that simple. There are some very small exceptions
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Read the entire article hereWhen You Hit An Animal - How Does It Affect Your Car Insurance Rate?
· by Matt Fox · posted April 4, 2008
· filed under Auto, Personal Insurance category.You’re driving up North to escape our upcoming heat. You have your favorite road music playing on the radio and out from the Pine trees darts a beautiful deer. You react to avoid it but it’s too late. You hit and kill the deer. You’ve probably totaled out your car too. I hope you’re okay. So, how does this scenario affect your rates?
Well, personal car insurance physical damage coverage is broken down into two categories: Collision coverage and Comprehensive coverage (also known as Other Than Collision coverage).
- Collision coverage pays for damages resulting from a collision or upset of your car.
- Comprehensive pays for loss to your car caused other than by collision, including fire, wind, flood, vandalism, theft and ‘acts of God.’
So, good news for you.
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Read the entire article hereIs An Independent Insurance Agent Any Better?
· by Matt Fox · posted April 3, 2008
· filed under Business Insurance, Insurance Agents, Personal Insurance category.The other day a person called and asked what kind of insurance we sold. He was referred to us by another client and didn’t understand what we do. He asked, “I know what Allstate, State Farm and others offer. What’s Fox Insurance? I’ve never heard of you. That’s not traditional insurance, is it?”
I have to say I was a bit stumped. I didn’t understand and then it hit me. I replied, “We’re not an insurance company. We’re an Independent Insurance Agency…”
So, what is the difference between the insurance companies that are on every corner and an independent insurance agency?
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