Tips: Choose an Insurance Company
If you are like more people, you have probably had as is insurance company for years. Until lately, my auto and home insurance were with as is company my parents used. We could all call around and get the best rates on the minimum required auto insurance. This is probably where most of us started when we were young drivers without any assets to protect. At some point you buy a house.
You call your car insurance company if they offer homeowner’s insurance, or maybe you attach to the person that your realtor or escrow officer recommends. Now some years go by. Your earning power has increased, but you have never really thought much about insurance. It’s past time. Insurance is a big deal, but many of us do not think about that until it’s time for a claim and so it’s too late. Where I live in California, the local news carried stories of fire victims some years ago. The insurance companies arrange shop at the shelters. Some customers were well looked of. Others were very unhappy with the decisions they had made.
I am sure several of the unhappy homeowners made choices supported prices alone. While price is important, you need to consider other things also. How stable is your insurance company financially? How do their current customers rate them on customer service and claims? J.D. Power and Associates rates insurance companies on a variety of factors, including pricing and overall satisfaction. Consumer Reports has an article in its September 2009 issue about homeowner’s insurance. Most of these companies provide a whole range of insurance, including auto insurance. Take a look at the companies that come out on top of these reports and call them for quotes. Be sure you are comparing the same coverage, deductibles and limits.
You besides need to figure out how much and what types of insurance you need, but that’s a topic for other day.
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