Review your policy each time it renews
This may seem a little silly to some of you. Why should you bother to review your policy if your rate hasn’t gone up? Lets look at it this way. If you went to McDonald’s and sat down to eat your hamburger, you would be pretty pissed if they didn’t put meat on it right? Check your burger before you send in the renewal payment. Sometimes you may be surprised that your policy coverages have changed. Discounts have gone up, or coverages have gone down, or been excluded all together! In fairness to the insurance companies out there, I will say that most of them do write a “letter” to inform you but you quickly glance at it and throw it in the file drawer not to be bothered with until your 5 year old cousin blows up your garage while doing an experiment involving your gas can and a blow torch. Did you make a $50,000 improvement to your home? You may want to make sure that its covered. A good agent should be proactive on letting you know when its time to do a policy review.
Get rid of coverages you don’t need
Do you have an extra car? Why do you need rental car coverage? Are you covered on group health insurance? You may consider dropping personal injury or uninsured motorists bodily injury coverage. It doesn’t matter if you have business Insurance (such as general liability insurance, commercial auto, workers comp) or personal insurance (like auto insurance, home insurance, health insurance, etc) this applies to any type of policy.
Take the highest deductible you can live with
This is pretty much self explanatory. No need for further embellishment. Plus, I have to run to the garage right now. My five year old cousin disappeared out there just a few minutes ago…
Search for discounts
There are too many available discounts to discuss on this post. Call your agent and make him work for his money! A good agent should be pro-active about getting you info on discounts.
WARNING Do not work with “Discount” or “Cut-Rate” Insurance agencies
You get what you pay for. Hey, why should you complain if they don’t answer the phone? You are only paying $1 per month, you should be happy! What’s that? You got in a wreck? Too bad, I hope you have insurance….oh wait! You do! It just happens to be with a “discount” company who slogan is “delay, don’t pay”. Yes, this was an actual banner seen hanging on the wall at a claims office at a “discount” insurance company. In my experience it’s better to pay a few extra dollars a month for the peace of mind that you will get the 5 star service you need if you have a problem.
Package your policies together
Most agents are able to “package” your policies together with the same company, or same group of companies in order to get you a hefty discount.
Work with an agent that brings “extra” value.
Do they provide free fax/copy/notary service? Do they send a bimonthly newsletter with helpful tips or other relevant information? Can they refer you to vendors who can provide you with discounted services because they offer special deals to your agents customers?
BEWARE!… the Yellow Pages
If you have had a good buying experience from the yellow pages then you can skip this part. I however have learned that the best way to find a great insurance agent/company is to ask your friends/family about who they like to do business with. Hastily calling through the yellow pages for a “quick” quote for the “cheapest” insurance is a sure formula for disaster. You are cutting your own throat if you are not giving the agent time to ask plenty of questions and do a thorough job of searching through his available companies for the best match. Unless they only work for one company and only have a one size fits all solution for you…what the heck, just skip those guys…they are wasting your time too!
Check the insurance companies’ financial “rating”.
Just because you have not heard of an insurance company does not mean they are a “bad” company. There are lots of great little companies you have never heard of. However, it would do you good to check their financial rating at www.ambest.com or just by asking the agent. A financial rating is basically a grade given to the insurance company by an outside/independent rating company (like a.m. best!). A+++ is really good and C is terrible.
Additionally, one thing I have found is that smaller companies normally have better customer service and faster response times on their claims. If you have confidence in your agent ask him/her what company they recommend based upon the best combination of price and service.
Look for an Agent who appreciates you
Everyone has a bad day now and then, but if you get the runaround, unreturned phone calls or a bad attitude it is definitely time to find another agent. Look for an agent who is opposite from your bad agent (duh!). A good agent will appreciate you, take the time to answer your questions and make you feel appreciated. You will remember a good agent if your friends need insurance and you will refer them. A good agent will say THANK YOU FOR THE REFERRAL and send you a $10 gift card (like we do!)