Insurance increases

[Mandog]

Hey everyone,

I just received my renewal and the price went up $51.09. I called and they told me due to all the claims from the hurricane it we t up. I live in Va so that’s pretty crazy to penalize people who didn’t have the loss. It shouldn’t e allowed. Has anyone else’s went up?

[Iwritecode]

Time to call around for rates. There's no benefit to staying loyal to one insurance company.

[moose074]

Originally Posted by Iwritecode

Time to call around for rates. There's no benefit to staying loyal to one insurance company.

Not true, I try every few years to get cheaper insurance but since I have been with my current insurance company 31 years nobody has been able to beat them. It’s funny they tell me what I should be paying but it’s always way higher than I pay. That’s when they ask how long I been a customer

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Mandog

Hey everyone,

I just received my renewal and the price went up $51.09. I called and they told me due to all the claims from the hurricane it we t up. I live in Va so that’s pretty crazy to penalize people who didn’t have the loss. It shouldn’t e allowed. Has anyone else’s went up?

That's how insurance works. Everyone picks up a piece of the losses so no one individual has to eat it alone.

[Iwritecode]

Originally Posted by moose074

Not true, I try every few years to get cheaper insurance but since I have been with my current insurance company 31 years nobody has been able to beat them. It’s funny they tell me what I should be paying but it’s always way higher than I pay. That’s when they ask how long I been a customer

I guess I should re-word that to there is typically no benefit to staying loyal to one insurance company.

My wife and I were with one company for many years. Our rates kept increasing for no reason at all but when we called around we couldn't find anyone cheaper.

Then one year we did and we switched.

Now the only reason we stay is because our deductibles are grandfathered in. If we switch to anyone else they would, at minimum, double.

[BehindBars]

Originally Posted by Mandog

Hey everyone,

I just received my renewal and the price went up $51.09. I called and they told me due to all the claims from the hurricane it we t up. I live in Va so that’s pretty crazy to penalize people who didn’t have the loss. It shouldn’t e allowed. Has anyone else’s went up?

When you buy insurance, you are put into a risk pool with other policy holders. If their claims go up, you share in that cost, just like if you have a loss, other policy holders help pay your claims. Insurance companies are not in the business to lose money. Someone pays.

If you don’t like the rates, shop around. I generally switch companies every three years or so anyway due to incumbent complacency rate creeps.

[Daxinarian]

That’s how so many companies can claim: “Customers who switch to ACME Coyote Insurance save $100s”!
The long and the short of it is they are only counting customers who switch over and the only people who switch are the ones who save money. So if they all give new customers a low rate and then gradually increase it over time they can trade customers back and forth and it looks like everyone is saving money.

[MillMitch]

Quick comment on the customers that switch can save advertising. I had a work colleague who found cheaper auto insurance online (significantly lower, not slightly lower) and switched. She didn’t take into account the bundle discount that was applied to her homeowners policy. She lost the bundle discount, which was bigger than her auto savings.

[Iwritecode]

Originally Posted by MillMitch

Quick comment on the customers that switch can save advertising. I had a work colleague who found cheaper auto insurance online (significantly lower, not slightly lower) and switched. She didn’t take into account the bundle discount that was applied to her homeowners policy. She lost the bundle discount, which was bigger than her auto savings.

That's definitely a catch. If you are going to switch, make sure you switch everything.

[BehindBars]

Originally Posted by Iwritecode

That's definitely a catch. If you are going to switch, make sure you switch everything.

Or, just make sure the total of all your policies across all companies is as low as possible. Bundling everything on one policy has never saved me money, despite what the insurance companies lead people to believe.

[NavyLCDR]

Originally Posted by BehindBars

Or, just make sure the total of all your policies across all companies is as low as possible. Bundling everything on one policy has never saved me money, despite what the insurance companies lead people to believe.

I've been with the same company for 35 years. I have whole life, homeowners, RV, and 3 vehicles insured. All the discounts for multi-line and multi-car add up. Nobody has come close to the rates I pay. Longevity with the company and multiple policies with them gets me huge discounts that no other company has been able to touch.

I won't say which company, but Jake is there to help me 24/7.

[BehindBars]

Originally Posted by NavyLCDR

I've been with the same company for 35 years. I have whole life, homeowners, RV, and 3 vehicles insured. All the discounts for multi-line and multi-car add up. Nobody has come close to the rates I pay. Longevity with the company and multiple policies with them gets me huge discounts that no other company has been able to touch.

I won't say which company, but Jake is there to help me 24/7.

Good for you. With insurance, everyone’s rates are different. When I get quotes from the Farm, they aren’t even close to being competitive.

[TeachTexas]

Insurance also varies by location, risk profile(credit report), ages ,past history,etc. It would not be possible to judge my rate based on others.
For what its worth I have been with the same company for over 40 years. My rates are better than any quote I get from competing companies. Having multiple policies is the kicker. My current agent was a trainee in the agency when I first signed and he now owns the agency. I get a call from him regularly to tell me about any changes before I get the notice. I also have his personal cell number and can call anytime 24/7. I don't go through the claims phone, just call him...all done. This type of relationship is dying due to the impersonal internet. He's not Jake but works with him

[Daxinarian]

We had been loyal customers of Jake for years (my first auto policy) and we had all of our insurance policies there. That is until we sold our house and bought a new one a few miles away and Jake gave us the finger right before closing when we asked for a policy on the new house. (It was in Texas right around the time that BLACK MOLD was the latest hysteria.)
We haven’t been back…

[jd4010]

Darling wife is an insurance agent and I hear a lot of stories about ratings, increases, etc, etc. There are many factors taken into account when rating a home/auto/RV/etc. Claims history. Location of property. Use of the property (e.g. rental vs personal). Your credit score. Etc.

She has to sometimes get creative when quoting to help drive down the cost. She never messes with coverages.....you don't want to be penny wise and pound foolish. So she may do things like switch the names around on the policy for credit scores are drivers of cost.

Here in NC our DOI has to approve rates and we recently had a rate hike approved by the state. Home, auto, RV all went up some due to the approved rate hike. Is what it is....everything is going up these days except my income!

[Chuck_S]

That's how insurance works. Everyone picks up a piece of the losses so no one individual has to eat it alone.

That's how medical insurance works too. Half the insured people will never need nor get that "free" mammogram or PAP test but we're all paying for it. Just like non-smokers are paying for all that cancer treatment smokers need.

Insurance is a State, not Federal, regulated program. At one time I had three (3) cars which I could, surprisingly, only drive one at a time yet I paid for liability insurance x3. Insurance company had no leeway as the liability insurance was mandated by the State for each car as it they were all being driven all the time. "Talk to your State legislature." was the advice.

-- Chuck

[desuhu]

I have never understood why insurance companies check your credit score when quoting policies. Mine is 829, so no problem, but if you don't pay your premiums they simply cancel the policy. So moot point to check your credit.

[gw1800]

I had the same problem with my motorcycle insurance through 'Flo's' company. Went up almost $100 a year. I called and was told that the increase was due to the number of claims they had received. When I questioned them about motorcycle claims, they told me it was because of all claims, not just motorcycles.
I thanked them and told them I was not renewing my policy. They then told me I would get a call from someone to negotiate my premium. NEVER happened. Goodbye Flo.

[Daxinarian]

Originally Posted by desuhu

I have never understood why insurance companies check your credit score when quoting policies. Mine is 829, so no problem, but if you don't pay your premiums they simply cancel the policy. So moot point to check your credit.

They check your credit because people who aren’t reckless with their credit tend to also be people who aren’t reckless with their cars.
It isn’t a perfect indicator, but in insurance it doesn’t have to be.

[JCR]

Insurance companies are a scam. They only cherry pick their best and either drop or increase rates for the older or more vulnerable. If the government requires insurance they should be the one to regulate the industry and stop their bullshit.