Tips for Shopping for Auto Insurance

[goneboarding]

Long time lurker here. DW and I share a single vehicle in the Houston, TX area. Clean driving record for both of us. Our annual premium just got raised by 40+% for the Sep 2023-2024 renewal cycle. . The carrier claims that it is a state approved premium increase citing increased medical costs for personal injury. But 40%?

Any tips/advice on how to shop for insurance providers would be much appreciated. Are there reputable websites or agencies that provide comparative quotes from multiple providers?

Thanks!

 

[REWahoo]

Auto rates in TX have gone up substantially in the past year or two, but 40% does sound steep. Have you tried using an independent agent to get you quotes from several different insurers?

 

[brett]

We have done quick on line price quotes and had quotes from insurance agents.

When any of our insurances increase at what I believe is a competitive rate I go out for quotes to check the market.

One of our vehicles is older. Glass is expensive. We eliminated glass insurance. 2 year payback. But 5 years later we have not had to replace the windscreen.

Just make certain you are comparing apples to apples, deductibles, etc.

I did this on our home and our auto insurance a few years ago.

We do the same for communication costs. Anything that has a monthly or yearly cost. We do not switch for minor changes. Last time we were able to reduce our com costs (10 minute call to the carrier) from 181per month to 114 per month. Makes a difference over a one year period.

 

[jazz4cash]

I look at combined cost for home+auto. Sometimes it’s cheaper to bundle but not always. I avoid auto coverage that includes things like pet coverage and replacement key coverage unless those things are important to you. Rental cars and roadside assistance are things that could be duplicates of coverage you have elsewhere (e.g. AAA).

 

[teej1985]

I look at combined cost for home+auto. Sometimes it’s cheaper to bundle but not always. I avoid auto coverage that includes things like pet coverage and replacement key coverage unless those things are important to you. Rental cars and roadside assistance are things that could be duplicates of coverage you have elsewhere (e.g. AAA).

Pet coverage and replacement key coverage on your car insurance? I never heard of that.

 

[OldShooter]

Copy all the declaration pages ("dec" pages) for your insurance policies. Auto, home, umbrella, etc. Then black out the premium $ numbers and copy again. Telephone shop a few independent insurance agents and send the dec page package to at least two of them. It's almost always going to be cheaper if you place everything with one insurance company.

Absolutely avoid "tied" agents like State Farm, Allstate, etc. They may be nice people, even friends, but their loyalty is to their insurance company, not to you. An independent agent OTOH has loyalty to you and has clout with insurance companies because he will probably have placed a number of clients with each of the ones he uses.

 

[Teacher Terry]

My car insurance with geigo went up 30% for no reason except Nevadans have a lot of accidents and parts and labor have skyrocketed. I shopped around and couldn’t do better.

 

[FlaMariner]

We up the deductible to as high as it can go.....and drop collision in year 10.

 

[SnowballCamper]

I shopped around 2-3 years ago when my rates jumped up. I forget the site name I used for comparison, but it had me upload the policy declarations page, and then came back with rates from most of the big national insurers. It seemed to work better than what is described here as the current state of rate comparison sites https://insurify.com/car-insurance/the-best-and-worst-sites-to-compare-car-insurance-quotes/
It turned out that USAA had the best rates at the time so I've stayed with them. Good luck.

 

[ownyourfuture]

We up the deductible to as high as it can go.....and drop collision in year 10.

Ditto for me.

 

[bobandsherry]

If you are a Costco member, check out the auto insurance offered through them Connect by Progressive. I've found rates to be some of the best and renewal this coming 6 months was up a total of $4. Shocked the heck out of me after hearing experience from others.

 

[aaronc879]

Pet coverage and replacement key coverage on your car insurance? I never heard of that.

Unfortunately pet coverage is automatically included in my insurance. I have no pet. Seems like that should be an optional add-on.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

Copy all the declaration pages ("dec" pages) for your insurance policies. Auto, home, umbrella, etc. Then black out the premium $ numbers and copy again. Telephone shop a few independent insurance agents and send the dec page package to at least two of them. It's almost always going to be cheaper if you place everything with one insurance company.

Absolutely avoid "tied" agents like State Farm, Allstate, etc. They may be nice people, even friends, but their loyalty is to their insurance company, not to you. An independent agent OTOH has loyalty to you and has clout with insurance companies because he will probably have placed a number of clients with each of the ones he uses.

As usual, Old Shooter is spot on. Better yet, call some agents and ask to meet them in person at their office or your home. Get your information ready for them and put them to work.

 

[Morgan22]

I shopped around recently since we just moved to a new state and our insurance was expiring. Went to 2 "independent" agents. Was disappointed with their quotes.

So I also went online and got quotes from Geico and Progressive. I used my declaration pages from my original expiring quotes to make sure I was picking the same coverages. Progressive came back with the best prices. They were also almost 50% less than the independent agent quotes.

It pays to shop around.

 

[mystang52]

For a long time I had State Farm for all of my insurance. Several years ago I shopped around and ultimately switched. I did the insurance shopping myself. It was a not-insignificant small amount of work, and time, to do it this way.
Whenever I shop again, I will use an independent agent, as I just don't have the patience to do it myself anymore.
My motivation, previously, to do it myself was I only researched companies I knew were reputable. I don't want an unknown (to me) insurance company. The purpose of insurance is peace of mind. In the event of a claim, I want that same peace of mind; right or wrong I feel more comfortable with "name brand" insurers.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I won’t consider progressive as I have heard too many bad stories and the reviews aren’t good. I know GEICO pays as I was in a small accident 3 years ago.

 

[Midpack]

You have to shop around quotes periodically to see if you can do better. I switched from Liberty Mutual home and auto several years ago because I found out Liberty Mutual was gouging us by comparison - even though we'd been loyal customers for decades (I never would have guessed)

That said, insurance rates have risen considerably over the past few years, so you may find premiums are much the same no matter who the provider is. But I'd still check quotes every few years even if you're happy with the incumbent...

 

[teej1985]

For a long time I had State Farm for all of my insurance. Several years ago I shopped around and ultimately switched. I did the insurance shopping myself. It was a not-insignificant small amount of work, and time, to do it this way.
Whenever I shop again, I will use an independent agent, as I just don't have the patience to do it myself anymore.
My motivation, previously, to do it myself was I only researched companies I knew were reputable. I don't want an unknown (to me) insurance company. The purpose of insurance is peace of mind. In the event of a claim, I want that same peace of mind; right or wrong I feel more comfortable with "name brand" insurers.

Independent agents don't have access to all the insurance companies. You might be missing out on savings if you only use 1 independent agent.

 

[Affinity4Investing]

Long time lurker here. DW and I share a single vehicle in the Houston, TX area. Clean driving record for both of us. Our annual premium just got raised by 40+% for the Sep 2023-2024 renewal cycle. . The carrier claims that it is a state approved premium increase citing increased medical costs for personal injury. But 40%?

Any tips/advice on how to shop for insurance providers would be much appreciated. Are there reputable websites or agencies that provide comparative quotes from multiple providers?

Thanks!

thezebra.com and compare.com are two sites to consider for quoting... Progressive has been positive to work with - much more so than Allstate. I'd recommend avoiding LibMutual like the plague as they will give you a great teaser rate and then crush you in years 2-3 and onward.



From my monitoring of insurance financial statements, most are pushing thru 10%+ premium increases as all have been losing money. 40%+ is nowhere near reasonable but then again, elections have consequences - especially in your area.

 

[Kings over Queens]

Copy all the declaration pages ("dec" pages) for your insurance policies. Auto, home, umbrella, etc. Then black out the premium $ numbers and copy again. Telephone shop a few independent insurance agents and send the dec page package to at least two of them. It's almost always going to be cheaper if you place everything with one insurance company.

Absolutely avoid "tied" agents like State Farm, Allstate, etc. They may be nice people, even friends, but their loyalty is to their insurance company, not to you. An independent agent OTOH has loyalty to you and has clout with insurance companies because he will probably have placed a number of clients with each of the ones he uses.

I don't know if this has proven successful for you. I will say that if I received that info, I'd chuck it and look for someone else to work with.

To your second point, if the independent agent is an "agent," as opposed to a "broker" for the company, then their loyalty is to the company, not the client. In fact, if you look a policy, it's going to describe the agent as the company agent, not the client agent. This is a matter of agency law and contractual obligations between the agent (independent or captive) and the carrier.

The relationship changes when money or claims are involved, then the agent can become the agent of the insured (client).

All of that is neither here nor there. Most independent agents have access to more carriers is usually true, and the larger the agency, the more carrier appointments they are likely to have. And that offers the customer more options.

 

[Kings over Queens]

If I were to give my advice, it would be to find a large, but local independent agency, call and ask to meet with them. Bring your policies, be forthcoming with information, and why you are shopping.

Insurance agents are busy people and like anyone, don't like their time wasted. If all you are looking to do is kick some tires on "quotes" then you can do that calling the 800 number for various carriers. If on the other hand you are looking to develop a relationship based on trust, you'll need to invest a little time.

 

[OldShooter]

... I don't want an unknown (to me) insurance company. The purpose of insurance is peace of mind. In the event of a claim, I want that same peace of mind; right or wrong I feel more comfortable with "name brand" insurers.

Well, one of the value-added elements of dealing with an independent agent is that he/she is considering all aspects of a company, including his clients' experience with claims handling. So I have no concern if my business gets placed with a company I've never heard of. AM Best (https://web.ambest.com/home) is also a resource.

I don't know if this has proven successful for you. I will say that if I received that info, I'd chuck it and look for someone else to work with. ...

I have been using independent agents successfully for years. Like in hiring any professional, you have to do your homework. Re "received that info" I have no idea what you mean.

To your second point, if the independent agent is an "agent," as opposed to a "broker" for the company, then their loyalty is to the company, not the client. In fact, if you look a policy, it's going to describe the agent as the company agent, not the client agent. This is a matter of agency law and contractual obligations between the agent (independent or captive) and the carrier. ...

I don't know about the legal niceties, but when an independent agent discusses several companies and rates with me he is acting as my de facto agent. Technically he may become a de jure agent of the company where we place the business but I don't see that as an issue.

The relationship changes when money or claims are involved, then the agent can become the agent of the insured (client).

This is where tied agents can stumble. The State Farm guy needs to keep State Farm happy even if it costs him a client or two as a result of disputes.

All of that is neither here nor there. Most independent agents have access to more carriers is usually true, and the larger the agency, the more carrier appointments they are likely to have. And that offers the customer more options.

Yes, but the point made earlier in the thread is worth considering too. Each independent agent has a stable of companies and no single independent agent will have them all.

 

[cj1717]

Copy all the declaration pages ("dec" pages) for your insurance policies. Auto, home, umbrella, etc. Then black out the premium $ numbers and copy again. Telephone shop a few independent insurance agents and send the dec page package to at least two of them. It's almost always going to be cheaper if you place everything with one insurance company.

Absolutely avoid "tied" agents like State Farm, Allstate, etc. They may be nice people, even friends, but their loyalty is to their insurance company, not to you. An independent agent OTOH has loyalty to you and has clout with insurance companies because he will probably have placed a number of clients with each of the ones he uses.

Very true

 

[teej1985]

There are also several companies that no independent agents do not have access to - that is there are insurance companies that you can only go direct.

You are not doing your due diligence if you only talk to one insurance agent, regardless of if they are independent or captive.

In California, the majority of the market share is not insurers that are available through independent agents.

 

[athena53]

Just make certain you are comparing apples to apples, deductibles, etc.

This is huge and sometimes you have to read the boring fine print. A friend thought she got a great deal on a lower premium for Homeowners Insurance. Then they needed to replace a pipe between the house and the street (sewer or water) that ruptured due to root incursion. The new policy excluded damage to pipes. The old one would have paid $12,000. Sometimes the deepest discounters use non-standard forms that subtly whittle away coverages, so that if you loan your rental car to a friend who loans it to his/her friend who has no liability insurance and they cause an accident, Big National Company may cover it and Upstart Discount Company may exclude the at-fault driver from the definition of "covered driver".

If you're saving a lot, ask why.