OT_Auto Insurance

[Tom Buchanan]

Been with this one company for 9 yrs,price finally reached the point I decided I could prob do better.I Got a better quote,$90.00 a yr cheaper.Only thing-when I told the agent I was moving back to the farm this month,he said it would be $40.00 higher because it was a different county.Both rural counties,no big cities.Anyone else ever have this happen?Just wondering if this is fact or the agent trying for a bigger commision.thanks for replies.

[Ken_Shea]

I despise insurance companies but every county/city can have different rates, I have experienced that, rest assured though, they either are or will rip you, that is just what they do, horrible people.

Ken

[cybor462]

They say it all goes by the number of accidents in the particular area and the number of property damage claims paid.

I agree it is all a bunch of hogwash and is just another way for them to rob you. It was explanied to me by an insider. This is what I was told.

Many feel insurance companies are there to help you when you need them. If you watch the Allstate commercials and the Geico ones they sell you the bill of goods that they are there for you when you are in need.

Bottom line, they do what they need to for them to make money. They do not make money by paying you what you deserve. I was told to keep that in mind.

[john hobdeclipe]

Had the same thing happen 20 years ago, when I moved to a new job, about 45 miles away. Went to the local agent for my insurance company, got addresses and all changed, then he pointed out that my premium will be higher now.

"Why??"

Because I'm now in a higher rate district, based on the numbers of accidents and claims.

"Bullsheet! You're insuring against MY mistakes, not someone elses. So you're saying that just because I moved 45 miles that I am more likely to cause an accident?"

Of course he hides behind the state insurance commission and the regulations, etc.etc.

I'd gladly give you a complete unabridged list of every insurance company that would willingly rip you off, but the hour is late, and server capacity is limited.

On the other hand, here is my list of honest, ethical, trustworthy insurance companies:




Thanks.

[kendall]

A few years ago they raised all the rates statewide so they could keep the rates in detroit down, my thoughts were I choose NOT to live in detroit, why should I pay for someone else to?

My cycle insurance tripled simply because there are more inexperienced bikers on the road now, 35 years riding, never a claim, and my rates TRIPLE?
leave my rates alone, and charge the inexperienced guys more.

An insurance company is there to make money, not any desire to help people.

Humorous thing though, A while ago a friend recieved a notice that his insurance payments were behind, so he was being cancelled, he didn't realy care for that company so went out and found different insurance. A week later he checked the mail, and found a check equal to 6 months insurance payments from the first company, because that's what he was overpaid at cancellation.

ken.

[aboard_epsilon]

"Bullsheet! You're insuring against MY mistakes, not someone elses. So you're saying that just because I moved 45 miles that I am more likely to cause an accident?"

no ....they are taking into acount theft of vehicals.

probably there are more thefts there.

all the best....mark

[Lew Hartswick]

Speaking of the unmentionable, I just got a letter from our car insurance Co.
that because there is a "new licensed driver" in our house they are going to
automatically include her on our insurance. Now the fact is she has
her own car insured on her mothers ins. and never drives either of our cars.
Now this is a bunch of crap. To stop this we have to fax them a copy of the
coverage from her mothers policy. -----BAH-!---
Cursed insurance Co.
...lew...

[wierdscience]

Being in Katrina land and seeing State Farm in action I laugh everytime I hear thier slogan-

"Like a good neighbor,State Farm is there"-

Only if a good neighbor robs you at gun point for payments and then bends you over and $#%%&#! you when you need something.

[WJHartson]

You are being too kind to State Farm, Something new would have to be developed to properly describe them. Katrina has taught me a lesson on how to deal with insurance companies in the future.

[Yankee1]

They are all a bunch of crooks in the same category with pharmaceutical companies, petroleum companies and worst of all politicians.

[Ken_Shea]

So,
It appears there is a consensus on insurance companies. :D

Ken

[motomoron]

Between my wife and I there are typically 5 motorcycles and 4 cars insured at any time. I don't like paying it, but at least I'm happy with how easy my present insurance company is to deal with. I've had all my bikes insured with Progressive since the mid 80's, and all my cars since the mid 90's.

What I particularly like is "Progressive Direct", since I never need to deal with an insurance agent. I can do it all online. I bought a car out of state a few months ago, and the phone call to add it to my policy and have proof of coverage faxed to the title agency took about 3 minutes. I've only ever made a couple claims in all those years, but they were dealt with quickly and painlessly.

No doubt someone will helpfully add anecdotal evidence tha Progressive Insurance is actually Satan incarnate, but 'til then, if you need to pay for insurance, it's nice to do it in a not-unpleasant manner.

FWIW, I live in MD a couple hundred feet from NW DC, and I pay about
$75/year for each of my small motorcycles, and $150/yr for the big ones. A late 90s BMW and 2000 Audi A4 are about $1100/year ea. I have an A-H Sprite with agreed value collector car insurance with Haggerty Insurance for about $120/year.

[wirewrkr]

My late grandfather was a small but successfull farmer in Maryland all his life.
When i started driving in the early 70s, he gave me some sage advice about insurance companies. "never ever deal with an insurance company with the word farm in it's name."
Good advice I should have listenned to.
Robert

[madman]

2 homes two trucks and a caddy on one insurance company. A 1983 snowmobile on another (TD Ins) The company Economical wanted $380 dollars for a 1980 snowmobile i bought to go ice fishing. I called TD and it was $150 with taxes still too much but cheaper at least. Oh a 1976 900 SS Ducati was $304 dollars a year. The company told me that if i ever sold it i wouldnt ever get motorcycle coverage again. They suck. Too bad we need insurance.

[wierdscience]

They suck. Too bad we need insurance.

Ya,don't you wish you had a captive customer that HAD to buy your product?

The state went manditory liability a few years back here,gave all the usual excuses about rates would be lower,fewer uninsured drivers blah,blah,blah.

Well needless to say,B--- S---! The rates have nearly doubled since it was voted in(by our politicians half of which are insurance reps and the other half lawyers)and the number of unisured drivers has tripled.Lying a--holes.

[bob308]

yes most of you are right. and don't have one with nation in its name either. i have been with one company for 34 years. they have been good to me. insure anything i want no matter how old, 66 vette harleys new and old. 69 chevy pick up. 46 chevy pickup. no problem.

i get hounded continusly by other companies. but when i tell them who i am with they clam up and go away.

i am with erie. and know i don't pay that much. infact about as much as the other companies want to insure one truck.

[ronm]

s



No doubt someone will helpfully add anecdotal evidence tha Progressive Insurance is actually Satan incarnate, but 'til then, if you need to pay for insurance, it's nice to do it in a not-unpleasant manner.


Not quite Satan, but this SOB ain't getting any of my money...Google "Peter Lewis"...

[DR]

An insurance company is there to make money, not any desire to help people.




Well yes, most companies, no matter in what line, are there to make money.

I've been with State Farm for 30 years. It's an almost daily event that I get a letter from them about one of our many policies. We have home owners, car, business and rental properties through them.

IIRC, we've had 4 or 5 claims in all those years. No problems getting things resolved to our satisfaction.

It may be that we get above average service from our agent because of the amount of business we give him.

I don't like to pay the premiums, but I do it for peace of mind.

[motomoron]

Huh...How 'bout that.

From the Wikipedia page on Peter Lewis...

"Lewis's approach to business is often unorthodox. For instance, Progressive's headquarters, designed by Bialosky + Partners Architects and built in 1994, includes a health club and travel agency in addition to the ubiquitous contemporary art. Lewis credits these and other unorthodox factors for helping create an environment in which creative thinking thrives—the kind of creative thinking that Lewis says makes a more profitable business.


[edit] Donations
With an estimated net worth in excess of a billion dollars, Lewis frequently donates money to charities and political groups. He is a patron of the arts and supports many artistic pursuits. Lewis's personal and corporate contemporary art collection is well known—the corporate collection is displayed at Progressive Insurance offices. Lewis has made donations to..."

I can get behind a fat-cat CEO who believes in creative thinking, art and aesthetics, and legalization and taxation of marajuana, even though I've no personal interest in anything that doesn't come in a bottle with a cap or a cork.

[HTRN]

I just got a renewal letter in the mail.. Seems they "discovered" an accident I had in January of 2005.. So my renewal wouldn't have the 30% good driver discount, and on top of that they're adding a 15% surcharge. The net result is my insurance is jumping just about DOUBLE what it was from a year ago.

What cheeses me off is they're just discovering a 2 and a half year old accident now, and trying to gouge me for it.:mad: I've had more problems with these a-holes than every other insurance provider combined. They're incompetetance got my license suspended, which cost me a day at the DMV to straighten out(god forbid I would have gotten pulled over!), then they're billing dept. screws up and I wind up getting a collection agency trying to put the clamp on me for (get this) $8. I nearly blew my top after that - but this screw job with the renewal? That's it. I'm going back to Allstate.


HTRN

[Mad Scientist]

Insurance premiums can be a pain but there are a few things you can do to get lower rates, if you are aware of them.

Do you have more then one vehicle? If so you possibility could get a discount for multi-vehicles, but you may have to “ask” you agent about it. How old is your car thus how much deductible do you want to carry, if any? If you don’t do a lot of driving you might qualify for a low mileage discount. If you have multiple cars the ones that are not daily drivers may qualify for a discount.

My 63 fuel injected Corvette with full coverage is insured as a ”show car” (7500 miles or less per year) costs $48 for 6 months. My replica of 52 MG TD, also insured as a show car, is $33 for 6 months.

The thing here is you must specifically ask your agent what kind of “special deals” they have to offer. Do not expect them to just casually offer this information.

[Too_Many_Tools]

LOL...I find it funny to hear how those who are so happy to pay low premiums.

The proof that you have a good insurance company is whether they will pay the bill when you have the accident.

Until then anyone will be glad to take your money.

Let's hear those stories where you had to file a claim, were paid the money and then your premiums still stayed low.

TMT

[ronm]

Huh...How 'bout that.

From the Wikipedia page on Peter Lewis...

"Lewis's approach to business is often unorthodox. For instance, Progressive's headquarters, designed by Bialosky + Partners Architects and built in 1994, includes a health club and travel agency in addition to the ubiquitous contemporary art. Lewis credits these and other unorthodox factors for helping create an environment in which creative thinking thrives—the kind of creative thinking that Lewis says makes a more profitable business.


[edit] Donations
With an estimated net worth in excess of a billion dollars, Lewis frequently donates money to charities and political groups. He is a patron of the arts and supports many artistic pursuits. Lewis's personal and corporate contemporary art collection is well known—the corporate collection is displayed at Progressive Insurance offices. Lewis has made donations to..."

I can get behind a fat-cat CEO who believes in creative thinking, art and aesthetics, and legalization and taxation of marajuana, even though I've no personal interest in anything that doesn't come in a bottle with a cap or a cork.
I knew you'd read that wikipedia crap-try this one.http://www.aim.org/media_monitor/A80_0_2_0_C/ How about a Commie-loving/socialist/anti-American/gun banner/George Soros buddy/pothead?

[bob308]

ok you want some stories.

rock hit the windsheld in my truck went to my agent he said got to the glass shop have them send the bill to him. got new windsheld never heard any more about it.

ex wife totaled 72 trans am they paid off rates did not go up. then they insured my 66 vette 6 months later for less then the trans am.

an erie comstomer it my girlfriends car did 4,000 damage they paid to get it fixed no problems in fact it was hit in the front and the adjuster said not to drive it they would send a rollback, they did not want to take a chance on any more damage.

[Too_Many_Tools]

ok you want some stories.

rock hit the windsheld in my truck went to my agent he said got to the glass shop have them send the bill to him. got new windsheld never heard any more about it..

A windshield is a minor expense...most companies will allow a couple of these claims.


ok you want some stories.
ex wife totaled 72 trans am they paid off rates did not go up. then they insured my 66 vette 6 months later for less then the trans am.

EX wife on your insurance? I believe once an separation occurs the law considers the couple to be separate. If she was your SOON TO BE EX then I can understand that you might have had to maintain insurance during the divorce period. Any chance that she took the hit when she applied for her own insurance? Also was the accident judged to be her fault or the other guy's? That judgement affects whose rates go up.



ok you want some stories.
an erie comstomer it my girlfriends car did 4,000 damage they paid to get it fixed no problems in fact it was hit in the front and the adjuster said not to drive it they would send a rollback, they did not want to take a chance on any more damage.

Again, who was judged to be at fault..it affects whose rates go up.

Curious...does your insurance company have a name?

Thanks

TMT

[Locksmith]

You guys are complaining, but where I live in NJ, the rates are the highest in the NATION, and possibly, on the continent. I have a 1999 Savanna van that used to be a commercial vehicle and I pay $1900.00 a year. I'm 47, no recent accidents, and I have high deductibles. NO speeding tickets. And you guys are complaining? You don't know how good you have it.

I had State farm when my daughter was driving my Saturn(no longer have it). She had two accidents where she rear ended people, and State farm took care of everything, including a lawsuit. The dropped us after that, but how can you blame them? She got new insurance and it was $3600 a year because she was a high risk.

Reply to HTRN : I'm having a difficult time understanding why you are so pissed about your insurance company "Finding" your accident in 2005. Was there a spot on the application where you were supposed to list recent accidents? Did you? If you didn't, and it was required, YOU LIED! In most states that would be insurance fraud. Where I am it's a $5000. fine.

[HTRN]

I replied to your PM..

So here's the story for the rest of you...
1)I never filled out an application. Was told to come in last year by the broker, saying he could find me a better deal. He pulled up my records, did some querys and popped out a quote. All I did was get handed a bill, and asked to sign.
2)NJ is actually CHEAPER than NYC. My brother moved there 5 years ago, and his insurance went DOWN.
3)I'm pissed because they're bringing this up.. 10 MONTHS into the policy, and over 2 YEARS after the fact - Choice Point has records of EVERYTHING, as soon as it's filed. I'm also pissed because this isn't the first thing they've screwed up - they got my license suspended after accidentally issuing me two policies, and then cancelling one, and notifying the DMV. I drove around for two weeks without a legitimate drivers license, despite having insurance. A coupla months later, I get a collections notice, for a nonexistant bill, for the nonexistant policy - two days later, after a half dozen phonecalls I had straightened it out - but my credit report now shows an attempted collection on it. I'm pissed because they've shown to be total incompetents, who couldn't find their ass with both hands.:mad:


HTRN

[Rex]

After being buggered by Allstate and State Farm for decades, I tried Progressive. They save me hundreds of dollars a year in premiums for the same coverage. Changed my homeowners insurance too (Liberty Mutual?), and save enough to make house payment every year.
I haven't had a claim with either one so far, so I may be in for a disappointment then, but so far I'm way ahead.

[Rex]

Someone posted suggestions for reducing your premiums.
I have 2 cars and a truck. We had all 3 on Progressive. Then we moved our homeowners insurance, and found that by insuring the truck with the company we had the house with, we saved on the house insurance, plus the truck insurance was cheaper.

As for the proof being in the claims, I do agree. But I have not had a major claim ever, and the last minor claim was maybe 10 years ago. So for me, the priority is lower premiums. I can afford to replace my vehicles, so I only carry liability insurance (at well above legal minimums).

My wife did have a minor at-fault accident a year or so ago. She talked to the other driver a few weeks later and was told Progressive paid off promptly and cheerfully, lined her up a nice rental car while hers was in the shop.

[Rex]

I knew you'd read that wikipedia crap-try this one.http://www.aim.org/media_monitor/A80_0_2_0_C/ How about a Commie-loving/socialist/anti-American/gun banner/George Soros buddy/pothead?


Ack! That does it! Progressive sucks, I'm outa there!

[bob308]

let me set the record stright. we were married when she totaled the car. she got the hair and left 3 months later.

the company name is erie ins.

[JeffKranz]

Well, I come from a family of insurance agents. My great grandfather started the agency in 1892 and my brothers own it today. It was passed down from generation to generation. They are independent agents so they can shop mine around for better deals. Currently I'm with Auto Owners and the offer a 15% discount to pay your bill in full.

I pay plenty for insurance because my brothers say "You need this insurance". I know none of us like paying it but the day you need it you will be happy without it.

I probably could find cheaper insurance but then again I might as well support people I know and love.

Here is a true story about an umbrella policy sent to me.

One day when I got home I checked my mail box and there an umbrella policy. I called my brother and asked him what this was for? He said that “I shouldn’t be without it”. I then asked him if he was going to pay for it. His response was “NO”. The cost of it was only around $100/year. I use to sell computers, a few weeks later he went to his office and on his desk was a new computer with an invoice for about $2000.00. He called me and asked me what the computer was for. And I responded with “You shouldn’t be without it” and you can figure out the rest of the story..