we've had geico for about a year or more. i looked at our history, and it did a little but seems to be coming down a little too. I like state farm insurance. we went with geico because it was the cheapest and we felt good about it.
It looks like you have a lot of information already but I thought I would add my two cents. My husband and I shopped around last year, my husband had been with Farmers Insurance for 20+ years. We had all insurances under them, vehicles, home, rental unit, and our business. Somebody had told us to shop around so we did, we found "The Ahbe Group" 7828 Vance Dr. #205 Arvada, CO 80003 303-468-8610. We are saving a significant amount. And my husband thought we were getting a good rate before. Granted we pay 6 mths at a time but it is so worth it. We save about $300 a year just on the vehicles. And we have EVERYTHING. Hope this helps and saves you some money.
Love, love, love Progressive. Called so many companies after we had to get rid of our last insurance. Even without discounts for combining my home and car insurances, Progressive was so much less expensive. I've had Farmers, Primericasecure, Metlife, Allstate and Progressive. Everyone of them except Progressive got more and more expensive every time it was time to renew. With Progressive, my rate has gone down every year. If you can pay for 6 months at a time, the discount is more than equal to one whole payment.
The worst were Primericasecure and Metlife. Somone totalled my husbands car. Even though it is the law in Utah to have insureance, she didn't have any. MetLife told us that uninsured motorist coverage did not cover our car. "That is not what uninsured motorist coverage is for." I couldn't believe it. My lawyer and I had the same question, "What's it for then?" After they recieved the letter from my lawyer, all of a sudden that was what uninsured motorist insurance was for. After we got the check, we switched insurance. What a nightmare MetLife was. Primericasecure was even worse!
We have used Liberty Mutual for years. There is a discount for combining car insurance with house insurance. The rates are reasonable, and the response to claims very positive. I cannot promise you will have the same results, of course - but I can heartily recommend this company! I wouldn't consider any other company after 10 plus years with these folks.
ANPAC.com, American National not only provides superb service, but also has some of the best rates out there. On top of that, if you stay claim free for 3 years you get 25% of your home and auto insurance premiums back. Its nice to get a check in the mail. It has been wonderful to work with our agent, Nate Hales in Ogden, UT; he even came to our house to help us do the paperwork to switch instead of making us go to his office. It was so accomodating!
I'm with Allstate, and have a great agent. He calls occasionally with suggestions or new things, and is always prompt in responding to messages. This is after having an Allstate agent in AZ before moving here who was even better. My rates have progressively gone DOWN since being with Allstate, and we are now paying pennies compared to a lot of people with similar situations and have discounts for just about everything (safe driver, clean record, multiple cars, multiple policy, etc...). I've been extremely happy with them, and have shopped around multiple times in the eight years I've been with Allstate. I've never found a better rate for myself. But not everyone's situations or driving records are the same... Just letting you know my own experience. Hope it helps.
Hi Zoe,
I am an insurance agent.(just to let you know up front, but I am sending this as a friend not a solicitor.)
I am sorry to hear your agent hands you off to a csr. In most agencies you will find that is normal. Most of the time the staff person knows how to handle the system better than the agent. I was a csr for 10 years before I opened my own agency (with one of the largest companies). I still try my hardest to be here for all of my clients. They know they can talk to me any time. They even have my cell phone in case of a claim. I also try to have an annual review with each of my clients, but so many people think it is a sales appointment when I truly want to do a review to make sure they are not exposed to any possible liabilities.
Each of the companies that you have mentioned are good companies. As for the increase in your rates after a renewal or two, you can ask the company how the discounts work and if they are anticipating any rate increases with in the next few months. One thing I always stress to ANYBODY that I speak with. It is fine to talk with people about your insurance but go to your agent for the facts. We are all licensed and know this industry inside out. We do this all day long everyday. With all of the different factors that go into rates now a days you can not compare your situation to that of a friends any more it is impossible.
I would strongly recommend you shop more for an agent than for a company. The agent is the one who is there to take care of you. If you go with an 800 number company you will not always have the same person to help you. Do not be afraid to ask for referrals. I have given out referrals several times. Find out how long your agent has been in the industry, how and who handles what in the office, and how easily can you reach the agent.
If you have other questions please feel free to ask. My philosophy is that you as the client are the one who makes or breaks me. So I want to make sure you are happy. If I am not able to help people with my policies I always have trust worthy referrals for them.
Best regards,
Jo Ann
we had been with another company for about 12 years and my agent NEVER followed up with me to see if we had any changes. My agent, Tina Kiel with Farmers Agent is awesome. She not only got us more coverage for less money but we've been a customer for a year now and have already sat down to see if there was anything that had changed in our lives for additional (or less) coverage. call her at 303-960-5290 (i think it's xt 10) or email her [email protected]
we are with state farm and they are great. our rates have actually dropped over the six years we've been married, because our agents always stay on top of changes that will lower our premiums like good grades, age changes, etc. i would definitely recommend state farm.
We've been with Electric Insurance (a subsidiary of General Electric) the majority of our 10 years of marriage. We never had an agent, but the service was much better. I had an accident at 3:30 in the afternoon by a girl who was 15 and had run away from home. By 5:00 we had a rental car and the work all approved on the car. We could not have been happier. I haven't kept up on rates since we're so happy, but I think they're pretty comparable to the bigger companies. We've never had any issues with them and have only had better than friends have reported. I'd trade all that for an agent who doesn't do anything! :)
I agree with the mom who stated look for an agent over the company...a lot of the companies are going to be comperable...and you want to make sure that you have an agent who cares about you. When I was a kid my parents were with State Farm, they had an AWESOME agent who even sent us all cards for our birthday every year...he sold us on him as an agent and then the company. When I got my own insurance it was with him at State Farm. When I got married and he had retired my husband and I shopped around a bit but I really wanted to stick with state farm if we could find an agent we liked...well we did. He's great. He really takes care of us, I had bumped into my cousins car in our driveway and called to talk to him about it and he crunched numbers and said I would be better off just paying out of pocket and no claim was filed, no paperwork done showing it had happened. He took care of what was best for me, not for the company. They could have paid it, taken me for a rate increase and I would have been paying for it for several years until the rate dropped again. Also good because I got in a bigger accident several months later (hit a pole in the winter but lots of damage to my vehicle) that had to go on the insurance. Our rate has gone up, but only by a few dollars a month, so the company, still good...the agent, even better. The only thing that would tempt me to move on would be if my agent stopped caring then the only thing would be the money talking.
be wary of companies who haven't been around long. I had a friend back east go with a new insurance company that had only been around a couple of years, it went insolvent and they weren't insured and no other companies were picking them up for a while because they had been without insurance for a while--make sure it is a solid company and then shop for the agent from there. You are trusting them with a lot...make sure you trust them.
You could try a service like Netquote.com - you fill out a form and agents contact you with quotes. Use the opportunity to see who you feel comfortable with and who gives you the best price. Don't buy a policy right away, either - this is your chance to shop around.
Be sure to find out what discounts they'll give you for writing both your home and auto policies. Ask the agents for their rate quotes in writing. If you like one agent, but another gives you a better price, ask the agent you like to match the price (and provide a copy of the written quote to the agent you like, if they need it).
If you use Netquote, you should get rates from all the big names - State Farm, Allstate, GEICO, Progressive, Farmers, Liberty Mutual, etc. The service is free, but be aware that you will be contacted by multiple agents from a variety of companies if you decide to go this route. Make sure that you have a little bit of time after you fill out the form - they'll contact you pretty quickly after you finish it.
Try Hartford...they are affordable. However, not very forgiving if you have an accident (It's takes about a year in a half before the rates decrease again assuming a good driving record is maintained there after.)
hey Zoe, by the way I just have to tell you I love your name! Anyway American Family Insurance is great and personable.
We have American Family and love them! My husband was with USAA before we got married and American Family was even cheaper then they were. We live in the Springs, but our agent is amazing. My husband and baby were just hit and he called to make sure we were ok, always remembers our names, etc. I've never been passed off to a customer service rep except when dealing with that accident (just to file the report). Every other time we speak with someone in the office. Good Luck!
Hi Zoe,
Call Michelle Rust with Colorado Risk Advisors 303-952-5736 to run you some quotes. She is an independent insurance agent who can comparison shop for you. I work with her in the Colorado Benefit Advisors side (health, life, disability, Pre-Paid Legal, ID Theft and accident insurance). The great thing with an independent agent is they don't try to make you fit into their product - we have tons to products to choose from.
Just tell her I sent you and I know she will take good care of you. She only represents reputable companies. Be sure to ask her about the ones that are most rate stable.
Take care,
Susan
Try Met- Life. Craig Lowe. We have had them/Him for 4 yrs. and have never gone up. Actually, we have gone down. we have rental,car and life insurance through them. Not a single complaint.
Angel
We saved with Geico like in the commercials. We switched from AAA because we moved out of CA.