There are many insurance companies out there, hence choosing amongst them can be a real challenge. Here are the main points to keep in mind when selecting an insurance company for your auto insurance and any other general coverage needs :
1. Financial Solidity
You buy insurance to protect you financially and provide peace of mind. Therefore, you should aim to select a company that is likely to be financially sound for many years, by using ratings from independent rating agencies.
2. Licensing
Another consideration is the licensing. Not every insurance company is licensed to operate in each state. As a general rule, you should buy from a company licensed in your state, because you will be able to rely on your state insurance department to help if there’s any issue. To find out which companies are licensed in your state, contact your local state insurance department.
3. Service
Your insurance company and its representatives should answer your questions and handle your claims fairly, efficiently and effectively. You can get a feel for whether this is the case by talking to other customers who have used a particular company or agent.
You may also want to check a national claims database to see what complaint information it has on a company. Also, your state insurance department will be able to tell you if the insurance company you are considering had many consumer complaints about its service relative to the number of policies it sold.
4. Comfort
You should feel comfortable with your insurance purchase, whether you buy it from a local agent, broker, directly from the company over the phone, or over the Internet. Make sure that the agent or company will be easy to reach if you have a question or need to file a claim, if any.
5. Price
Many companies sell insurance policies and prices vary greatly from one to another, so it really pays to shop around. Get at least three different price quotes from companies, agents and from the Internet. Your state insurance department may publish a guide that shows what insurers charge for different policies in various parts of your state.
1. Financial Solidity
You buy insurance to protect you financially and provide peace of mind. Therefore, you should aim to select a company that is likely to be financially sound for many years, by using ratings from independent rating agencies.
2. Licensing
Another consideration is the licensing. Not every insurance company is licensed to operate in each state. As a general rule, you should buy from a company licensed in your state, because you will be able to rely on your state insurance department to help if there’s any issue. To find out which companies are licensed in your state, contact your local state insurance department.
3. Service
Your insurance company and its representatives should answer your questions and handle your claims fairly, efficiently and effectively. You can get a feel for whether this is the case by talking to other customers who have used a particular company or agent.
You may also want to check a national claims database to see what complaint information it has on a company. Also, your state insurance department will be able to tell you if the insurance company you are considering had many consumer complaints about its service relative to the number of policies it sold.
4. Comfort
You should feel comfortable with your insurance purchase, whether you buy it from a local agent, broker, directly from the company over the phone, or over the Internet. Make sure that the agent or company will be easy to reach if you have a question or need to file a claim, if any.
5. Price
Many companies sell insurance policies and prices vary greatly from one to another, so it really pays to shop around. Get at least three different price quotes from companies, agents and from the Internet. Your state insurance department may publish a guide that shows what insurers charge for different policies in various parts of your state.
