| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Ninibini |
Posted - Mar 31 2012 : 3:06:01 PM
Hi everybody!
I'm sure we all want to save money this year, right? Well, I have something to share that may really help you!
A couple of months ago we were talking with our neighbor, who recently became a certified insurance agent in property and casualty insurance, about how much our homeowner's and auto insurance was costing us each month. We were paying over $2900 a year for both! OUCH!!! She suggested we let her take a look at our policies some time – she thought perhaps she could really help us. Well, it was the holidays, things were crazy-busy... there was just so much going on, so we put it off. But back in the middle of January, while preparing our annual budget, I was trying to figure out what to do to help us bring down some of our monthly expenses. I mentioned the insurance thing to our neighbor again, gave her our policy cover pages, and let her see what she could do for us. I mean, it couldn't hurt just "to see," right?
BOY were we FLOORED when she came back with new quotes! She gave us the exact same coverages, with a couple of add-ons we wanted, and managed to save us almost $1200 a year on both our auto and homeowners insurances!!! That's a lot of dough-re-mi, baby!
Let me re-iterate:
Same coverages...
A couple of add-ons which we WANTED...
Just under $1200 a year in savings!!!!
$1200 a year back in our pockets!!!
Now, I can't say you would receive that same kind of savings - each case is different, but I can tell you that our neighbor was A+++ in helping us. She did all the legwork, all the research. She compared all the insurances, compared all the coverages and costs, and found the policy that best suits our needs. She reviewed everything with us, answered every single question to our satisfaction, gave us all the information we needed to do some research online ourselves, and put up with my crazy paranoid emails and telephone calls. I was just so unsure, that I had to beat the subject to death until I was totally convinced. After doing some research ourselves and taking some time to process everything, we learned a LOT.
First of all – our neighbor was on the money about everything she was telling us. RIGHT with every answer, in addressing all of our needs, in advising us as far us what we should look into as far as coverage and services and costs. She was also dang right about SAVING us a whole lot of money.
Second of all – our neighbor found special discounts for us that our long-term carrier never offered us: for example, we got a special policy discount because my DH drives a company van for work. Nobody ever told us about THAT before!!
And there's plenty more.... For example, at the time, we had been with our company for over 15 years, but they give us only a MINIMAL multi-policy discount, and no consideration for our clean driving records or minimal claims submitted. When switching to our new company, we got some really great rates because of all of these considerations. When I did a little research, I learned that our former insurer probably could've offered us a better discount, but even though they review our policies every year over the phone during a 5 minute phone call, they never offered us anything. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Zippo. Rien. That's not right! Apparently, providers don’t really divulge this information – even to their “best” customers, because if they did, they’d be losing money. Basically, if you don’t ask, you won’t know, and chances are, you’re paying through the eye teeth for your coverage! To boot - when we had concerns about the insurance they WERE providing us, they really didn't take the time to explain or offer us a better plan - it was pretty much, "this is how it is - just accept it and write the check already."
That is NOT how it was with our neighbor. She listened to everything, answered all our questions, addressed all our concerns. She explained everything; she went the extra mile. To put it simply - she EARNED our business!
Now, it IS a little disconcerting to switch to someone new after all these years, yes - I know. BUT our current insurer hasn't done anything for us, and hasn't really earned the money that we've been over-paying all these years. AND the good thing is, our neighbor – someone we have known and trusted for many years - will be our go-to person if we ever have a problem with a claim or anything. Knowing that it's a trusted friend with our best interest at hand who is servicing us is piece of mind that you cannot put a price tag on.
So... I know that your interests might be peaked at this moment: What kind of savings might be available to you? Or maybe you've been just like us over the years: accepting whatever "they" tell you, thinking that "they've" been taking care of you all these years. Well, let me say: Nothing ventured, nothing gained. You've got nothing to lose! Yes, you can always call your current insurer to see what kind of unmentioned discounts might be available to you through them. But they aren't going to want to lose a lot of money on you when you've been paying right along. And, in my opinion, here's another thing to consider: why didn't they care enough about you to tell you about this already? They've been making money off of you all this time and never said a word. Do they really DESERVE your business at this point? Plus, it really doesn't hurt to make a phone call to a new insurance agent to let her see what she can do to help you - there's no obligation! I can't promise how much another agent can save you on your insurance costs, BUT why not make a call and see what someone new can do for you, huh? You might be really, really glad you did!
Oh! And one little exciting tidbit more to share: Because we switched our policies in between renewals, our insurance company had to send us a nifty little refund for the difference when we switched... AND our mortgage payment came down about $80 a month!!!
Since January, our neighbor has saved quite a few friends money on their homeowners and/or insurance policies. We all have the same or better coverage from companies with the same or higher A.M. Best ratings (very important to check that out!) – and we’re all grateful to have a little extra money in our budgets every month. I strongly suggest you do a little research online about any prospective new insurer, but I bet you will be able to find someone to help you in the same way, too! I know especially in these difficult economic times, every penny really counts and needs to be stretched, so I just thought I’d share!
Good luck!
Nini
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Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others! |
| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Ninibini |
Posted - Apr 28 2012 : 12:21:22 PM
I didn't even know they didn't cover log homes, Natalie! That's awful! What is there reasoning for that!? Seems so unfair! Is it because they changed the laws about what you can use to seal the wood or something? That's just awful!!!!
Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
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| YakLady |
Posted - Apr 28 2012 : 10:31:38 AM
I wish more companies would offer home insurance to log homes :(
~Natalie~ Just a farmgirl in Western Montana. http://mtnme.blogspot.com
Starting a family and raising Tibetan Yaks, Highland cattle, Laying hens, Muscovy ducks, Silver Fox rabbits, and a few dogs. |
| Ninibini |
Posted - Apr 28 2012 : 08:04:34 AM
I'll say... Marianne, it's amazing what a difference this has made in our lives. We also have had friends who have either inquired through our neighbor or through their present insurance company, and all have had great results. It never ever ever hurts to ask, you know? Never!
The only thing I would really caution is that you want to find real-live person to be your agent. Recently my foster daughter found out how important that really is. She was driving through an intersection and a contractor who was looking at roofs instead of the road totaled her vehicle. Thankfully she wasn't hurt, but because she had purchased her insurance online instead of through an agent, she really got the run-around. The insurance company she had was a big name insurer, too. If she had had a personal agent, she would've had an advocate of sorts who made phone calls and stood up for her during the claim process. Instead she dealt with three different nameless, faceless agents who were in some remote area of the country (or world, for that matter), who only saw her as a policy number - they didn't care what happened. Had it not been for an attorney friend of ours who explained to her her rights as an insured, she would've lost a lot of money. The impersonal agent over the phone wasn't about to tell her all that she was entitled to until she specifically inquired about things. Lesson learned. She finally switched over to our neighbor... Now she has a person to walk her through this kind of thing, who cares about her situation, and who will ensure that nobody cheats her out of anything having to do with a claim... And our neighbor saved her a bunch of money on even better coverage when my foster daughter switched over, too! :)
Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
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| rough start farmgirl |
Posted - Apr 10 2012 : 10:47:08 PM
Thanks Nini. A little extra is always better in our pocket!
Marianne |
| Ninibini |
Posted - Mar 31 2012 : 7:41:25 PM
Just want to add that I came across this list of 66 ways to save money by the Federal Trade Commission: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/general/gen14.shtm It lists ways to save in transporation, insurance, banking, housing, utilities, food, medicines and funeral arrangements, and includes advice about purchasing online.
Further, if you do visit this website, try doing a search for "save money." It will direct you to a whole host of links to help you as a consumer! :)
Just a little more food for thought. :)
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Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
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