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Discount Auto Insurance - Costs Vs Service
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By Joseph Wekusz
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Discount Auto Insurance - Costs Vs Service
Today's household budgets are strained by many factors. Rising costs for food, clothing and gasoline cause the household budget to appear to shrink with each passing day. You are constantly searching for new methods to stretch budgets without having to cut necessities. One attractive area to save money in the annual home budget appears to be insurance costs. TV advertisements show how the availability of discount auto insurance a method of saving. The larger question is, is discount auto insurance found over the web worth the monetary savings?
Liability, Collision and Comprehensive are the three main areas of coverage included in vehicle insurance. If you financed your vehicle, then the holder of the loan will require that all three cover the vehicle. This is what is considered full coverage. Liability covers any damage caused by the vehicle. Collision covers any damage caused to the vehicle by another vehicle. Comprehensive covers damage caused by fire or theft of the vehicle. In our nation, many of the states require that liability coverage be purchased in order to register the vehicle. If the automobile is not financed, you have the option to only purchase liability coverage. This however may cause you to be responsible for the entire cost of repairing the vehicle when it is involved in an accident. In addition to the 3 fundamental types of coverage additional coverage may be obtained from most insurance companies at a greater cost.
The common way of purchasing auto insurance was either through a captive agent or broker. The difference between a broker and captive agent is that the captive agent works directly for a specific insurance company. A broker can represent several companies with the coverage that they offer. These agents and brokers are paid by the insurance companies for the policies that they write and renew. In many cases savings can be found from these brokers and agents for combining policies from a single company. A great example of this is the combination of insurance for your home and auto. The agent or broker works to develop the best policy for the individual. A relationship is formed which requires the insurance provider to pay the broker or agent when the policy is renewed with the broker or agent.
If a customer was dissatisfied with either coverage or the broker/agent, a lengthy and involved process needed to be made to make a change. Many phone calls with repetitive questions and answers needed to be made to numerous insurance agents. This process was both extremely time consuming and in many cases caused frustration for the consumer. It was often difficult for the consumer to compare the coverage offered by the different companies.
The Internet provided insurance companies a grand opportunity. This opportunity was to be able to offer Free Insurance Quotes to a bigger market. This larger market provided a broader base for the insurance providers to spread the risk factor over. In addition to spreading out the risk factor, the insurance providers, by offering coverage right to the consumer could then stop the need to pay commissions to agents or brokers. These two methods allowed insurers to offer discount auto insurance to the general public.
Every insurance policy is unique and while offering the same coverages they may have differences. These differences often called exclusions allow the insurer to specify what they will and will not cover in case of an accident. In almost all cases these exclusions are included as the "small print" which the purchaser may or may not read. A consumer when evaluating an automobile insurance policy can accidentally miss an exclusion that could potentially cost them money in the long run.
Auto insurance is quite easily just another product that is sold on the open market. Many prices and options are often available for what when glancing at appears to be the same product. There are consumers who will purchase the lowest priced product simply because it is the most affordable. Then there are other individuals who will purchase a product simply because of the name recognition of the insurance provider. Name recognition is an important factor. A reliable brand name often means quality customer service combined with a quality product. Maytag washing machines are a wonderful example of a reliable brand name. Maytag washing machines hardly require service yet, when they do, the Maytag service is known to be prompt and efficient. The purchasing of a brand name auto insurance, even at a discount rate may be higher than that obtained from other companies. However the brand name insures prompt customer service and reliability when an accident and resulting claim occurs.
Costs are constantly rising often outpacing gains in income. Discount Auto Insurance may be obtained from many suppliers. When purchasing any discount auto insurance policy without the assistance or aid of an insurance broker it is required that the consumer carefully evaluate both the policy and the company that is issuing the policy. If the company that is issuing the discount car insurance is not familiar to the individual it is recommended that the individual contact the Better Business Bureau to familiarize themselves with that company. Should the consumer doubt their ability to determine which policy and or company is the right one for them, an insurance professional should be consulted. In many cases the insurance professional can offer comparable rates to the discount automobile insurance available via the internet, which insures that the consumer gets the best coverage for their money.
By Joe Welusz
Liability, Collision and Comprehensive are the three main areas of coverage included in vehicle insurance. If you financed your vehicle, then the holder of the loan will require that all three cover the vehicle. This is what is considered full coverage. Liability covers any damage caused by the vehicle. Collision covers any damage caused to the vehicle by another vehicle. Comprehensive covers damage caused by fire or theft of the vehicle. In our nation, many of the states require that liability coverage be purchased in order to register the vehicle. If the automobile is not financed, you have the option to only purchase liability coverage. This however may cause you to be responsible for the entire cost of repairing the vehicle when it is involved in an accident. In addition to the 3 fundamental types of coverage additional coverage may be obtained from most insurance companies at a greater cost.
The common way of purchasing auto insurance was either through a captive agent or broker. The difference between a broker and captive agent is that the captive agent works directly for a specific insurance company. A broker can represent several companies with the coverage that they offer. These agents and brokers are paid by the insurance companies for the policies that they write and renew. In many cases savings can be found from these brokers and agents for combining policies from a single company. A great example of this is the combination of insurance for your home and auto. The agent or broker works to develop the best policy for the individual. A relationship is formed which requires the insurance provider to pay the broker or agent when the policy is renewed with the broker or agent.
If a customer was dissatisfied with either coverage or the broker/agent, a lengthy and involved process needed to be made to make a change. Many phone calls with repetitive questions and answers needed to be made to numerous insurance agents. This process was both extremely time consuming and in many cases caused frustration for the consumer. It was often difficult for the consumer to compare the coverage offered by the different companies.
Every insurance policy is unique and while offering the same coverages they may have differences. These differences often called exclusions allow the insurer to specify what they will and will not cover in case of an accident. In almost all cases these exclusions are included as the "small print" which the purchaser may or may not read. A consumer when evaluating an automobile insurance policy can accidentally miss an exclusion that could potentially cost them money in the long run.
Auto insurance is quite easily just another product that is sold on the open market. Many prices and options are often available for what when glancing at appears to be the same product. There are consumers who will purchase the lowest priced product simply because it is the most affordable. Then there are other individuals who will purchase a product simply because of the name recognition of the insurance provider. Name recognition is an important factor. A reliable brand name often means quality customer service combined with a quality product. Maytag washing machines are a wonderful example of a reliable brand name. Maytag washing machines hardly require service yet, when they do, the Maytag service is known to be prompt and efficient. The purchasing of a brand name auto insurance, even at a discount rate may be higher than that obtained from other companies. However the brand name insures prompt customer service and reliability when an accident and resulting claim occurs.
Costs are constantly rising often outpacing gains in income. Discount Auto Insurance may be obtained from many suppliers. When purchasing any discount auto insurance policy without the assistance or aid of an insurance broker it is required that the consumer carefully evaluate both the policy and the company that is issuing the policy. If the company that is issuing the discount car insurance is not familiar to the individual it is recommended that the individual contact the Better Business Bureau to familiarize themselves with that company. Should the consumer doubt their ability to determine which policy and or company is the right one for them, an insurance professional should be consulted. In many cases the insurance professional can offer comparable rates to the discount automobile insurance available via the internet, which insures that the consumer gets the best coverage for their money.
By Joe Welusz
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