Avoiding Disaster: Choosing the Right Auto Insurance Company
By Auto Insurance Spot
A great deal is at stake when choosing an auto insurance carrier. In
addition to the financial considerations, there are issues such as
reliability, quality of service, and integrity. Luckily, there
are certain steps you can follow to ensure that you select an auto insurance
company that will meet your needs.
When choosing an insurance carrier, reputation carries a great deal of
weight. For instance, Allstate, Nationwide, and State Farm are
well-known companies that have managed to hold onto some clients for
years. For additional guidance, you can consult your state's department
of insurance website. The website might offer consumer complaint
ratios which indicate exactly how many complaints an auto insurance company
has received for every 1,000 claims filed. This information can help
you to better evaluate companies so that you have some idea how
their customer service rates. You can then compare the list
of companies with low complaint ratios with the list of companies with low
premiums and see if you can come up with any matches. Those companies
that combine stellar customer service with low rates offer you the best deal
for your money.
If for some reason you cannot locate complaint ratios for your state, try
looking at the complaint ratios for other states. While an insurance
company's operations may vary from state to state, if a company posts a high
complaint ratio in a number of states, you should consider that to be a
warning sign. It is best to simply cross off your list any insurance
company with consistently high complaint ratios.
Another technique you can use when evaluating insurance carriers is to
determine which insurers body shops in your area recommend. Because
body shop managers must deal with a number of insurance adjusters, they can
provide you with an inside look at insurance companies. The managers
will know, for instance, which companies offer the most convenient claims
procedures. They'll also know which companies are particularly slow in
processing claims.
Another important source of information is J.D. Power and Associates,
which rates insurance companies in terms of variety of coverage, rates,
claims processes, and customer service. In recent years, Amica and Erie
have posted the best rankings with J.D. Power. These two companies
have earned raves for finding ways to cover claims, when at
all possible. You might also want to consider an
insurer's financial strength by checking out ratings from A.M. Best and
Standard and Poor's. These ratings determine an insurance company's
ability to pay claims. Still, you should be aware of the fact
that most well-known carriers are considered to be financially sound.
Finally, you might select your insurance company based upon the
professionalism of an individual agent. Since you will have to work
closely with your agent, it is important to find one that you can
trust. You might consider consulting a relative or friend to find out
the names of some particularly efficient agents.
In the end, you may not find out just how responsive your insurance
company is—until you are faced with an accident. However, if you conduct
extensive research before selecting an insurance company and agent…if you pay
close attention to complaint ratios…and you ask plenty of
questions, chances are good you will find insurance coverage you will be
happy with.. About the Author
Auto-Insurance-Spot.com is a directory of auto insurance companies across the United States. Visit the car insurance site for more information.
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