If you're like many people, you've probably had the same insurance company for years. Until recently, my auto and home insurance were with the same company my parents used.
We can all call around and get the best rates on the minimum required auto insurance. This is probably where most of us started when we were young drivers with no assets to protect. At some point you buy a house. You call your car insurance company if they offer homeowner's insurance, or maybe you go with the person that your Realtor or escrow officer recommends.
Now a few years go by. Your earning power has increased, but you've never really thought much about insurance. It's past time. Insurance is a big deal, but many of us don't think about that until it's time for a claim and then it's too late. Where I live in California, the local news carried stories of fire victims a few years ago. The insurance companies set up shop at the shelters. Some customers were well taken care of. Others were very unhappy with the decisions they had made.
I'm sure many of the unhappy homeowners made choices based on prices alone. While price is important, you need to consider other things as well. How stable is your insurance company financially? How do their current customers rate them on customer service and claims? J.D. Power and Associates rates insurance companies on a variety of factors, including pricing and overall satisfaction. Consumer Reports has an article in its September 2009 issue about homeowner's insurance. Most of these companies provide a whole range of insurance, including auto insurance. Take a look at the companies that come out on top of these reports and call them for quotes. Make sure you're comparing the same coverage, deductibles and limits.
You also need to figure out how much and what types of insurance you need, but that's a topic for a different day.
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