Got a call about my homeowners insurance..

Ms Grumpy · #1 03-08-2012, 04:20 PM

I got a call from my homeowners insurance company today (I also have my daily drivers insured with them). They said that they were re-evaluating all customers that have been insured with them for more than 6 years. Why ? I don't know. We were told that our insurance agent had been to our home and taken pictures for the file. Then they asked us a few questions, what type of floors we have, how many fire detectors, any updates inside the house since the policy was initiated, and many more. I was then told that if any changes were going to happen that we would get a call back in about 15 minutes after they inputted the information.

Of course they called us back. Our policy was set up 14 years ago. We have a total replacement policy (which they no longer write), riders for contents and a $250.00 deductible.

Last year my policy premium for the year was about $850.00. With all the changes they said that ALL insurance companies are doing it would bring my policy premium to almost $1,400.00...WHAT ????? WHY ????

But....if I want to change/lower (by a lot) the replacement cost to $102,000.00 and increase my deductible to $1,000.00 then we could get the cost close to last year.

Am I living in a different world ? Didn't the value of my home decrease over the past few years ? I have been with this agent for over 14 years and have seen small increases every year, but this is crazy. Has anyone else seen an increase like this ?

I am sorry that I vented to you guys, but I am really pi$$ed.

Rharp · #2 03-08-2012, 05:45 PM

Wow Nancy that's a bunch of bs.
The whole time I was reading your story I was waiting for the punch line.
I guess it's not a joke so i'll just wait for my phone to ring so they can sock it to me too..

grandsport · #3 03-08-2012, 05:59 PM

Shop around.The same thing basically happened to me,same company for ten years etc.My agent compared all companies and got me better coverage at a savings of $600 per year.

shadowgray396 · #4 03-08-2012, 06:14 PM

We had to adjust ours this last year. They were also out to take pictures and some things we had on our house like earth quake insurance is no longer available on a new policy. Our seems to be increasing each year also. Our deductible is at a $1000, and our agent said to up date the total replacement cost every 3 years. Ours had not been updated since 1992 and they don't automatically raise it until you talk to them. We pay about $750 a year for our insurance. I have been with my agent since 1978.

I also have two houses and cars so I get some what of a multi policy discount.

flash · #5 03-08-2012, 06:51 PM

I hope they dont pull that on us ,we have 2 houses ,farm owners ,6 cars ,and an umbrella policy all with one agent. Joan wrote the original policy when she was an insurance agent many many years ago and they also dont offer a new policy like we have now .We have had the same company over 20 years and dread having to reshop it if it comes up. Our monthly insurance premium payment is like a new car payment already.

Ms Grumpy · #6 03-08-2012, 07:04 PM

Our insurance agent is like family, his secretary knows my voice when I call. I remember when we first set up our policy, Lauren was a newborn and we slid her, in her seat, under the desk (office was really small) while we set up our policy. I am just sick about this.

Hank70SS · #7 03-09-2012, 07:22 AM

Our house insurance is less than $500 a year, AAA. We also have our cars and motorhome insured with them. I'd have to look at our policy, I'm sure we're not comparing apples to apples but $1400 sounds pretty high.

Also, the replacement cost has little to do with the market value of your home. The cost to completely replace/rebuild your home is not based on what you could sell it for. It's based on the cost of materials and labor.

Gman · #8 03-09-2012, 05:54 PM

I know it's hard to break ties with an agent you've known and trusted for years, but I've found many times over that you need to say to your self that friends are friends and business is business. When they say to you that they are re-evaluating, and you feel it's a little extreme, then you tell him that times are tight and that you need to re-evaluate your yearly expenses and that you understand costs go up but that much of an increase seems extreme. Then tell him you would hope that he understands that you need to get a few other quotes before you just accept this increase and that if you find his prices are out of line that you would like to sit down with him and compare pricing to ensure they're apples to apples. Also, since you do like and trust him, tell him that you're not looking to change agents and will give him the opportunity to beat or match any quote you get.

I've been in sales for over 20 years, we run a very honest company and sometimes we can beat a competitors pricing and sometimes not, but long time customers will almost always give you the opportunity to see if you can do anything. Customer service means so much that we have customers that know we are not the cheapest but came to us because of the support they get after the sale.

Gary

Ms Grumpy · #9 03-09-2012, 06:20 PM

That's it Gary. We know that they are not the cheapest, but we have the most awesome service when we have a problem.

Hank70SS · #10 03-10-2012, 06:41 AM

We've had AAA, State Farm, Farmers, Allstate and now AAA again. Service has never been a problem with any of them. We had Allstate for a number of years and knew the agent well but when we could cut our total insurance bill almost in half it was time to say good bye. If AAA rates get too high we'll start looking again.

Agents can only do so much, the company sets the rates and they can vary a lot from one to another. You need to shop around every few years. The cheapest company today won't be the cheapest in a few years, that's why we've changed so many times.

As Gary said, business is business. Your agent isn't your friend, he just wants your business.