dswillia is a guru, and can answer your questions.


FEEL FREE TO ASK...

7/2/2012 9:02:16 PM

7/2/2012 9:05:37 PM

i just called my auto/home insurance broker today - told him i've been on autopilot with them for 5 years and they should give me a better deal just because or i'll start getting price quotes from others

how much of a discount should i expect to get from him?

[Edited on July 2, 2012 at 9:06 PM. Reason : .]

7/2/2012 9:06:06 PM

Falling space junk...yup that's covered

7/2/2012 9:06:48 PM

A black guy clipped my fender and took off. Am I fucked?

7/2/2012 9:09:07 PM

what is the usual reduction in premiums when you turn 25?

7/2/2012 9:10:25 PM

^^^^ If you have both with the same company there are a few things they could do...
1 - requote your business to see if any new, lower rating options are available
2 - check for discounts to see if all are being applied
3 - rerun your residential cost estimator for the replacement cost of your home to verify it is accurate. (most home policies have an automatic yearly increase in value built in, but it most likely has gone up more than the reconstruction cost has over the last 5 years)
4 - choice deductible increases and limit decreases could be an option as well

Also, if anyone is with Nationwide, i can pm you some more specific info

[Edited on July 2, 2012 at 9:13 PM. Reason : ^^^^]

7/2/2012 9:13:04 PM

Slave, if you are in NC, no you aren't. Law requires you to carry that protection, and it would only fuck you if you had a really expensive car and minimum limits

jtw, don't know exactly, but with more driving experience, your rates go down. Id venture to guess just under 5%.

7/2/2012 9:17:47 PM

so what does that mean, like expect a 20% lower rate?? if he comes back with less, i'm gonna tell him dswillia said i could get 20

[Edited on July 2, 2012 at 9:24 PM. Reason : also, is there like a secret pass phrase i can say to him to get more discounts?]

7/2/2012 9:23:35 PM

I, too, work in insurance but my company wants to get far away from nc because the government isn't nice to rate increases.

We are your republican grandmothers insurance company though.

7/2/2012 9:29:46 PM

my grandmother is not republican

7/2/2012 9:30:34 PM

I'd have to know a lot more to give you a solid guess at it, but i recently switched and saved about 10%.

Secret phrase = I'm shopping

They'll find everything they can.

7/2/2012 9:31:39 PM

Then go to the general and save some time!

7/2/2012 9:32:12 PM

Kiwi, that's why NC has some of the lowest auto rates in the nation. Charlotte is the 8th lowest city in the nation. Homeowners are like 35/50 so not bad there either (considering our high weather exposure on the coast)

7/2/2012 9:34:08 PM

I have a car insurance deductible of $100. That's what it will cost to replace my windshield roundabouts. Is it cheaper for me in the long run to pay out of pocket and avoid them raising my rates? Or are they just going to raise rates anyways, and I should make all the claims I can?

7/2/2012 9:34:18 PM

Yeah which loses the company money on claims.

Deductible is a biggie. Rates will go up, especially with all the losses nationwide the last few years.

How old is your car? Decide if comp or coll is worth it on older vehicle since they pay acv

7/2/2012 9:38:52 PM

Car is 2007. Windshield has to be replaced, not repaired. Our rates aren't great to begin with.

7/2/2012 9:46:44 PM

Comprehensive claims shouldn't be adding points to your policy, so unless you submit a whole bunch of them, it won't affect you at all...minus the deductible of course

7/2/2012 9:47:46 PM

Awesome.

7/2/2012 9:50:04 PM

Bored. Ask me stuff.

7/5/2012 1:38:44 PM

Quote :

"what is the usual reduction in premiums when you turn 25?"

7/5/2012 2:05:34 PM

I said earlier that i would venture to guess under 5%.

There are so many rating factors to take into account for actual results though. The factor could greatly vary in different situations.

7/5/2012 2:16:16 PM

Have you heard of Amica Auto Insurance?

7/5/2012 2:20:02 PM

Yes, don't know a ton about them though.

Did some looking through my email, found what i had read. In 2011 amica ranked #1 in customer satisfaction for homeowners policies. Nationwide was #3, so that's why it was mailed out to us...

[Edited on July 5, 2012 at 2:45 PM. Reason : moar info]

7/5/2012 2:26:05 PM

Turning 25 doesn't get you a discount. You get help in your rating with experience, you're no longer considered a youthful driver at 25 but it's not like someone clicks a discount button for you. Then when you're really old your premium starts to go back up.

7/5/2012 7:42:47 PM

I got a letter from Allstate saying I need to sign this "consent to rate" form agreeing to pay more for my insurance than the NC Rate Bureau's manual rates. I don't wanna do that. So which insurance should I switch to?

7/11/2012 7:32:24 PM

the lowest I've found so far is $267.35 thru Nationwide.

7/11/2012 10:33:40 PM

i have a carbon fiber TT bike.

can I get an insurance policy on it in case it gets damaged?

how expensive would it be to get ~$4k coverage / policy?

7/11/2012 10:55:48 PM

^hey buddy, get in line!

7/11/2012 11:00:57 PM

i am right behind you

7/11/2012 11:02:57 PM

bmel - the majority of NC has signed a consent to rate form especially recently with the decrease in dwelling fire bureau rate. It is also a strategy to help be more convenient for the insured, since they couldn't renew business if they don't have the signed form, and you'd be surprised how little people pay attention...

But to answer your question, go with what you are comfortable with in price and service. The greater Charlotte area is on of the most competitive markets in the nation, so price shouldn't be hard to find, which leads me to believe that Allstate is doing the convenience strategy instead of the taking your rate above the bureau. Nationwide is a good company, only ones in state with an accident forgiveness endorsement, which is kind of nice if and when it it's needed. Otherwise, farm bureau, state farm, all state, Erie, our auto owners (independent agent) are all good options for western nc.

7/11/2012 11:44:57 PM

H8R - yes you can.

2 options really.
First- keep it covered under coverage c of you home policy. It'd be subject to your home deductible, have (limited) named peril coverage, worldwide coverage, and replacement cost valuation. Deductible and limited coverage would be your concerns.
Second- schedule it on an inland marine policy. You would pick the deductible, all risk coverage (minus the listed exclusions) on a specified territory (could be usa only or worldwide depending on the contract form), but would be covered for actual cash value.
The IM would cost you money out of pocket (worth it for the extra perils covered though), and the coverage c you already pay for. This particular item doesn't have a NC bureau rate that is reported, so its premium would be up too the underwriter really. So price wouldn't be set in stone and the best thing you could do is talk to your agent and try to haggle (and have them explain exactly what exclusions there would be for your IM). I almost hate to say a price, since i don't know who you've got for insurance or what form they'd use...if you can share that, i could give you a pretty good idea as to if it is a good deal our not though.

7/12/2012 12:07:47 AM

i'm with Allstate right now, 2 cars and rental ins. with them

7/12/2012 12:10:05 AM

I'm with USAA. Have been since I was 18.


Are they really as good as they say they are? I've never bothered actually looking into where they stand in the marketplace.

7/12/2012 12:23:46 AM

^ simply said, yes, they are. Typically they can provide a price most anyone else can't (due to their model) and their claims service is and has been ranked the best in the nation for a while.

I'll check with and Allstate friend of mine if you.d like me to h8r, can get a decent idea. Right now, as long as you enough coverage under your ho4, coverage you has you covered

7/12/2012 12:29:55 AM

Fiancee's mother's car was damaged pretty badly in the hail storm here recently. The car KBB's for $12k (I realize that they use another system, but anyway). Question being, if the cost to fix exceeds X% of the value and they total the car, what % of the original cost can you generally buy it back from the insurance company for? This car is totally fine other than dents, but they are literally on pretty much every panel of the car. She would be fine driving it as-is.

[Edited on July 12, 2012 at 10:15 AM. Reason : .]

7/12/2012 10:15:00 AM

is Amica worth a damn?

7/12/2012 10:20:50 AM

^ yes - i hear amica is worth a damn. One of the top companies as far as claims satisfaction for the last decade or so (up there with USAA and Nationwide in the top 3).

^^ I talked to my bro who does claims, he's never had to do a total for a hail claim. It'd be a good idea to head over to a repair shop and get a quote on repairs. Typically hail claims on cars can be fixed via paintless dent repair which is fairly cheap in the grand scheme of things. By doing this you can see what exactly the price of repair (and the claim) would be and weigh it versus your deductible. If the car is newer than '04, chances are very good that totalling it wouldn't be in the picture even if some more serious body work/painting is required. Worst case being that the claim is 75% of the value of the car, and it's a total, you could keep the car with a salvaged title and the cost to keep the car would be calculated and subtracted from the total claim. As far as % of the cost to buy it back - it varies greatly for particular vehicles - couldn't even guesstimate. Also, if it's a salvaged title vehicle, you'd most likely not be able to carry comp/collision on it any longer due to some Underwriting guidelines, but again, chances are that you won't have to worry about that.

7/12/2012 11:19:24 AM

H8R - per my agent, Allstate doesn't write a separate IM for bikes, and it would be attached to your renter's policy. I couldn't squeeze a price out of him for any of that though...so I'd suggest taking the details to your agent and see what they can do for you.

7/17/2012 4:44:25 PM

Years ago I had a traffic violation for which I got the DA to reduce to 9-over. Within the 3-year probationary period, I got another ticket, bringing back the original in addition to the current one (I suppose).

So 3 years pass by with no further infractions, and my (State Farm) auto insurance decreases. A few months later, I get a letter in the mail saying that my rate will re-increase because of some change in policy. I called up the office and they mention something about the 3-yr probationary period having been changed to a 5-yr period.

Was that a bunch of crock or is it true? Did they really not let people "grandfather" into the lower rates who were already there? This happened maybe a year ago

7/17/2012 5:06:36 PM

http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/north-carolina-insurance-points

That explains it to my understanding. Points should be charged for 3 years then drop off. Don't know of a 5 year program like that.

7/17/2012 6:46:34 PM

TTT

I was on my parent's insurance while I was young/in college. I then got my own insurance for 2 years, but then sold my vehicle. I dropped my auto coverage to the minimums since I didn't have a vehicle, under the impression that having a gap in coverage would hurt my premiums in the future. Is this true? My dad says it is not, per his agent, and that I should cancel all coverage since I don't have a vehicle. My agent tells me that while I don't need to keep coverage, it would be beneficial to keep coverage because my premium for collision coverage would likely rise by $200-$400 (I have been without a vehicle for 2-3 months and won't get another for at least another 2, or maybe not until December).

[Edited on July 19, 2012 at 10:08 AM. Reason : .]

7/19/2012 10:07:45 AM

How are you getting around without a vehicle?

7/19/2012 10:18:07 AM

driving an extra vehicle from the parents

[Edited on July 19, 2012 at 10:22 AM. Reason : .]

7/19/2012 10:20:16 AM

yo dswillia, how will a 74 in a 55MPH construction zone affect my insurance

Also, will a PFJ increase my premiums?

7/19/2012 10:23:58 AM

wdp3 - It would be beneficial for you to keep continuous coverage. Ask your agent about a non owners policy. That'll keep you covered and should cost less than just dropping to minimum limits. I'm not as familiar with these, so i don't know how they'd work with you borrowing a car.

7/19/2012 10:33:41 AM

bobster, that ticket will negatively affect your policy.

A pfj wouldn't negatively affect your premium. There are some caveats, but a pfj could prevent insurance points being applied which would only help. Note that even if that's the case, your premium may still increase as things like safe/good driver discounts would no longer apply (points or no points - don't matter)

Oh and if you don't use the pfj, expect a minimum of a 25% increase in rate. (actually i don't know how many points applies to that particular ticket, but it's not good for you rates...just something to consider when thinking about upfront pay with later to back end pay on insurance)

[Edited on July 19, 2012 at 10:52 AM. Reason : moar]

7/19/2012 10:39:34 AM

yea I just got off the phone with USAA, worst case scenario is my premium goes up $70/month which is a 132% increase.

7/19/2012 11:22:24 AM

What are all your thoughts on God, cuase I'd really like to meet her.

7/19/2012 11:23:34 AM

Ouch...

7/19/2012 11:23:52 AM