Someone asked me this VERY important question the other day...

DO YOU PASS THIS TEST???

What Is Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage?

An estimated 1 in 7 drivers in the U.S. is currently uninsured, according to the Insurance Research Council.
If you get into an accident with one of these drivers and you don’t have the right car insurance coverage, your budget could take a huge hit. Luckily, most car insurance companies offer coverage to help in these instances.
Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage applies if:

• The other driver was at fault.
• The other driver is uninsured.
• You were the victim of a hit-and-run accident.

Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage applies if the other driver is at fault and underinsured, meaning he does not have a level of coverage high enough to cover your costs. In this case, the other driver’s insurance company would pay the bills until the policy limit is reached; your insurance company would then pay the rest of your reimbursement up to your coverage limit.
UM and UIM coverage are broken down as follows:

• Uninsured/underinsured motorist bodily injury coverage (UMBI/UIMBI).
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist property damage coverage (UMPD/UIMPD).

Note that in many cases, only bodily injury coverage will be offered. Check with your auto insurance agent for details on what coverages are offered and the exact details of those coverages.

What Is Stacked Coverage?

Stacking your coverage means that you increase your level of UM/UIM coverage according to the number of vehicles that you drive.
You can stack your UM/UIM coverage within or across policies.

• Within policies: Combining coverage limits for multiple vehicles on one policy.
  • Ex: If you had 2 cars on a single car insurance policy and your UM limit was $40,000, you could potentially combine your UM coverage limits for a total of up to $80,000.
• Across policies:
  • Ex: If you had 2 vehicles on 2 separate policies and your UM was $30,000, you could potentially file a claim using both policies, using up to $60,000.

What Is Unstacked Coverage?

If your UM/UIM coverage is unstacked, your level of coverage equals the limit listed on your policy.
Example: If your limit is set at $25,000, you’ll only receive coverage up to that maximum amount after an accident.
If you only insure one car, unstacked coverage is your only option. However, if you have two or more cars and your state allows stacking, you can choose to stack your UM/UIM coverage.




Depending on where you live, this may or may not apply to you....


ASK YOU INSURANCE PROFESSIONAL ABOUT YOUR COVERAGE TODAY! 




Reference: http://www.dmv.org/insurance/stacking-uninsured-and-underinsured-motorist-coverage.php

Did you ever have a customer service experience that wasn't that great?  What did you do about it?
Did you complain?  Did you ask for a manager or a supervisor?  Or did you just vow to stop using that service.. if you had other options, that is. Did you hang up and shake your head and wonder what this world was coming to?

I work in insurance every day and talk to people every day that have no clue about insurance. These are people that talk to customers every day and give advice.
Its pretty scary to think that people are giving advice to customers but know nothing about the product.

Take this picture of Finn here. He's chewing on a car, but has no idea what it really is and what it can do.  He's just a baby, why would he know?  Somebody should tell him. Who would that be?  Mom, Dad or Grandma?

Somebody should tell the insurance professional about the product they are selling. They should be told exactly what they are chewing on and what it can do.

We all hope that the professional giving advice has done some homework, took some training classes and had some experience, don't we?  Well, I do.  If they are giving me advice and handling my personal affairs like that, they better darn well know what they are talking about.

I say it is the boss's responsibility to make sure his/her employees are empowered to have the best resources there is within that company.  And I also say its the boss's responsibility to make sure they are doing thier job the best way too.

 We have been too soft, its time to make them responsible.

Giving the Insurance Agent your personal information

can be difficult, especially if you just are trying to compare the hundreds of auto insurance quotes you are getting now that you went online & requested one!! 

So if you are doing lots of shopping, then you are spreading your personal information all over.

Kinda scary, huh?

You might even think that changing your auto insurance every six months to get the cheapest rate is good too.

It's not.  It actually shows the next company you are applying for that you are a shopper and you're probably going to leave them too.   This is figured in your insurance score.
However, just an FYI.  It is actually important to give your personal information when you are shopping for other insurance.  The more info you give them, the better your rate will match your risk characteristics.

That can be bad or good, depending on you..

So my suggestion is if your rates go up, deal with it. Auto insurance rates ALWAYS go up!



And give that agent your personal information, you have to start trusting someone someday!!


Make a comment, I'd love to hear your suggestions or your side. 
Have a great week!

Oooh, just realized how long its been since I've written a blog post on insurance issues!  Wow, life can sure get away from us, can't it!

DRIVER RESPONSIBILITY

That is my next subject.  Boring, you say?

Well, read on my friends and don't judge so quickly. 

I was driving to work in a rush the other day worried I was not going to make it on time. Along with my worries were five thousand other drivers thinking the same thing!  We were all weaving in and out of lanes to get to the fastest lane there.   You know, you've been there.

How annoying is it to get behind someone not in a rush to get to work!  Darn them, they must have left early enough to get to work on time!

Since my day is surrounded by auto insurance issues, of course insurance was on my mind. And since I am the insurance geek, well, you get the rest.  

So, who's responsibility is it to drive safe?  Is the company you insure with responsible?  The passenger in your car? DOT (Department of Transportation)? Or your father for not teaching you how to drive well?  

I am here to announce, yes announce, that it is your responsibility that I get to work on time.

Bold statement, I know. 

              OKAY, you too.  But if we are all to drive on the roads fast and weavy...   we need to make     sure we are totally focused on the road and the lanes.  Totally. No looking at email or texting or changing radio stations or even looking at the beautiful flowers on the side of the road.   

TOTALLY FOCUSING

So one more word.  Be responsible for me, stay in your lane!

What Is a Loyalty Discount?

Its been quite a while since I've written a posting for my blog.  I have been so busy with my job in insurance, which just means job security but also means not writing blog posts!

I finally have time and something to say.

The other day my  husband and I bought a new car.  We've had the same insurance company for about 25 plus years and had accrued a "loyalty discount".  Each company calls this discount something different.  It might be called Guaranteed Renewal, Loyalty, Good Driver, Policy Time, Policy age...etc. Each policy, no matter how many times you changed your car stands on its own and begins to accrue this time.  So if you buy a new car and start a new policy... it begins at day one and earns its loyalty time day by day, year by year.

Why is this important to know?

Have you ever stumbled upon a great deal on a car and bought it?  You knew you needed to sell the current one, but you were not ready yet. Maybe you plan on saving it for your upcoming teenager or something? If not, we all know it takes time to sell a car & you want to get a good deal, right?   Right. 


The absolute best thing to do, is to "replace" the current car with your super duper good deal.  It will pick up the long-time accrued "loyalty" discount.   Then start a NEW policy with the one you plan on selling.   Because you see, once you sell that car, the loyalty discount goes with it!!!

Yep.  It does.  

Once you sell that old car, the new policy you took out? (Which only had a few  months on it). That policy goes away, is cancelled, deleted... gone bye-bye, dumped in the vast sea of dead policies.

Which is okay, cause it didn't have enough time on it to accrue that loyalty discount.
Make sense? 
Well, good.  I'm glad you read my blog today and learned something!

For more good learning, read my past blogs on car insurance, etc and comment!!
 Every comment is welcome.

Have a great February everyone!

EVER wondered who would make a great driving partner?

Me too. I value my driving record and I hold it sacred. But then again, I am the insurance geek and I care about my reputation as a good driver with no tickets or accidents. For me to have an at-fault accident on my record would be like most people getting fired from their job or waking up with a zit on their face!   I've been fired before and it is humiliating.  As far as the zit, its par for the course in just being a human, nothing a little make-up can't hide--but some people go way over-board on that one, let's admit it!

The reason I bring this up is because lately I've been thinking of car pooling.  Yes, there is a commute Virginia!  And its really long & lonely. Some days music keeps me company or the current radio show, but having a driving partner will help on those lonely days when conversation is the order of the day. And talking to the radio host out loud in your car does not count as conversation!  Trust me, I tried it!

But who to drive my car or in my car?
I know you are waiting with baited breath for my solution because you have wondered the same thing, haven't you?  On those lonely treks home when you've had a bad day at the office and just want to vent or confide in someone before you get home and kick the dog.

We really don't want to kick our poor innocent Man's-best-friend, do we? 

Well.... in Insurance there is a species we don't usually think about when we think insurance.

"What?  You don't think insurance??  Are you  nuts?? "  I say.
"No, only insurance geeks live, breath and die  insurance thoughts"  You say.
Timidly I reply, "Okay that's fair".  I smile a crooked smile.

Once again, I digress.

Okay, so here it is.   Claim adjusters. 
Now you know the answer.  Make friends with the species, I mean person, that handles claims day-in and day-out and I guarantee a great driving partner.  
 There is a possibility they might be a bit paranoid, however. It's the chance you might have to take to find a good driving partner.
Oh well, sometimes we might have to take the compromise road.

Claims adjusters will spot a potential accident way before it happens and therefore be a great driving partner. You may have to put up with a few "Watch out for that!" or "watch out, they're braking ahead!" when you are driving, but its worth it......... right?

Well, there ya go, i've solved another insurance dilemma for you without you even having to ask.  

Afterall, I am the Insurance Geek.   

Have a great holiday this week everyone!!!    And as always, please comment if you'd like.  
  

**October brings on the cooler weather and there is a sense of newness in the air for some reason.  I'm not sure why the cooler weather makes people happier...there must be some kind of scientific research somewhere about it?  Don't you think?***

However, there still are things that happen to us humans that get us a bit heated up...  and I am here to talk about them  AND they usually have to do something with insurance! 

That's why I'm the Insurance Geek, I love insurance stuff! 

Anyway, I digress.

The other day I was looking at an MVR (motor vehicle report) and saw that this gentleman's license was suspended.  Most insurance people will not let you continue your insurance with a suspended license (because legally, you can't drive, so who is now driving your car?).  

I sent the agent an email to ask them WHAT'S UP? with this customer.  He told me that Mr. Doe was driving a friends car he borrowed and didn't ask the most important question you should EVER ask a friend..............

"Do you have insurance on this car?"

Well, he made a funky turn and got pulled over and of course was asked to produce an insurance card.  When the officer checked it out by running the VIN on the car, he discovered there was no insurance.  So they take the car (not always) and impound it.  And since YOU were driving with no insurance, not your friend, YOU get the ticket.

Now lets say, for some reason the same person pulled over didn't realize they were going to suspend his driving privileges, or he didn't make it to court.  If his license had already been suspended and he was pulled over, his little problem now became a big one cause he now has a MAJOR VIOLATION: Driving on a suspended license.  Doesn't matter if you didn't know (major violations stay on your record for five years).

So two things to get from this blog post:
1) Always ask your friend or acquaintances the big question about insurance before you borrow their car. (This always goes for you designated drivers if you are driving someone else).
2) If you move you have to change your address with the DMV!!!  Don't forget that is also a law! If they can't find you, they  may just suspend your license to get our attention!

Well as always, I have brought you more information than you'll ever know or want to know, but wouldn't I love it if you  post your own story here?    
YES !!!!

Happy October & cooler weather everyone!  (except maybe those who live in Arizona!)