How To Evaluate An Insurance Company
When you want to investigate an insurance company several companies write reports on the companies and give them ratings. Some of these companies A.M Best Ratings, Standard and Poor’s Rating Service , and Fitch. They rate the company on several different criteria like quality of policies, how they handle claims, payments made, customer service, and investigations into claims. After they do the research they write up a report and give the insurance agency a rating.
Potential customers can find these reports and read the findings on how the rating was determined. This is one way to evaluate an insurance agency. When reading the report look at customer satisfaction, claim payment history and pricing. These are few parts to read when looking at reports of insurance companies.
Another way to find out information is to visit the states insurance regulators website and look up the insurance company. The number of complaints or lack of them is another way to tell if an insurance agency is a good bet. Also, make sure the agency is licensed to carry insurance in your state this is another important aspect of choosing an insurance company.
Another great way to find good insurance is talk to other people who have used the agency. If you have family and friends they may be able to recommend a good insurance agency. Ask them how they were treated when they had to file a claim on their automobile or the house. What were the results did they have to go through red tape or was the claim handled quickly and with ease? Are the prices competitive or do they go up quickly after an accident or every year?
When looking for insurance a captive agent is one that usually represents one company. Often they provide competitive prices for home and auto insurance. You may need to shop with other agencies if you use a captive agency because they may not carry all type of insurances. Often they are not competitive for health, long term insurance, and disability.
A independent insurance agent represents several agencies. They can be very helpful in finding the right company for you. They can provide comparison shopping and often can provide you with all your insurance needs. They vary from agency to agency so shop around when choosing a captive or independent agency. Talking to other who have used the agencies will help you choose the best one to represent your insurance needs.
When you need to compare prices there are many online websites that will be able to assist you for this. Insure.com and Insurance.com can give you some prices and information on insurance agencies. Check out rates after you have evaluated the quality of the company then you can look for the lowest prices.
Good insurance companies offer you policies with payments you can afford. They limit out of pocket payments that the consumer has to pay. Some may even provide you with the option to skip a payment during a long illness. Another important factor is that the insurance won’t be canceled just because the consumer uses the insurance and runs up high costs.
