Every insurance company has a different way of marketing their products to you. Big companies advertise on television, radio, internet and the like. Concepts are thrown out to highlight company differences such as accident and injury forgiveness, loyal customer discounts, and even coverage for those customers out there that are hard to place. So many choices right? You have no idea!! For every large company that advertises there are at least ten other insurance companies that work through a broker-agent channel that offer similar coverage at reasonable or even cheaper rates. With all these options, how can you be sure to get the best and most affordable coverage with out skimping on customer service?
Most people are worried that smaller insurance companies will not be in as good of a position to pay out claims. This is a legitimate concern which can greatly impact customer service. The truth is to be an insurance company in most states a carrier must be solvent meaning they have to be able to reasonably pay out claims. Am Best ratings and such determine financial stability of companies with AA ratings being good and B being less stable. These ratings would lead you to believe that an A rated company is better for you. But remember insurance is all about assessing risk. A large company arguably could have more risk than a smaller company and hopefully the portfolio of insureds are diverse enough to cover the low percentage of losses that could occur. Smaller companies act much the same way but on a smaller scale and sometimes especially during catastrophes a smaller company has localized personal adjusters that can service their clients with speed that can rival larger competitors. Seeing that size and ratings may have little to no impact overall for you what does this mean you should do? It still means the same thing you have to SHOP around for your insurance needs.
Time constraints prevent many from thoroughly researching insurance companies. Let's face it, we all lead busy lives and although ideally we want to research everything we do, that is not always possible. An agent has the time, in fact for a living, they ensure that they will thoroughly research where they place you to ensure you benefit. Their function is to intelligently process claims through to the insurance companies, be the first line of defense when you have questions or concerns, and keep you aware of all the possibilities abounding in the insurance world. Having an agent on your side working with you is like having a discount card or membership into the insurance world because you will always have dedicated professional staff evaluating your insurance needs to save you money.
Before you call the first agent you find it is also important to understand the different types of agencies or brokerages that exist. For instance, larger companies have agents that exclusively work for them meaning they are not going to be able to perform any due diligence for you and shop you around. Independent agents have open agency agreements to represent more than just one carrier of any specific insurance type while brokers, actually work for and represent you. Brokers do not represent any one carrier and their ultimate goal is to place you with the best company for your needs. Find a company that is a hybrid of the independent agent, who may offer you additional perks when placing you with companies they directly represent when it comes time to process claims, and broker who works for you. Because larger insurance companies have fairly decent claims processing services so whether an agency relationship exists or not, you will still receive the customer service level you expect when dealing with a broker.
So now you know and knowledge is power. Align yourself with an agency today!!! Visit http://www.EI2agency.com - the superbly different agency - the hybrid insurance agency you have been looking for!
CL Collins, Insurance Advisor, Consultant, Broker, Agent
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