Bingo!

What is concerning me now is our current administration seems to like the idea of "making sure you know what you're doing" in every phase of your life.

Whether it's healthcare, eating, energy, school lunches etc. they are there to help you do the right things.

I can actually see them working with companies like Progressive to develop a new initiative to improve highway safety, reduce energy use and save you money by mandating this be built into new cars (for the most part it's already there) and requiring it as an add on for older cars.

Anyone like these ideas and if so why?

 

I followed that same exact path and as already described above and left Geico for the same reason.

Don't rest on your laurels.

 

Rick,

I have not tried Liberty (is that actually Liberty Mutual?), but I will. I believe they own SafeCo, which is the company I moved our homeowners insurance to last May through our AAA membership. Thanks for the tip....

My neighbor up the street is interested in our S-Type. I need to sell a vehicle, but I really do not want to part with that one. I would prefer to sell Jan's Lexus SUV but that is our dog-hauler and our only remaining AWD vehicle. She needed her Lexus this past Monday when the roads were icy during the morning commute and many accidents occurred on the bridges and overpasses....

All of our vehicles (with the exception of her recently-acquired XK8 convertible) serve an important purpose in our household. I truly regret taking Jan with me to drive one on that beautiful early November Saturday morning last year. If she had not tagged along with me, she still would not even know what an XK8 is....

 

Rick,

Liberty Mutual just moved to the top of my list. They made me a great offer which I believe will be very tough to beat. I have a bit of due diligence yet to do, but I expect them to become our next auto insurance provider....

Thanks again for the tip....

 

You have found it Jon, indeeed it is Liberty Mutual.

 

I wasn't going to mention them, but Joyce and I have a great Auto/Marine policy through them. We will be switching homeowners as well, but we didn't qualify as they will not insure homes with 12 + year olds roofs. That all changes mid next week!

Glad to be of help!

 

The Liberty Mutual quote may have been too good to be true. The agent told me one rate over the phone, but by the time he ran his system calculation and prepared his e-mail to send me, our premium went up by $400 per year. He's trying to find out what happened but has made no promises that he can get it back to what he verbally quoted me....

So in our case, Liberty Mutual may wind up no better than the middle of the pack....

 

I have state farm. I know for a fact they are higher than most, but I can tell you what - THEY PAY. And that's what matters when you need it. I hit a deer with my '98 STS when it was nearly new, and it did $20,000 in damages (most likely because I hit it going almost 100 miles an hour on the highway). Airbags deployed and everything. I had the check that same day. Went over to the main office and it was sitting in an envelope. They didn't even look at the car!

 

Oddly enough my wife and I are shopping around because Liberty Mutual has been creeping up our rates for the last couple of years. We've been with them for 15 years or so and also have homeowners with them. We've had several claims, including a $12,000 repair of my X-type, a couple of fender benders with the SAAB, and at least half a dozen windshields. None of the accidents were we at fault.

We called our agent to see what could be done about the creeping rates. He said that it is based on where we live - I suppose it is a well to do area, but with a lot of claims, probably for fairly expensive vehicles. They managed to chop our rate 5% last year, but we just got a letter that it is going up $200 for no apparent reason. Full coverage on the SAAB and Jag, $500 deductable, although we get a discount since the Jag is garaged part of the year. Glass coverage and bare bones on the Jeep and Rover.

As far as claims go, I really have no complaints about their process or communication, with one caveat. I was given a rental vehicle when the SAAB was in for repair, which was to be paid by the other person's insurance (Erie). I had to hound both companies to get the rental costs paid back to me, and it seems like I've had to do a little more of the footwork myself the last few times.

We have a bunch of discounts as it is (college grad, secure storage, theft alarms, safe records, homeowners grouping etc..) and the rates are still climbing with no satisfying explanation. The homeowners rate has been very stable FWIW.

Based on this thread, I'm going to call Hartford and 21st Century (thanks Jim) and see what they can do. I've been with AAA for 18 years so maybe try that route (thanks Jon).

Great topic Jon! Thanks for the thread.

 

I don't generally. I do some shopping around whenever my policy comes up for renewal. I still haven't found a company that will beat its rates. The downside is that other companies will hound me after I turn them down. They must be hungry.

It may be because both my cars are basic V6s that my rates stay low. V8s, superchargers or turbos will likely make the rates go up.

Mike

 

What could happen is the members here group together and without giving anything as far as personal to all, contact one of these companies and state we have 30 or 40 active members willing to make the switch to your company if you can offer a special deal. I understand a lot of variables from all as far as how many accidents, driving record, etc. but I bet if approached with a large amount of new customers ready to make the switch if attractive enough, might be willing to work a deal. Maybe each member states here is my rate and what I have and record, beat the price by 10 or 15 percent for all and we all switch.

 

While this is a good idea in theory, the insurance companies consider each customer as a separate case based upon many factors. Too many variables from prospect to prospect for any company to be willing to guarantee any group that all participating members will receive a significant discount compared to what they currently pay....

Shop your current policy around to at least a dozen insurance companies both national and local. If you have not done this in awhile, you will be surprised at the cost variance you will encounter. We have perfect history in all the categories that matter most (credit score, insurance score, driving record, zero-debt status, etc.), yet some companies have sent me quotes as much as 40% higher than others....

It is truly a risk/reward game in the eyes of the insurance company. Some are far more conservative than others, and that can change from year to year. An attempted group purchase (as businesses do with health insurance and life insurance for their employees) will not work for auto insurance. Too many variables involved for them to be willing to roll the dice and take a chance. I completely understand their philosophy in that regard. Their goal is to minimize their risks, and group auto insurance goes completely against prudent risk management on their part....

 

The Jag STR WAS the most expensive car on the Geico policy by a lot!

That's not the case with Travelers.

Here's to hoping the other shoe doesn't eventually drop ...

 

Thanks for the site recommendation. If you’re 50 or over though, the AARP RV insurance rates aren’t something to pass up. They offer discounts for seniors through The Hartford Insurance company--- so that means it is a reputed company that’ll meet your needs…if the time comes. The AARP offers all kinds of discounts to seniors.

 

Sounds like you want commercial car insurance. Rental car companies pay around $80-100 a month per car for full coverage for vehicles worth under $20K and there is very little restrictions on drivers.

 

I bet the insurance guys love it when you mention: Mafiaoso Intake, Pulley upgrade, port and polish supercharger, ECU upgrade and hi-flow CATS.

 

Update:

Completed the second round of due diligence this week - essentially going back to the top five contenders and telling them that if they truly want our business, they need to get more competitive. Some companies made a second effort, some did not bother, some said they would and never spoke up again....

Geico still leads the pack. Allstate improved their offer(s) more than any of the other contenders. They called me three times yesterday, each time a little sweeter. Still not quite good enough, however. Plus, I did not care for their approach of attempting to get me via "baby steps". I'm giving you a second chance, so don't blow it with a meager improvement, then another one and another one. The Hartford chose to stay with their initial offer. So did AAA....

The Geico deal will be difficult to decline - they are saving us nearly $450 per year compared to State Farm with the exact same coverage. No other company has been able to get within $200 of that. I may have to hold my nose and sign up for a year, hoping that my Diminished Value skirmish with them in 2009/2010 truly is a thing of the past....

 

Thanks for the update Jon. Kudos for really putting them through their paces, I applaud your patience!

 

Well mine's bone stock and always was. OK I do have special brake pads on it ...

I do all my crazy high speed stuff at the track ... with zero insurance.

It gets very expensive when things go wrong.

 

Jon89 - I use Amica insurance company. They are kind of like USAA. They charge lower rates and in some states, they send you a dividend check at the end of the year. I have been with them since 2008. They are as good as an insurance company can be. Give them a try. I wouldn't deal with Geico or any of the others, except for maybe Allstate. Stay away from Progressive.