Shopping For Insurance Online? It May Be More Challenging Than You Think.

Saturday, September 4th, 2010 | Shopping For Insurance Online and There Struggles | No Comments

Have you ever gone online to shop for car insurance thinking you were going to see your quote on your computer screen? Then after you submitted all your information you were only bombarded a few moments later with sales calls from a million insurance agents?  If not, you’re one of the lucky one’s that have been successful. That’s because the website you chose to get multiple quotes from sold your information to participating insurance agents that pay to be apart of their network for leads.

In this blog I’ll break down the different types of insurance companies, agencies and websites that advertise for multiple insurance quotes and how to avoid what can be a very frustrating shopping experience.  

Now with the invention of the internet, you can shop for just about anything with never leaving your home or going to the phone book for information.  Same with auto, home, commercial or any type of insurance.  Problem is where do you start and what is the best way for you to compare rates easily, hassle free and non-invasively?  The answer is you’ll never know unless you have gone online and done a bit of research BEFORE you enter any of your personal information to be sent off into cyber space.

Once you’ve gone onto Google, Yahoo, Bing or any search engine, you’re instantly overwhelmed with tons of places that sell insurance. Where do you start?  You may click on some of the major players that we all see and hear every day on the radio and TV. These types of insurance companies (or captive agents) only sell their insurance. So basically you would have to call or input your information one by one on their online application to see your quote.  Who has time or patience for that? 

Second, there is your local independent agent who sells multiple companies all under one roof.  Ok, this is better.  Issue here is that these independent agencies are not allowed to sell insurance companies like State Farm, Farmers, Esurance, Geico, USAA, Allstate etc. However, they will sometimes have a comparable insurance company like Mercury, Progressive, Safeco, Hartford, Nationwide or Travelers Insurance. And this all depends on the agency and who they are appointed with to sell.  Not all independent agencies are created equal and I’ll explain that in another blog.   

Then there is my favorite type of company that owns a website(s) advertising multiple quotes all in one click of the mouse. And these firms will advertise Farmers, State Farm, Allstate, Geico, Progressive, Esurance etc. etc. I’m not sure if there is a formal name for them as they do not actually sell the insurance themselves, but rather take your personal information and sell them up to 8 (sometimes more) insurance agents just so they can call you on your phone and fill up your inbox with quotes. They are like a third party lead generator for insurance agents.  Sound like fun?  Hardly from my experience with them. I’ve tried 4 different insurance lead generating companies all boasting something different. But in the end, they all take a consumers information and sell them to multiple insurance agents that will call you relentlessly to see if you are interested in what they have to offer. It is frustrating for both the insurance agent and the customer, as the customer has to deal with their phone ringing off the hook. Unless you happen to be the one insurance agent that was lucky enough to get a hold of the customer on the first try before the feeding frenzy begins. But then the poor customer has to deal with all the follow up phone calls and junk mail for days to come.

My advice is to read the fine print before you submit your information from a website you know nothing about. And beware of these website saying something along the lines of “we’ll match you up with different insurance agents” or “we’ll match your application with the right agents”. 

These types of websites will usually have a link or something for insurance agents to receive insurance leads from consumers at either the very top or bottom of the home page.  Usually something like “Agent Sign Up”, “Agents Join Here” or “Information for Agents”. This is a dead give away and unless you are looking to make some new friends, run! These multiple quoting websites you visited will not quote nor sell the insurance you are looking to buy. They will just sell your information to multiple insurance agents to call and e-mail you. 

Now, with all that being said, there are a few websites out there that will quote you multiple insurance companies on their website without your info being sold. It’s private and non-invasive. But, some only have a few carriers to quote with so you really can’t get a clear picture of what you should be paying (especially if you have a DUI, tickets or accidents for auto insurance).  Some have more than others but it’ll all depends on who’s who and it’s usually around 5 to 10 companies.

So, now that I have cast a dark shadow for your next insurance shopping experience I can shed some light on a new way to receive multiple auto insurance quotes and compare them all in one click of the mouse without being bombarded by sales people.   

Our new quoting system will allow you to view and compare up to 60 auto insurance programs from our website in one click of the mouse. The only thing we will do is assist you with the purchase and answer any questions you have. I’ve shown this new system to some of my clients that have shopped for their car insurance over the internet and tell me that this is the way to go.  One simple form, view multiple quote from lowest to highest and NO INTRUSIVE SALES CALLS OR SPAM MAIL!

Now you’re armed with some helpful knowledge the next time you decide to shop for insurance online that will make your experience a more pleasurable one.

Happy shopping.

Thank you for reading this blog and for more info or a quote, please log onto www.integrityinsured.com/save

-Allan Elliott

Integrity Solutions Insurance Services is an independent agency specializing in auto, home, motorcycle and commercial lines insurance in San Diego County.  We are proud to be agents of Progressive Insurance.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Independent Agents vs. Captive Agents

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010 | Independent Vs. Captive Agents, Uncategorized | No Comments

When you’re looking to purchase insurance you will have many decisions to make. Choosing an agent is one decision that you must consider. Beyond the usual consideration there is one that is often over looked and many times not consider at all. The consideration is should you use a captive insurance agent or an independent insurance agent (or broker)? You may be asking the questions “what is a captive agent?”, and “what is an independent agent?” But the biggest question is “why should this be a consideration?”

Over time, I will be touching on  the difference between independent agents (brokers) and captive agents helping you weigh the pros and cons of each and why it is important to know the difference.

 Captive Agents

Captive agents work exclusively for one insurance carrier and are obliged to give business only to that company. While some captive agents belong to affiliated groups of their parent company, the captive agent’s priority is to develop business for the parent company above all others.  An example of a captive agent would be Allstate, Farmers or State Farm etc.   They are  very respected in their communites and do great work for their clients.   However, they could be limited to the types of policies they are allowed to sell.  For example, they are most times prohibited from selling an auto insurance policy to someone who has multiple tickets, at fault accidents or a DUI.  Another example is selling a Commercial General Liability policy to a roofing company due to type of exposure and claims that come forward.  Most often than not they will refer these types of risks to an independent agent who may specialize in these types of risks.   

Independent Agents

Independent agents (or brokers) generally have a wide variety of products and companies and work on behalf of the client. This variety is good for the client and the agent. The client has a better chance to find a company that can fit exactly what they need, the client can shop for the best price, the best company rating, and the best product without having to go or call company after company. The independent agent can look for what is the best product for this client and not feel pressure into selling anything that is close to what the client needs. 

Independent agents also have more flexibility in they types of risks they can sell as they have no restrictions from a parent company telling them what they can or cannot sell and more selections to choose from. 

Now, that’s not to say that an independent agent is solely going to be your “one stop shop”.  There are some cases where a captive agent will have better pricing and coverage depending on the risk and can efficiently bundle your auto, home, boat and business insurance into one.  Where an independent agent will sometimes struggle. 

Also managing a claim is a factor.  A captive agent will see your claims process through every step of the way from their office where you deal with the insurance companies claims adjuster from the insurance carrier that the independent agent help you select.  The independent agent can check on the status of the claim and help give you input as claim moves along.

Not all independent agents are the same.  There are some independent agents that cater to only one type of risk or line of business.  For example in auto insurance, you will have agencies that cater to the non-standard auto market (tickets, accidents & DUI’s)  and only have carriers that specialize in these risks.  They will tend to shy away from other lines of business such as Life, health or Commercial lines.

I’ll touch on the different types of independent agencies later in another blog.

My feeling is when you are shopping for your insurance whether it be for your car, home, or business, you should get quotes and information from both a captive and an independent agent to see what kind of pricing and terms you will be receiving.  

Thank you for reading this blog and for more info, please log onto www.integrityinsured.com.

-Allan Elliott

Integrity Solutions Insurance Services is an independent agency specializing in risks for SR-22; non-standard auto in San Diego County.  We also specialize in Homeowners, Motorcycle, Boat and Commercial lines insurance products.

We are proud to be agents of Progressive Insurance.

Some excerpts were taking from insureme.com and blogcatolog.com

Tags: , , ,

Next Entries »