WhiteTiger

Well I didn't intentional drive thru a puddle, but what happened is I turned off a main thoroughfare onto a side street. Unfortunately, the level of the water appeared to be the same, unfortunately, the level of the road beneath it wasn't (road dropped about 14"-16"). Whoosh, into my lower air intake did water get sucked. My mechanic noted water in my headers and the car was operating less than a few seconds before it died, didn't even try to re-start it, so how the water got that far was amazing. We decided to re-build the motor to be safe and they provided a $2,200 check toward the re-build.

Unfortunately I didn't really think about fighting it since I was able to join All State w/o any issues or surcharges.

Dx3

iTrader: (13)

Guys,

I had Progressive for 6 years without a single claim or at-fault accident ( 1 not-at-fault). The last day of my policy I got in my first ding - which turned out to be a scratch on the side of a truck. The guy got quotes of $400 to fix it, and when I called him to arrange to meet up with him to give him the $400 he said he had called his insurance company just to be careful. Bottom line - the insurance paid and it went on my record.

Well, during this process I didn't consider the fact that I had to actually call Progressive to renew the policy, I never had before. So, about 2 months later I called Progressive to ask a question and out of nowhere they told me that I was no longer covered.

So, I have been out of coverage for over 90 days now and my rates to start over are about $500 per month. All this for a $400 acident in 6 years!!

So now I am looking at buying a beater for <$1000 and get liability on it while my fiancee insures my Lex. I am >25, a father, with 1 speeding ticket and 1 accident.

Insurance sux!

Jonny

mmarshall

Let me be sure I understand this properly......your story is confusing. Whose vehicle hit who, whose vehicle actually got scratched, who was considered at fault, whose insurance paid how much (if any), and why were you dropped if you paid the bill yourself?
Sorry to sound like a nanny, but your story is very unclear the way you told it....please be more specific, and then I can comment on it.

Vegassc400

What I want to know is why is it that my rates seem to constantly go up? Both of my vehicles are getting older and therefore are depreciating in value. If the value of the vehicle is declining, why am I paying more?

I have a 95 SC400 and an 00 Eclipse. Both with full coverage. I'm 32, my wife is 28 and neither of us have an at fault accident or a ticket. I have one not at fault accident in 2002. Our credit isn't great but could be a lot worse. I've been with Allstate since 2000. Why am I paying $247 per month?

mmarshall

Give GEICO a call and see if they will take you and your wife on.
1-800-841-3000, 24-7 around the clock.
Or you maybe can get a free quote on-line. http://www.geico.com/

See my opening post at the top of the thread......many things can affect insurance rates. Weather, accident rates, cost of auto parts, labor costs, natural disasters, risk of theft, employee costs of the company itself.....many, many things. These costs vary in any given area and among different areas. I have found GEICO to be the best of the nationwide major firms when it comes to low premiums. Give them a try. You can do it right now if you want......or at 3 AM......they never close. If you qualify for them, there is a good chance (not given, of course, but a good chance) that you will save money over Allstate.
As mentioned earlier, I was not impressed myself with Allstate and left them in 1982 for GEICO.

Technics

I work for State Farm and I'm insured with Geico.

It should be noted though that State Farm realizes Geico and other companies are closing in on their market space. A recent order from State Farm head honcho Ed Rust urged agents to try and sell more auto polices with a focus on customer service as a competitive advantage.

You should also see some rate decreases in order to compete with the other insurance companies.


You didn't hear any of this from me.

mmarshall

Here in VA we occasionally will see minor rate decreases when conditions allow it and insurance companies have lower-than-expected costs, such as after a mild winter without a lot of slippery roads....that, of course, cuts down on accidents.

SCRUFFDOGG

Insurance companies are like car manufacturers, not all individual agents of one company are the same just like not all dealerships of any one car manufacturer are the same. I have been with Safeco, State Farm, and Progressive. My current State Farm agent (life, car, and home) has been great, he lives in my community and his office is right down the street from mine. I have always been able to call him or stop by and get any help I might need. He also calls me from time to time to go over my policies to tweek them here and there to fit what I want and where I could save some money or where I may need to think about different coverage.

I have also dealt with Progressive and All State when they were the "other" insurance company representing an at fault driver and Progressive hands down was the most pleasant and easiest to deal with. They had everything taken care of, never felt like they were trying to get out of anything. Paid all the medical bills, never questioned anything and gave me a fair settlement.

Dx3

iTrader: (13)

I hit the other vehicle.

His vehicle got scratched.

It was considered my fault.

My insurance paid the $400 to him.

They said I wasn't dropped, they said I let my policy lapse without starting a new one, even though every other year they automatically renewed it.

Hope this makes a little more sense.

Jonny

mmarshall

Thanks...that explains it much better.

My response?.......$400 is not even chump change in today's insurance world.....many deductibles alone are higher than that. If Progressive dropped you (or refused to renew your policy) for something like this after a clean 6-year record, that would be ludicrous.
My company GEICO, does not consider anything today under $5000 to be a major accident.
I would do one of two things if I were you. First, ask if Progressive will renew your policy. If they do...at a price that is acceptable to you....fine. If they don't , you can appeal the decision to one of Progressive's zone managers or even a company VP....( you would be surprised how quick some of them are to hear customer complaints, and make no mistake....they want peoples' money). Or, if you prefer, just forget about Progressive and look for something better. I've already pointed out GEICO's good and bad points, and Amica is another excellent company worth a try.

JERS69

Believe me GEICO does not think that anything under $5000 is not a major accident, Like I tell my clients, a claim is a claim. Whether it is $300 bumper scratch or $300,000 serious accident, a claim is a claim. I was reading in an insurance manul the other day that the insurance industry has not had a profitable underwriting year in over 10 years. As far as companies go, the comment earlier about insurance companies and AGENTS being like car dealers is very true. I would say that I am a very, very great agent, but less could be said for some of my good friends or other agents in my community. Some just do not give a s%&t, I have heard complaints from people insured with just about every company under the sun. It is usually all about the agent or the actual person making the claim. I have spoken to people about an accident and their story changes o they dop not know their head from their a$$.

In fact in my area on the news they had a house that 2 homeowners shared common walls and a pipe burst on one side of the unit doing damage to both units. One insurance company paid the claim and the company I work for denied the claim. The media forgot to mention that our insured told the claim adjuster that the pipe had been leaking since he moved into the house over 1 year prior to it bursting and that there was severe mold in the floor and calcium deposits on the pipes. The news station called the company I work for 1 week before airing story and we gave all of the facts to the station, they agreed that there was probably no story and aired it anyway. We had no idea it was coming and when we started getting calls for it, we were confused. Home office sent us an email with the story and a copy of the initial claim form. The guy was a bold faced liar. Don't always believe waht you see and hear about insurance companies.

mmarshall

Are you an agent? Your post seems to indicate so.
My only chargeable accident ever with GEICO (involving just my single car) had a $2800 bill for a new bumper and quarter-panel....minus my deductible. The adjuster wrote it up as a minor claim....he told me that GEICO writes up anything under $5000 as minor. I guess that just differs from the experiences you have had, that's all.

It seemed verified when GEICO told me they were not raising my rates....and they didn't. They kept their word. They have a forgiveness policy for the first claim if your previous record is good....I had not had a chargeable claim in 18 years.

I will not dispute what you have read or experienced but I know how well I myself have been treated. And even with car dealers and salespeople....whom you compare the insurance industry to.....there are honest and dishonest ones.