Finance Tips

More or less every site offers advice on saving money when buying insurance. One of the standard tips is bundling auto and homeowners policies with the same insurance company. If you check around the companies, the discount varies between 10 and 15% and, if you agree an increase in the deductible from $500 to $1,000 this increases the discount to 25%. At this point, many people are sold on the idea. A saving of up to 25% looks like a good deal and frees up cash in the family budgets for a whole range of other basic necessities. So is it worth it?

The first question is whether you are getting the standard auto and homeowners policies. If you are starting off in the same position as the stand-alone policyholders, you have more protection. But there can be problems with limitations and exclusions if the company produces a single policy to cover both home and vehicle. You must read such a policy very carefully before deciding whether it represents good value for money.

Secondly, what are the rules about overlaps between the two policies? Suppose, for example, you have a traffic accident while carrying your laptop and other property potentially covered under your homeowners policy. Is all the damage and loss covered under the auto policy or are you expected to file separate claims for damage to the vehicle and loss of household contents? This could make a big difference if there are separate deductibles on the auto and homeowners policies.

So, assuming you do bundle, how should you protect your interests? First off, never assume it’s enough just to buy the policies. When it comes to the homeowners policy, always make a full inventory of the contents of your home. You can do this by making a simple list and taking a few pictures using your cellphone. But it’s better to take a more professional approach. Go room by room, make a full inventory and record the purchase price and current value. Where you have the original receipts and invoices, put everything together in a file. If you want to store information outside the home, you can use a site like http://www.knowyourstuff.org/ which offers a free and secure service.

Why bother? Because it gives you a realistic basis on which to decide how much contents insurance to buy, identifying any individual more expensive items that should be separately insured. More importantly, it saves time and effort should you have to make a claim. The faster you can make a comprehensive claim, the quicker you can rebuild your home and restock it with the “stuff” you have lost. Hopefully, your homeowners insurance pays for alternative accommodation while repairs are underway. Finally, never do any major repairs before the loss adjuster arrives. You bought all this coverage and you want the adjuster to see the full extent of the loss. That said, you should take emergency action to prevent the condition of the property getting worse like sealing broken windows and securing doors. This is the time to use your video camera to record the damage before and during emergency repair.

Homeowners insurance is always a balancing act between buying coverage against the most obvious perils and not making small claims to keep your record clear for the sad day when a big claim comes along. If you have bundled the policies, it’s more likely you will have to make a claim and this can produce a premium hike on both policies.

It can be easy to get homeowners quotes in Pennsylvania, but it can be more difficult to weed through the details of the quotes to determine which quote is the best for your needs and your budget. There are many things that must be compared in order for you to make sure you are getting the best deal possible. The components of the proposed policy, the types and amount of coverage offered, and price all have to be considered jointly in order to make the best decision. To start you will need to look at each Pennsylvania home insurance quote individually.

Getting Ready

Before you start weeding through homeowners quotes in Pennsylvania, you will want to set up some way to compare the quotes and make sure you are getting everything you want out of a policy. The easiest way to do this is to set up a checklist for each quote. The checklist can list the types of coverage you are looking for as well as a space for the amount of protection. You could also include a section for special features of the policy, such as if your belongings are protected both in and out of the home. Whatever you are looking for in a policy should be included on the checklist, as well as a spot to list the price of the policy. This way you will be able to easily compare the quotes when you are finished looking at them.

Weeding Through the Details

You will need to wade through a lot of details of the quote to find the information you need to compare. As you read through the quoted coverage, write down each type of coverage that you desired and are included, as well as the amount of coverage. You should also write down any and all features of what you are protected against or special items that are covered under the policy. This will help you compare quotes. Finally, write down the price of the Pennsylvania home insurance quote.

Comparing Quotes

When you are finished weeding through all the homeowner’s quotes in Pennsylvania, you should start comparing notes. Be careful to note whether or not a proposed policy will cover everything you want. If one quote does not give you the coverage you want, but is cheaper, you may be better off going with a more expensive Pennsylvania home insurance quote that gives you everything you want and need. Compare prices and features of the policies very carefully. This way you will ensure that you are getting the best deal for your money.

When you are finished comparing quotes, you should contact the agents and inform them of any quotes you are not inclined to choose and see if they will alter the quote. Make sure that they are giving you a quote for all of the features and coverage you want and need. Take this new number and a new checklist and compare homeowner’s quotes in Pennsylvania again to make sure you are choosing the best option.