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When a person decides to get insurance for his or her house, it’s certainly a cheap policy they are looking for. And by cheap we mean having a low price for the largest bundle and amount of coverage possible. And to much surprise, it is really possible if you know the rules of the game.

But what are the rules, you might ask? While there are many hidden stones in such a complex industry as insurance, there are certain guidelines that you will find very useful and effective when choosing a new policy or looking to switch you current home insurance provider. So here are the essential Dos and DON’Ts of home insurance that would be very wise to follow:

DO: Find an online service that will allow you to get quotes from multiple home insurance providers, necessarily licensed in your area of residence.

DON’T: Buy the first policy you are offered with when shopping.

DO: Contact an insurance agent in person to tailor your policy and make sure you’re getting the best and most adequate coverage for the money you pay.

DON’T: Drop home insurance or necessary types of coverage altogether just to lower the costs.

DO: Review your deductibles and adjust them if needed to relate adequately to your financial abilities if an insurance situation takes place. Remember that higher deductibles will eventually lower you rates.

DON’T: Raise your deductibles to the amount you will find hard to pay in case it comes to filing a claim.

DO: Speak to your insurance agent to learn if there are any homeowners insurance discounts provided by your insurer you are eligible for.

DON’T: Forget about updating your insurance coverage after adding square footage to your house, performing important modifications (installing ventilation or security systems), or buying expensive things that are to be kept on your property.

DO: Find a provider that will carry more types of insurance rather than only homeowners insurance, for you can receive substantial discounts if having your auto, life, health and home insurance policies with the same carrier.

DON’T: Drop substantial amounts of liability coverage in order to save money because some day it can be really helpful and your savings can lead to serious losses if you do not have enough liability coverage.

DO: Renew your policy and avoid cancellations because it will get more expensive to renew it or get a new one if your policy was simply void without any reason. Read the rest of this entry »

There are many sites offering online insurance shopping possibilities these days, and it seems that people are leaning towards using them more extensively. Of course, insurance brokers and agents are still out there but online insurance providers are taking their share of the distribution chain with more users preferring to shop for home insurance online, rather than contacting a representative. So what are the advantages and peculiarities of shopping for insurance online that attract so many insurance buyers these days?

1. You are able to find the best offers from multiple providers and get endless opportunities to save money with comparison shopping. Online insurance vendors make it really easy to shop for insurance products. All it takes is only a couple of minutes, you can take either at your work or at home, and after that you get the coverage you would spend a couple of hours for buying if shopping off-line. When shopping online all the information you may require about the provider or exact quotes with respect to your property is available 25/7. Read the rest of this entry »

The majority of policy holders will go through the year without making a claim. It’s possible a major weather disaster could suddenly take out an area, but the actual risks of fires, thefts and accidents around the home are relatively low. Even high-crime areas do not produce excessive numbers of claims. That’s why, when the anticipated cost of all the losses is spread among the policy holders, the premiums are not too high. That said, people find the claims process confusing, so here are some simple steps to keep technical problems to a minimum.

1. If a crime has been involved, notify the police immediately and cooperate with the investigation. Your insurance company will want full details of the investigation so keep good notes of the names and contact information for the officers who deal with it. Notifying the police also reduces the risk in the eyes of the insurer that you are making a fraudulent claim. Liaise with the police to get copies of any witness statements, police reports, fire department reports, and so on. Alternatively, be able to pass all the police or fire department contact details over to the insurer.

2. Never delay notifying the insurance company or your local agent that you have suffered a loss. There are a whole series of processes that have to be set in motion to handle the claim. If the loss is minor, your local agent will usually deal with it directly. Anything more serious will go through the claims office. At the earliest possible opportunity, confirm who will liaise with you and how you contact that person.

3. Depending on the circumstances, it’s possible that emergency repairs are necessary. Most insurance companies operate a list of contractors approved to make these repairs. Many contractors can bill the insurers directly. If emergency repairs are necessary, get the necessary paperwork to authorize the work from the insurer at the earliest opportunity.

4. Document every aspect of the damage to your property or the contents. That means taking photographs or a video, and keeping a diary of all the events so you can write up a full report for the agent or claims adjuster. The key issues are the value of property damaged or lost, and the cost of repairs. Hopefully, you have kept the receipts for all the bigger ticket items to set a baseline value. Read the rest of this entry »