Smart Auto Insurance Blog

With the economy remaining somewhat stagnant, it’s always great to hear about major promotions at big companies.  Founders Insurance has recently promoted two outstanding employees to new positions with the hope of making the insurance company stronger.

Sharon A. Poradzisz was promoted to vice president of personal lines claims.  Poradzisz has over 16 years of experience in the insurance industry and joined Founders Auto Insurance in 1997 and quickly was promoted to claims customer service manager.  She then was promoted to senior claims manager and then commercial claims manager.  She is actively pursuing the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) professional designation to further her experience.

Wade D. Rankin has been promoted to commercial claims manager at the Founders Insurance Co of Des Plaines, Illinois.  Rankin has been with the company since 2010 as a senior claim analyst in the commercial division of the insurer’s claims department.  He has valuable previous experience in the legal and insurance industries.  Previously, he was a law clerk at an insurance defense law firm.  Before coming to Founders he worked in the excess casualty unit of another insurer.

This information was obtained from the Insurance Journal website, notifying the public of these newly promoted employees, recognizing all of their hard work.

Written by Sara Smart

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Many people wonder if using an agent is the best way to purchase auto insurance.  It’s true that using an agent can save you some time and possibly save you some money.  If you aren’t internet savvy, then using an agent may be the way to go.  Many companies offer agents to help customers with their needs.  One of these companies is Founders Insurance.

Founders auto insurance is offered in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin with limits up to $100,000/300,000/50,000.  They offer quick, electronic SR22 filing and take international and out-of-state drivers license.  According to their website, Founders Insurance is a preferred choice of agents for higher risk policies.  Whether you have a poor driving record, poor credit rating, or coverage lapses, Founders will work with you to try to get you the best coverage possible.  This is where an agent can come in especially handy.  High-risk drivers often have a harder time finding quality auto insurance online or on their own.  An agent knows where to look to get deals for non-preferred customers.

Founders Insurance also has complete online capabilities including quoting, binding, and policy issuance, payments, endorsements, document reprinting, renewals, claim reporting and form downloads.  You can even chat online or over the phone with an underwriter with any questions you may have about your policy and quote.  Founders works hard to have state-of-the-art imaging systems for underwriting and claim handling and are constantly working to improve their business.  Speak with an agent to see if this might be the right option for you.

Understanding your auto insurance company’s financial strength is important to protect your lifestyle and future financial well being.  Insurance agents, brokers, financial advisors, and other insurance professionals have long used AM Best’s Financial Strength Ratings to help support their insurance selection and investment choices.  It’s now recommended consumers also utilize Best’s ratings to understand their insurance company’s strengths.

Companies such as Founders Auto Insurance are found on the AM Best ratings list.  Founders Insurance received an A- as of July 2010 which is considered excellent.  This excellent rating is very important to the well being of the company.  Best’s Financial Strength ratings offer an independent evaluation from a third party to assist in determining the ability of an insurance company to fulfill its obligations with regard to a variety of insurance products, including auto insurance coverage.

The AM Best rating process gives all insurance companies the same rigorous review which provides an extremely valuable benchmark for comparing insurance companies against each other.  Companies can receive ratings from an A++ all the way down to an F which usually means the company is in liquidation.  A B or below is considered a vulnerable rating whereas a B+ or above indicates secure financial strength.

Many consumers associate the term “non-standard” auto insurance with high risk, but this isn’t always the case.  According to the Founders Auto Insurance website the terms are often synonymous.  They do point out however that “non-standard” simply means not adhering or conforming to the standard policy.

Many of Founder’s forms, classes, and territories do actually conform to auto insurance industry standards, but some aspects do not making part of it “non-standard”.  Most non-standard auto insurance companies start off with a standard methodology, and make appropriate modifications to suit their customer’s needs which are always changing.  They take into consideration the economy, the market demand, and consumer needs and tailor the policies to fit the times.

Founders Insurance offers vehicle surcharging, modified territories, and they create classes based on what is going on in the market.  There is a unique risk selection criteria, but a very high percent of new business at Founders has been previously insured with a clean driving record.  Founders also follow similar models for their homeowners insurance and commercial liability & property policy options.