Smart Auto Insurance Blog

If you happen to find yourself in need of a quick SR22 insurance filing many companies can do it for you immediately including Eastwood Insurance headquartered in California.  This is particularly important if you need this information filed by a certain date to get your license or to ensure you have the proper auto insurance coverage in place by a certain time.

An SR22 is a certificate of insurance filed by an auto insurance company or insurance agent directly to the state in either an operator’s certificate or an owner’s certificate.  There is also an operators-owners certificate option.  SR22 isn’t exactly a type of insurance which often confuses consumers.  It is the name of a certain form insurance companies need to file for certain policyholders.  Not all states require SR22 but it is often required if your license has been suspended or revoked.  This makes the SR22 associated with high risk drivers who have somehow broken the law or had an exorbitant amount of violations.

It’s very important to get the SR22 form filed correctly if you are required to do so.  The SR22 insurance certificate is to certify coverage to the Division of Motor Vehicles in a particular state.  The insurance company is then required to notify the Division of Motor Vehicles in the case of the policy being cancelled, terminated, or if there are any lapses in coverage.  If you find yourself needing this type of form filed, check with your insurance company to see if this is something they offer.  Not all auto insurers file this paperwork so you will have to confirm yours does.

Progressive Auto Insurance has been named in Diversity MBA Magazine in its “50 Out Front Diversity Leadership: Best Places for Diverse Managers to Work” list.  The magazine lists the top companies for women and minorities to pursue positions of leadership each year.  Progressive is known for embracing diversity and it shows in this honor.

Neil Lenane, Progressive’s director of employee experience says people with different backgrounds and experiences are crucial to the growth of the business.  He believes it’s the diversity that makes Progressive Auto Insurance Company such a great place to work.  Progressive was named in part because of their consistent commitment to diversity throughout their entire company.  Progressive recruiters advertise with ethnically diverse organizations and job boards to encourage the growth of their diverse community.

Diversity MBA Magazine looks at over 400 employers on the Fortune 500 list and consider a variety of factors including employee retention, recruitment efforts, and the company’s accountability.  The magazine says that it’s a very competitive list with a 30% increase in participation by companies this year.

The provider of affordable auto insurance, Donegal Insurance, has a user-friendly guide on their website outlining fire and home safety.  This is valuable to customers who want basic information on what to look for in their home in order to keep their family as safe as possible.

The article provides a checklist for safety features to look for in any home.  It’s encouraged to go through the checklist as a family and ensure each bullet is addressed.  Some of the items on the checklist include:

• Smoke detectors installed and tested
• Carbon Monoxide detectors installed
• Fire Extinguishers accessible and working
• Fire escapes accessible
• Updated wiring throughout home
• Sidewalks in good condition
• Handrails on all stair cases

These are a handful of examples of what type of safety features every home should have.  Each county has different requirements for what is a must, but in general these items and the rest of the list will ensure you are in a safe home and can have peace of mind that you are doing the right thing to keep your family away from harm.

California auto insurance has had its ups and downs with auto insurance rates, and for 2011, California ranks 29th in auto insurance affordability according to the article from Mark Glover of The Sacramento Bee.  This was based on a new report released by InsWeb Corp.  This is actually an improvement from their ranking last year which was 34 in the Car Insurance Affordability Index survey.

In order to rank the states in their affordability, InsWeb looked closely at all 50 states and Washington DC.  InsWeb compared household incomes with the average auto insuance costs throughout the state to determine affordability.  For the 2nd year in a row, Massachusetts came in first place with a factor of 2.09%.  Louisiana came in last place with a factor of 6.76%.  California had a factor of 3.34% which was pretty close to average.

Being in one of the more expensive states for auto insurance makes it even more important to compare auto insurance online, or through an agent.  Rates can vary significantly from insurance company to insurance company.  They will look at many factors including location, driving record, and car make.  If you think you are paying too much for auto insurance shop around to make some comparisons.

In many states teenagers can receive their drivers license at age 16 once they have passed a written test as well as a driving test.  At this point you will need to look into auto insurance for your new driver.  Many auto insurers such as Progressive and Acceptance Insurance offer policies to these young drivers, but rates may be higher and if you add the driver onto your existing policy you can expect to see your premium increase, in some cases relatively drastically.

You can see your auto insurance rates come down over the years with your teen on your policy by encouraging good grades which can earn discounts and demanding safe driving habits.  The Department of Motor Vehicles in various states offer teen driving education from everything like passing the written test to the importance of never drinking and driving.  There are online tools for your Internet savvy teen to browse articles and online quizzes to help educate your child on safety guidelines on the road.

Many auto insurance companies also offer online programs for teens.  USAA Auto Insurance explains to your student how to buy a car as well as how to handle distractions while driving.  State Farm has launched a unique campaign called “Not Now, I’m Driving” (NNID) which has teen-friendly YouTube videos and messages from famous actors sending the message about the importance of never texting while driving.  Allstate and Geico also have programs geared towards making your teen a safer driver which will hopefully save lives and as a nice perk, hopefully facilitate lower auto insurance rates for you over time.

Bristol West has a link to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website because driver safety is a priority to them.  Not only will driving safe keep your auto insurance quotes lower, but it keeps you and your family safe on the road.

An article posted on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website discusses the 2011 Top Safety Pick in their “Hyundai Equus Earns 2011 TOP SAFETY PICK Award” listing.  This luxury car earns this award for many reasons.  They actually earned this high rating across the board in the Institute’s safety evaluations.  The Equus was rated good for front, side, rollover and rear crash protection.  On top of this, it has electronic stability control which has become another requirement for earning the Institute’s highest rating.

In the rating for roof strength for rollover protection, the Equus withstood a force equal to 4.87 times the car’s weight.  This earns them a high rating as well since the current federal standard is 1.5 times a car’s weight.  Bristol West Insurance not only wants drivers to know about safe cars, but they hope lives can be saved through education.  As car makers compete for this honor, the hope is that vehicles will become safer and safer over time.  Many auto insurance companies take car safety into consideration when they calculate an insurance quote because someone is less likely to be severely injured in a very safe car.

State Farm auto insurance offers pay-as-you-drive auto insurance policies in California, Ohio, Texas and Illinois.  Progressive Insurance offers it as well throughout the US.  It’s getting more and more popular.  According to the article “Low-Mileage Drivers Benefit From Insurers’ Pay-As-You-Drive Plans” by Eve Mitchell on BellinghamHerald.com, auto insurance rates are tied to part of the actual number of miles driven and many consumers are seeing big savings.

State Farm specifically calls their program the Drive Safe & Save program and drivers can self-report their mileage online or at an agent’s office before they renew their policy.  Customers who drive General Motors, Saab, and Saturn vehicles with OnStar technology and have a diagnostics account can have their actual mileage sent right to State Farm for updating.  Drivers are paying better attention to how they drive in hopes that it will ultimately save them money on their quotes on auto insurance.

The pay-as-you-drive momentum is party due to California’s Proposition 103 which was the landmark auto insurance reform bill passed by voters back in 1988.  It requires insurance companies to base rates primarily on the customer’s driving record, number of miles driven per year, and driving experience.  More recent regulations allow actual mileage to be a voluntary alternative to estimated mileage and it makes it possible for auto insurance companies to obtain mileage verification from devices inside the car.  Any savings from actual miles driven are applied once the policy is renewed.  Drivers who are not on the road that often really appreciate this initiative and are hoping to see big savings over time on their auto insurance.

Based on a recent online survey completed by the InsuranceQuotes website, a surprising 16% of American drivers say that they have driven without carrying auto insurance, which happens to be against the law.  Also in this survey, 2% admitted to currently driving around without auto insurance which is concerning for all insured drivers on the road.

With the past few years being tough economic times for many, this probably makes sense.  According to the article “16% of Motorists Have Driven Without Insurance” by Alex Vorro on insurancenetworking.com, 28% of males ages 18-25 and 45-54 were at the top of the list for driving without insurance.  The percent of women driving without insurance is only about half of men.

Men and women combined in the age group 45-54 were the most likely to have driven without insurance at about 22%.  In the age group over 55 only 8% have admitted to ever driving with auto insurance.  The survey also looked at the reasons why people were driving with out auto insurance.  Auto insurance quotes can be expensive and it would seem that would be one of the reasons.  Actually, 24% of drivers drove without auto insurance because they didn’t have a chance to renew, 19% because of a gap while switching insurance companies and 12% because the insurer cancelled their policy.

It’s well known that you can get car insurance quotes from Donegal Insurance, but many people do not realize how easy it is to get boatowners insurance coverage.

Donegal Insurance offers many types of insurance products, one of which is boatowners insurance protection.  Boatowners insurance provide the extra coverage you need to ensure your boat is protected.  Donegal covers the entire boat from bow to stern and provides coverage on water or land.  Their policy extends to motors, controls, electric equipment, and standard fuel equipment.  They ever cover extras such as boat oars, anchors, life preservers, and additionally a boat trailer.

Legal liability is taken care of with boat liability and medical payment coverage.  Coverage is extended in the case of a boating accident and there are many other optional coverages.  Some of these options include Boater’s Emergency Towing and Labor, Boat Replacement Cost, Uninsured Boaters Protection, and Boater’s Personal Property Coverage.  You can even get discounts through boatowners insurance.

Specifically noted on Donegal’s website are discounts for the completion of certain safety courses, built in fire extinguishing systems, depth finders, and of course if you have other insurance products through Donegal Insurance you can find yourself with an up to 10% off discount on your boatowners insurance.

American Commerce Insurance offers a wide variety of insurance products including motorcycle, home, renters and auto insurance.  Most people carry different types of insurance policies to protect them in the case of different kinds of accidents.  But there isn’t really an insurance product for everything that can go wrong and that’s where umbrella insurance comes in handy.  American Commerce offers umbrella insurance and does a great job of explaining how it works on their website.

Basically umbrella insurance is a catch-all insurance product.  It takes care of larger incidents that are highly unlikely, but still can devastate you.  Some examples of these incidents are your dog biting a neighbor, your child accidentally causing a fire, or a guest trips on your steps and goes on permanent disability.  All of these scenarios are relatively rare, but they do happen regularly across the nation.  Some of these incidences can cause million dollar lawsuits which most consumers are not prepared for emotionally or mentally.

Umbrella insurance can help reduce some of this stress.  It provides an extra layer of protection that can put your mind at ease.  You can add up to $5 million in extra liability protection for your homeowners, watercraft or auto insurance policies.  It’s generally a very low annual cost at just a few hundred dollars per year.  It’s a great protection to ensure you are protected in the case of lawsuits, attorney fees or garnishment of wages.