Smart Auto Insurance Blog

Auto insurance fraud continues to be a problem across the nation.  For years, auto insurance companies have worked to eliminate fraudulent claims and fraud rings.  Unfortunately, it’s still prevalent and costing consumers a lot of money.  Every time fraud is committed our premiums increase and this is not fair to the customers following the rules.

First Acceptance Insurance is working hard to limit the amount of fraud affecting their bottom line.  According to their website, they suspect fraud costs insurance companies and their customer billions of dollars.  The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud says that approximately $80 billion a year is lost because of fraudulent activity.  This is staggering and extremely frustrating to know it’s happening everywhere, all of the time.

The good news is that most auto insurance companies, including First Acceptance, have fraud departments in place, working around the clock to fight fraud.  First Acceptance, for example, has a specific team and information on their website to report fraud.  They also list information for the National Insurance Crime Bureau, who they work with, to combat this ongoing problem.  If you suspect insurance fraud, contact your insurer with information.  It may end up saving the rest of us a lot of money.

Bristol West Insurance has announced on their website that Farmers, which is the parent company of Bristol West, has proposed to acquire AIG’s Personal Auto Insurance business.  This includes 21st Century Insurance Company all found on their website.  Once this acquisition is finalized, Farmers will be the 3rd largest auto insurance company in the United States.  Bristol West customers can expect to continue the excellent service they are used to.

Also in company news, Bristol West Insurance Group and the Foremost Group of Companies are combining.  Foremost has members of the Farmers Insurance Group of Companies.  Insurance documents will reflect the new Foremost brand for customers, but excellent claims handling, and customer service will continue.

Bristol West has received AM Best Rating of A (Excellent) for their various companies including Bristol West Casualty Insurance Company, Bristol West Insurance Company, Bristol West Preferred Insurance Company, Coast National Insurance Company, and Security National Insurance Company.

The Detroit Auto Show recently revealed some upcoming car models that consumers will find much value in and are worth waiting for if you are in the market for a new car.  The article “6 Cars Worth Waiting For” by Peter Valdes-Dapena provided by CNNMoney, found on finance.yahoo.com, describes six of the top hot cars.

The cars discussed include the following:

1. Honda CR-Z
2. Ford Focus
3. Lincoln MKX
4. Mercedes-Benz E-class Cabriolet
5. Ford Mustang GT 5.0
6. Cadillac CTS-V Coupe

Many auto insurance companies are starting to give coverage to customers’ pets.  The coverage is offered free of charge in case of injury or death in a car accident.  Many see their pets as children and they are extremely important to them.  Pets often ride along with their owners, so ensuring their pets are covered through their auto insurance can put their mind at ease knowing that vet bills will be covered if they are in an accident. 

Auto insurance companies started doing this a few years ago but it wasn’t always brought to the customer’s attention.  As more and more inquiries about the benefit surfaced so did the popularity of the pet coverage and more and more marketing is occurring.  See if your auto insurance carrier offers the benefit and if not it may be time to shop around for one that does.

On Monday, May 18th, Infinity Insurance (Infinity Property and Casualty) held its annual shareholders’ meeting and has made it available through Webcast on their website. 

More and more companies are going this route to publicize their company information.  The age of the Internet is encouraging companies to figure out creative ways to give customers and shareholders the information they want at their fingertips.  Webcast is a media file which uses streaming media technology and has become a very popular method to share live and recorded videos.

Infinity Insurance is a national provider for auto insurance with a focus on nonstandard auto insurance coverage.

In 1980, Nicolas Estrella built his insurance company from the ground up. Estrella Insurance is known for being a very family oriented company which is highly valued among customers. These types of companies are becoming harder and harder to find.

Estrella Insurance prioritizes customer service and has very reasonable prices. You can check out the Estrella Insurance quote to see for yourself. They specialize in auto insurance, but also have home, commercial, business, boat and motorcycle products available. It’s encouraging to know there are companies out there focusing on serving the customer while maintaining its foundation of values.

Happy new year to Mike Campbell: the Associated Press reports that Geico has selected him as its new CFO (chief financial officer) and senior vice president. He was the associate controller and a vice president. Before that, he was their manager of corporate financial reporting. Campbell has been with the company since 1982.

This decision is probably a good thing for consumers looking for Geico insurance quotes. Warren Buffett owns Geico through his Berkshire-Hathaway firm, and even today is renowned for his sharp investment and business decisions that help keep his companies in good financial shape. It’s a good sign that Campbell knows Geico well, because he can help it maintain or better its current position as the 3rd-largest auto insurance company in America (based on written premiums over the past 12 months).