Car Insurance is such a rip-off!!!

[MMEand1]

We just moved and our car insurance is going up over $500 a year (this is in addition to what we were paying)! I hate the fact that it is something that you HAVE to have and of course, they are going to gouge you for everything they can leagally get you for.

I hate the fact that neither my DH nor I have had a ticket, accident, or filed a claim in over 10 years and yet we are still paying a boat-load of money...and it only went up because the area we are in is a high stolen car area with a lot of uninsured drivers. So, despite the fact that neither of our vehicles would be interesting for someone to steal, we have to pay extra because of the area.

I hate crap like this!!! Oh, and my DH and DC are driving me nuts! It's like my DH has stopped listening to anything I say (I have to repeat myself and then explain it numerous times), and my DC are just acting CRAZY!!! Thanks to grandparents and aunts/uncles that have never seen them until this past Christmas, they are now spoiled and expect the world to cater to them (my DD is currently in the corner for the 3rd time in about 15 minutes). UGH!! Moving sucks and I just want my normal life back. And we moved into a house that is about 1/2 the size of our last house and I feel so cramped...I just want to quit.

[ccather]

Have you shopped around for insurance lately? I did the compare thing on esurance, I think it was, and found a new company that dropped my insurance in *half!* We were like you, no tickets, no accidents, nothing and thought it was high, but figured it be high every where.

Our old company was Nationwide and the new one is Encompass. We have our house & cars with them. My favorite part (besides being cheaper) is that we can pay monthly instead of quarterly or maybe it was biyearly.

Sounds like it's time to shop around some!

[Momof3Labs]

Yes, shop around!! We moved from one end of Chicago to another and AIG jacked up our car insurance by $600/year. I promptly went shopping for a new carrier and got back our old rate.

FYI - to the PP: you can pay monthly with almost any (if not all) insurance companies. You can definitely pay monthly with Nationwide. But note that you pay a surcharge for the privilege, so make sure it is worth it to you!

[elliput]

I hear you Mariah. When DH and I moved to the Detroit area from KS 6 years ago our auto insurance more than doubled- it went up almost $200/month. The lower insurance rate was one of the side benefits of moving back to KS last year.

[kijip]

Shop around. When I was added to the policy as a new driver (age 24), our rates went up. Makes sense and no problem. A couple of years passed and they were still surcharging me as a new driver and refused to stop, but another company was 1/2 as much for more insurance and did not consider me a special surcharge. It is worth it.

[kedss]

hugs, Mariah, I understand about the not listening, one of my mom friends said she spends alot of time, saying "blah, blah, blah" I might start doing that.. But it is like I'm speaking in a different language, or at least a different dialect than everyone else around me, and the 7.5 month definitely doesn't listen, esp when I want her to go to back to sleep at 4:22 am!

hugs!

[overcome]

I second Encompass. They are actually owned by Allstate. We saved A LOT of money by switching from Allstate to them, and we have more than the minimum insurance required AND I had a fender bender last year.

PM me if you'd like the name of my insurance agent. He is WONDERFUL and you can do EVERYTHING online.

GL with adjusting to the move. It sounds like it is really difficult right now. HOpe it will improve soon!

[AngelaS]

When we moved ours went waaay up too. Why? Because in WI you don't HAVE to have car insurance which means I have to pay more to cover my 'uninsured motorist' portion of my coverage. So, because a good percentage here don't have insurance, mine costs more!

[ccather]

FYI - to the PP: you can pay monthly with almost any (if not all) insurance companies. You can definitely pay monthly with Nationwide. But note that you pay a surcharge for the privilege, so make sure it is worth it to you!

Encompass doesn't charge a surcharge if you do direct withdrawl from your checking account. I'd much rather charge it to my credit card every month (airline miles! Woot!) but they do charge for that.

So, it's free and totally worth it! I don't remember the monthly option with Nationwide, but then it's been a few years now that we've moved on.

I also had an accident while under their coverage. They took care of the person I hit with no problems at all. She even got a rental while her car was in for repairs. It was super easy.

[Momof3Labs]

Encompass doesn't charge a surcharge if you do direct withdrawl from your checking account. I'd much rather charge it to my credit card every month (airline miles! Woot!) but they do charge for that.

Trust me, it's 99.9% likely that there is a surcharge if you pay anything other than annually. They don't tell you that as it is buried in the premium rate. It's also called a "modal load". I work in insurance and have NEVER known a company to not charge a little bit more for the privilege of paying monthly vs. annually (because there is a better chance you'll lapse mid-year if you pay monthly, plus they don't have the advantage of having your money at the beginning of the year and earning interest on it for a whole year).

[Zansu]

What about USAA? Supposed to be the best out there...

[MMEand1]

We are USAA, and have been for 10 years, but I am getting better online quotes with other companies that with USAA. I have heard so many people (active duty) tell me lately that they switched from USAA because they are getting ripped off. People I work with said that USAA gets the military buisness because the military people think they are getting the best deal, so they don't check around (case in point - me). My boss just switched from USAA to Travelers and saved a TON of money. It's time for me to start shopping for some new insurance...

[sariana]

Hmm, we have USAA, and I have shopped around. I found that whenever I found what looked to be a lower rate, the coverage was not as good.

USAA also allows for monthly payments at no cost. There is an added cost to pay on an even more extended schedule, though.