Buying Insurance Online
I’ve been doing alot of research lately on the prospects for the “online” insurance sales channel.
I personally bought my first online insurance policy from esurance.com about 3 years ago. The rates were OK, but I’ve since changed to a local insurance agent who represents several insurance companies. I was able to get superior coverage and a cost about 4% less than esurance. I was really surprised that a regular old company like Auto Owners Insurance would be able to beat the “online insurance giant”
I think the difference was, believe it or not, the Local Insurance Agent.
I believe the savings that I was able to take advantage of was a direct result of a “real person” doing the hard work of comparing policy options and building me a insurance plan that was taylor fitted to my particiular circumstances.
All that being said, I still believe that there is tremendous opportunity to sell insurance products online. The trick is going to be a significant “service differentiators” to make a company stand above the rest of the online space. The problem with esurance.com was that no one was truly servicing my account…so I had no one looking out for my best interests and annually analyzing my insurance coverage needs.
Have any of you, my readers and friends, purchased an insurance product online? Please let me know how it went, and if you plan to continue down that road for your insurance needs in the future.
Thanks in advance for the feedback! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving, we sure did here in Michigan!
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December 2nd, 2009 at 10:51 am
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December 3rd, 2009 at 5:05 am
Online insurance might be cheap but not necessary the best.
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December 4th, 2009 at 6:38 am
Insurance is a thorny issue, and doing careful research before making your decision will save you money in both premiums and claims that actually get settled. Having a broker who takes care of your best interest has proven to be the best way to do things in my opinion. You score both ways, because they get you the best premiums and handle your claims.
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December 4th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
I recently shopped for my car insurance and although it took me ages to fill in all the forms, I saved hundreds on my original quote. Well worth the effort I think… But you need to decide what is best for you - always read the small print.
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December 4th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
I love the concept of buying insurance online and saving money and all that, but when push comes to shove, I love the idea of having someone I can call to walk me through any insurance “issues” that I will undoubtable run into over the years. I think you have to have the personal service all the way.
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December 5th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
I love having the option of buying insurance online. Not only do I save time having to be on the phone with various agents who are only trying to push a commission, I also get to find rates on my own terms. Previously, I had a broker who would find me rates which he claimed would be the cheapest, but sadly I was foolish to believe him. Now, its online shopping only for me.
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December 11th, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Unfortunately, I’ve had more luck with local insurance agents as well as opposed to online insurance. With local insurance agents, it seems more personal like what Doug has said above. With local insurance agents, they are able to continuously help update your rates and hopefully give you better service as well.
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December 12th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Maybe I’m little old-fashioned but I think that local insurance agents gives better service because of their personal contact.
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December 17th, 2009 at 6:23 pm
I personally think that the personal agent is the way to go. Insurance contracts are too complex to leave things to chance online.
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January 1st, 2010 at 1:11 pm
I love the concept
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