by Pedroforo » Sat Feb 21, 2009 06:30 pm
Cars #1 (newest) and #3 (oldest) are on my wife's insurance, #2 on mine. We are trying to figure out what is the most economical way to add our teenager. Whose policy should he use? He is going to drive the oldest car, but occasionally #2 too. He won't drive the newest one.
Versions:
1. He gets his own insurance on #3. and he could be added to ours as secondary driver with no cost if I understand correctly.
2. He is added to mine as secondary driver on #2, but guess he has to be added/listed on my wife's policy although might not be for extra.
3. He is added to my wife's on #3 and excluded from driving #1.
Again,he probably will drive both #2 and #3, but not #1...
Versions:
1. He gets his own insurance on #3. and he could be added to ours as secondary driver with no cost if I understand correctly.
2. He is added to mine as secondary driver on #2, but guess he has to be added/listed on my wife's policy although might not be for extra.
3. He is added to my wife's on #3 and excluded from driving #1.
Again,he probably will drive both #2 and #3, but not #1...
Posted: Sat Feb 28, 2009 10:47 pm Post Subject:
Firey,
I agree with your sentiments. I do not know anything this other company, and I am not posting about it--just posting about the concept of raising your deductible and saving the money yourself.
I have a number of policyholders who have made the decision to raise their deductible and save the money for a future deductible payment. In some cases, I even have people who choose to forego physical damage coverage entirely and save the money in an account to buy a new car. This is the same concept as "Buy term and invest the rest" in life insurance. Unfortunately, it is easier to say than to do. The discipline is the hard part, whether saving for a deductible or saving for investment. I think that very few people actually set up that savings plan.
When I was a product manager for one of the big name-brand companies, one of my agents begged us to set up an automatic savings plan. After all, the company owned its own bank. He wanted us to include an automatic deduction of $25 each month, on the same draft as the regular insurance premium bill, and deposit that $25 into a savings account at our bank. Doing it on the same bill was the key to making it simple and easy. I loved the idea, but we were not able to get the priority on it to allocate systems resources.
That being said, would it really be that hard to do it separately? Now I am an agent for a different big name-brand company, and the company owns its own bank. I haven't done anything with the bank because I am in the insurance business, not the banking business; but maybe I should offer these people a separate savings account for the sole purpose of putting aside money for that deductible. I wonder whether that would add value in people's minds?
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 03:19 am Post Subject:
Christy sorry if you mistook my post. I was just talking about those who post question and are actually trying to promote their site. I would rather have a straight forward conversation with all cards laid on the table. I agree with you on how it can be hard to discipline yourself on putting money back. It is something though we all need to do. Anymore it seems like the roadways are filled with wackos, people tending to phone calls, or do not believe they need to use headlights or turn siganls. We jsut need to be prepared. I would not mind if my car insurance had the option of setting aside money in an account that could be used for deductible purposes. Plenty of people may even take advantage of something like this..especially those who do not put money aside and leave it there.
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 03:34 am Post Subject:
Anymore it seems like the roadways are filled with wackos, people tending to phone calls, or do not believe they need to use headlights or turn siganls.
Oh, yeah, that was me. I couldn't turn on the lights while I was driving, because I was on the phone with my bank setting up a plan to set aside money each month to cover my deductible ... :lol:
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 12:45 pm Post Subject:
just posting about the concept of raising your deductible and saving the money yourself
Christy, I totally agree with this, and have preached and advocated this for years the savings (usually) are significant...I wonder whether that would add value in people's minds?
I think it could and makes perfect sense to me for an ins carrier to marry this type of plan to their p&c sales...but then again, carriers are in the buisness of making more not less premium (higher deductible=less premium)...maybe that was the problem with your other employer? :wink:was just talking about those who post question and are actually trying to promote their site. I would rather have a straight forward conversation with all cards laid on the table.
Fire I could not agree more...I'm in total agreement that a plan to assist with savings for deductibles (including health) are a great idea in theory...I however I do have reservations about some plans (this one in particular or right now anyway)..just 'one' problem i have with it is it covers collision only not comp...so the insured can only raise their collision not comp deductible, cutting their savings minimally in half...coll and comp run pretty closely premium wise....I'm going to try and keep the discussion on 'that' product on the other thread....(little help too ok?)
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 01:29 pm Post Subject:
I think it could and makes perfect sense to me for an ins carrier to marry this type of plan to their p&c sales...but then again, carriers are in the buisness of making more not less premium (higher deductible=less premium)...maybe that was the problem with your other employer?
Lori, I get that question a lot. It is true that carriers are in the business of earning more premium, but one of the keys to doing this is to add enough value so that they can mult-line people and increase their retention. That is why counseling someone to raise their deductible can result in more premium in the long run ... because you have added value, and they are more likely to stay with you longer.
At that time, I was responsible for nonstandard auto product management. It is notoriously difficult to multi-line nonstandard policyholders, but the reward is high: Adding a single extra line can increase your retention by twenty percentage points. I liked the idea of setting them up with a savings account at a bank owned by the company, because it would also serve to multi-line them. Since no other carrier offered something seamless like this, it would make it more difficult for them to switch. The bank was too new to have any statistics on the increase in retention due to multilining with the bank, however. We had it on the project list, but there were far more pressing systems issues--like getting new states live on the new processing system, which we were rolling out countrywide. It was on the list, but farther down in the priorities, when I left.
Now that I am an agent, I have NO chance of getting it done in the seamless single-bill fashion. I think I will try putting together a flyer to market the two together, however--the company-branded bank account to go with the company's auto policy--but they will have to be paid separately.
The question is whether people will see the value in having it laid out more explicitly for them, with a savings deposit schedule into a specific account, instead of just telling them, "You need to save the difference." I wonder if they will actually do it instead of just saying they will.[/quote]
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 02:17 pm Post Subject:
That is why counseling someone to raise their deductible can result in more premium in the long run ... because you have added value, and they are more likely to stay with you longer.
"I" totally agree, was just wondering if perhaps that wasn't the reason your prior employer didn't go for it....I understand it's 'all' about retention.. :wink:I don't think there is any question in the 'value' that your customers would see...once it is explained to them the amount of premium reduction they will/would get from increasing their comp and coll deductibles and even HO deducts...it's finding a way to market it...hey, maybe we should go into business? ha ha, just kidding, i think this would be a terrific opportunity for the carriers themselves to handle as you said..
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