Review my auto insurance coverage

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Topic Author
devopscoder
Posts: 108
Joined: Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:35 pm

Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by devopscoder »

Years ago, I got auto insurance for my car when I was out of college. The agent suggested coverage for me in terms of limits, etc. When I bought my first house, I switched to Amica insurance and have my auto/house with them with the same coverage. I have not made any changes other than adding/removing cars or buying/selling the house. Over the years, I have filed 2 claims over 25 years. Once when a tree fell onto my car that was parked in the driveway. The other time was when someone rear-ended my car and totaled it. Amica's handled the claims smoothly and without issues.
I think Amica is highly regarded but should I still shop for insurance and switch if the savings are significant?

Onto my auto insurance. One of my cars is a 2007 Honda CRV with 161K miles. The car is worth $3-4K. Paying $161 for collision with $1K deductible and $57 for Comprehensive with $500 deductible. It probably make sense to drop this coverage as it doesn't make sense to pay $200 for $3K worth of insurance. Part of the reason why it's higher than normal is because we have two young drivers (21 & 18) on our policy.

In terms of other coverage, we have:

Mass Compulsory Coverage
Bodily injury to others - $20K/person, $40K/accident
Uninsured motorist - $50K/person, $100K/accident
Property Damage Liability - $100K/accident

Optional coverage:
Bodily injury to others - $50K/person, $100K/accident
Underinsured Motorist Bodily Injury - $50K/person, $100K/accident
Personal Injury Protection $8K limit

I do not have an umbrella policy. Have ~$4M in assets.

I wonder if I should find an independent insurance agent to review my coverages?
bbqguru
Posts: 262
Joined: Sat Sep 17, 2011 8:31 pm

Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by bbqguru »

Yes! You should have an agent review your policies.

If you're auto limits are low, what are your homeowner's limits? And buy the umbrella ASAP. Cheapest insurance you can have. One bad wreck and you've easily used your bodily injury limits. If you can easily replace either vehicle, I'd drop comp coverage. Your biggest exposure is liability. The biggest factor you're going to face in rate pricing is the young adults in the house.

Our household is a fraction in size of worth compared to yours and we carry 1MM limits on auto and home. 2MM on the umbrella.

Coverage amounts aren't what they used to be. For example, my spouse had a friend over and was playing with our dog. Friendly and no issues. Next thing I know the friend is in an ambulance and gets pins placed in a finger. They got a little overzealous in playing and accidents happen. Another friend is our insurance agent and he told me the insurance company has set aside $50-75k for medical bills. A few appointments and procedures here and there and they've already paid a good portion of that out.
Nowizard
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by Nowizard »

Our policies are 250/500,000 for bodily injury, 100K property damage, 250 collision, and that would be insufficient in the opinion of many for a 4M net worth family. We also have a 1M umbrella policy that is inexpensive ($153 annually). In my opinion, you are underinsured.

Tim
Topic Author
devopscoder
Posts: 108
Joined: Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:35 pm

Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by devopscoder »

bbqguru wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 7:54 am Yes! You should have an agent review your policies.
I'll start looking for one in my area to review my coverages.
Topic Author
devopscoder
Posts: 108
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by devopscoder »

Nowizard wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 7:56 am We also have a 1M umbrella policy that is inexpensive ($153 annually). In my opinion, you are underinsured.
Thanks for confirming. I'll try to get this done ASAP with my current provider.
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RickBoglehead
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by RickBoglehead »

AMICA doesn't use independent agents. You should ask them to review your coverage with you.

Note that if you're pulling rates off the policy, the auto policy should have a 20% dividend (some states don't allow it), lowering that number by 20%.

Price is not everything. You will find cheaper insurance. Whether that insurance handles the claims "smoothly and without issue" as AMICA has in the past could be doubtful - some of these cheaper policies come with cheaper service... :wink:
Avid user of forums on variety of interests-financial, home brewing, F-150, EV, home repair, etc. Enjoy learning & passing on knowledge. It's PRINCIPAL, not PRINCIPLE. I ADVISE you to seek ADVICE.
exodusNH
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Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2021 7:21 pm

Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by exodusNH »

devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 7:36 am Years ago, I got auto insurance for my car when I was out of college. The agent suggested coverage for me in terms of limits, etc. When I bought my first house, I switched to Amica insurance and have my auto/house with them with the same coverage. I have not made any changes other than adding/removing cars or buying/selling the house. Over the years, I have filed 2 claims over 25 years. Once when a tree fell onto my car that was parked in the driveway. The other time was when someone rear-ended my car and totaled it. Amica's handled the claims smoothly and without issues.
I think Amica is highly regarded but should I still shop for insurance and switch if the savings are significant?

Onto my auto insurance. One of my cars is a 2007 Honda CRV with 161K miles. The car is worth $3-4K. Paying $161 for collision with $1K deductible and $57 for Comprehensive with $500 deductible. It probably make sense to drop this coverage as it doesn't make sense to pay $200 for $3K worth of insurance. Part of the reason why it's higher than normal is because we have two young drivers (21 & 18) on our policy.

In terms of other coverage, we have:

Mass Compulsory Coverage
Bodily injury to others - $20K/person, $40K/accident
Uninsured motorist - $50K/person, $100K/accident
Property Damage Liability - $100K/accident

Optional coverage:
Bodily injury to others - $50K/person, $100K/accident
Underinsured Motorist Bodily Injury - $50K/person, $100K/accident
Personal Injury Protection $8K limit

I do not have an umbrella policy. Have ~$4M in assets.

I wonder if I should find an independent insurance agent to review my coverages?
You are woefully underinsured! $50K on an uninsured motorist is almost like having $0. To give you an idea of what medical costs are like, in 2005 -- 16 years ago! -- I went into the ER with what turned out to be appendicitis. I was 31 and in good shape. The ER was $75/minute. I was admitted, had surgery, and discharged in about 16 hours. My total bill was $17,000.

In October 2019, a mandoline slipped out of my hand while I was washing it and landed on my thumbnail. ER visit was $4000. There was no permanent damage.

You should be insured up to at least your non-retirement-protected assets and more if have a well-paying job. (Need to cover wage garnishment.) Call Amica and tell them you want an umbrella policy. They will tell you what your auto and home liability limited need to be to get coverage.
Topic Author
devopscoder
Posts: 108
Joined: Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:35 pm

Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by devopscoder »

I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
bbqguru
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by bbqguru »

devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
The increase is the two young drivers (although some may be your location in the NE). Once they move and get their own insurance, it should decrease back to normal levels.
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devopscoder
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by devopscoder »

bbqguru wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 9:09 am
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
The increase is the two young drivers (although some may be your location in the NE). Once they move and get their own insurance, it should decrease back to normal levels.
One of the questions they asked was about foreign country travel. Not sure how much that has an effect. My daughter is going to South Korea for semester aboard this fall and it's possible that we'll visit her if there's no quarantine restriction. I also travel for work (India) every other year.
iamblessed
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Location: St. Louis

Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by iamblessed »

Way underinsured. Need something like 250/500/100 4M umbrella.
DesertGator
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by DesertGator »

devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
It doesn't matter what the umbrella costs - you need it today! Your original underlying policy limits aren't even high enough to qualify for an umbrella.

Your costs are higher due to "youthful operators", and you probably have $1M in uninsured/underinsured coverage in there as well. How many cars do you have? That will increase it a little. Do you have boat, RV or ATV? Coverage for that will increase it.

Get the first umbrella you can buy at any price (with the required underlying limits for other coverages which will need to be adjusted). Then shop the market. And in my opinion, $1M is not enough, but it's 1,000,000 X better than nothing.
bbqguru
Posts: 262
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by bbqguru »

devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 9:26 am
bbqguru wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 9:09 am
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
The increase is the two young drivers (although some may be your location in the NE). Once they move and get their own insurance, it should decrease back to normal levels.
One of the questions they asked was about foreign country travel. Not sure how much that has an effect. My daughter is going to South Korea for semester aboard this fall and it's possible that we'll visit her if there's no quarantine restriction. I also travel for work (India) every other year.
Most umbrellas offer worldwide coverage. It's not just limited to liability when you're at home.
exodusNH
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by exodusNH »

devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
My $1M umbrella is $200/year through State Farm. I have auto and home through them as well.

As I mentioned earlier, your umbrella should cover your non-retirement protected assets and some amount of your future earnings. (Which is basically what you'd get sued for in the event of an at-fault claim that exceeds your specific policy limits.)

The umbrella allows me to have $250/$500 bodily injury & under/uninsured coverage, $100K property on my auto, and $100K liability on my home. The umbrella covers the rest.
tj
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by tj »

You have abysmal liability coverage.
Boatguy
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by Boatguy »

Don’t ignore the Uninsured Motorist coverage. Some studies put the number of uninsured (not underinsured) drivers at 20%, so if an uninsured driver runs a red light and t-bones you at an intersection, you have little recourse against that person. It’s also likely that an uninsured driver is likely uncollectible as well…because he’d have insurance otherwise.

Even if you have great medical coverage, UM will pay for lost wages and other things that an at-fault driver’s insurance would typically pay for.
Snowbird501
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by Snowbird501 »

Ask Amica if they’ll let you bump your underlying auto liability limits to $1M/$1M and $500K for property damage. Also increase your homeowners insurance underlying limits to $1M. When I was with Amica, this is the coverage I had. It also created the umbrella to be less expensive. Call in and do this today. I agree with the poster above, make sure the limits match your uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage also. You are horribly underinsured and just asking for trouble, especially with two young drivers.
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FOGU
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by FOGU »

exodusNH wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 4:03 pm
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
My $1M umbrella is $200/year through State Farm. I have auto and home through them as well.

As I mentioned earlier, your umbrella should cover your non-retirement protected assets and some amount of your future earnings. (Which is basically what you'd get sued for in the event of an at-fault claim that exceeds your specific policy limits.)

The umbrella allows me to have $250/$500 bodily injury & under/uninsured coverage, $100K property on my auto, and $100K liability on my home. The umbrella covers the rest.
I doubt we have the same agent, but it sounds like we both fall in about the same risk category. State Farm just this week quoted me 250/500/100 on comprehensive auto (un- and under-insured included with same limits), 100k liability on renter's insurance with $15k in personal property loss coverage (more than I need probably), and $1M liability umbrella. $2k deductible on everything.

Premium is $1,235 per year, or $103 per month. Maybe I got ripped off. Please tell me if I did. But after shopping all the cutesy "discount" insurers with the clever ads about their low low prices, State Farm was the best offer and I took it. Boom! I'm insured.
Topic Author
devopscoder
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by devopscoder »

DesertGator wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:15 pm
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
It doesn't matter what the umbrella costs - you need it today! Your original underlying policy limits aren't even high enough to qualify for an umbrella.

Your costs are higher due to "youthful operators", and you probably have $1M in uninsured/underinsured coverage in there as well. How many cars do you have? That will increase it a little. Do you have boat, RV or ATV? Coverage for that will increase it.
I can’t get it today as it has to be reviewed by the underwriter which may take a couple of days but the policy is in the works. We have three cars and one motorcycle. Nothing else.

The underlying limits have been fixed.
exodusNH
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by exodusNH »

FOGU wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:13 pm
exodusNH wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 4:03 pm
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
My $1M umbrella is $200/year through State Farm. I have auto and home through them as well.

As I mentioned earlier, your umbrella should cover your non-retirement protected assets and some amount of your future earnings. (Which is basically what you'd get sued for in the event of an at-fault claim that exceeds your specific policy limits.)

The umbrella allows me to have $250/$500 bodily injury & under/uninsured coverage, $100K property on my auto, and $100K liability on my home. The umbrella covers the rest.
I doubt we have the same agent, but it sounds like we both fall in about the same risk category. State Farm just this week quoted me 250/500/100 on comprehensive auto (un- and under-insured included with same limits), 100k liability on renter's insurance with $15k in personal property loss coverage (more than I need probably), and $1M liability umbrella. $2k deductible on everything.

Premium is $1,235 per year, or $103 per month. Maybe I got ripped off. Please tell me if I did. But after shopping all the cutesy "discount" insurers with the clever ads about their low low prices, State Farm was the best offer and I took it. Boom! I'm insured.
State Farm agents have zero discretion on rates. (My friend is one.) They have a unique territory and "face time" with their clients. Auto insurance is a race to the bottom. They're banking on homeowner's, umbrellas, mortgages (which are through Quicken/Rocket), life insurance, and general investments. The pricing is whatever corporate determines it should be.

They focus on retention, which is why you don't see new client discounts.

I'm not sure exactly what my car insurance is, since it's bundled with homeowner's and umbrella. My homeowner's is higher than average because my house is almost 100 years old, and there's no telling what's behind the walls w.r.t. fire control. (But not much different than Safeco and other insurance companies that I've priced out in the past.)
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FOGU
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by FOGU »

devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 10:14 pm
DesertGator wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:15 pm
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
It doesn't matter what the umbrella costs - you need it today! Your original underlying policy limits aren't even high enough to qualify for an umbrella.

Your costs are higher due to "youthful operators", and you probably have $1M in uninsured/underinsured coverage in there as well. How many cars do you have? That will increase it a little. Do you have boat, RV or ATV? Coverage for that will increase it.
I can’t get it today as it has to be reviewed by the underwriter which may take a couple of days but the policy is in the works. We have three cars and one motorcycle. Nothing else.

The underlying limits have been fixed.
For your comparison purposes, the State Farm umbrella of $1M I just bought this week, bundled with everything I listed in my post, has a premium cost of $193 per year.
MarkBarb
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Re: Review my auto insurance coverage

Post by MarkBarb »

bbqguru wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 9:09 am
devopscoder wrote: Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:37 am I just bumped my vehicle coverage to $250K/$500K. I asked them for a $1M umbrella quote. They came back with $480/annual. That's a lot more than $150.
The increase is the two young drivers (although some may be your location in the NE). Once they move and get their own insurance, it should decrease back to normal levels.
When my kids became drivers, my umbrella insurance cost went up more than my auto insurance cost.
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