Did I save you money on car/home insurance?
When I posted how I’m saving $1400 per year on my car/home insurance, I didn’t realize the impact it would have on other people. Two people in my life have already begun the process of saving hundreds on their car and/or home insurance by switching from Allstate to Erie Insurance.
First, I found out from my friend and author Shawn that he called Erie (in North Carolina) and they quoted him rates for his home and auto insurance that would save over $1000 per year.
And then this morning, I heard from my mom that she called Erie Insurance (in Pennsylvania) and he quoted her a price that’s almost half of her current Allstate auto insurance rate! (She’s not a homeowner). She’s currently paying about $1500 per year with Allstate, while the Erie rate would be closer to $800!
So in total, between the 3 of us, we’ve saved (or will save) about $3100 per year with just a simple phone call! And I should also say I am in no way a paid spokesman for Erie. I just like saving money while knowing I’m switching to a company also known for taking care of its customers. It also helps that my agent, Kim, is incredibly friendly and helpful (not that my Allstate agent wasn’t, but she wasn’t the most responsive person either).
So let me know if I helped you save money too!
Like you, I price out new insurance rates often, but I’ve only ever switched twice (once for auto, once for renters/homeowners). Generally I’ll only switch to companies when I’ve had a friend or family member who actually had to deal with that company following an accident (either as their insurance or as the other driver’s). I’ve found lower rates before but not switched companies because I had no idea what their service was like.
That said, please don’t do us any favors and test out your new insurance. I’ll just stay where I am for now. 🙂
@Nick, I signed all the paperwork today, but it won’t go active till June 21 when my current auto expires. Now, since we’re driving to the site of the last accident 3 years ago in PA this Sunday, I decided to rent a car and I might actually get their insurance. I don’t want to screw anything up before the deal is done!
yep, I too am really nervous about switching insurance. We’ve been with our companies for over 20 years, and have been well treated, especially by AAA auto. That, indeed, I think IS a function of having stuck with them so long. That being said, we switched to Geico for DH’s scooter. AAA had subcontracted, and the rates were REALLY high. Geico was a third the cost for the same coverage (minimal, but required by law).
I would be very interested in reports on how Erie treats claimants.
I currently having a contest going on regarding saving money on insurance. The winner will receive a $75 gas card.
I’ll be signing the paper work soon for my savings. I was waiting to see what the rates I got through a work program.
The weird thing was that both a local agent and my corporate partner quoted me insurance through Travellers. The local agent beat our special rate by several hundred dollars.
Another oddity, when I called the local agent for Erie here in NC, it turned out that she was from the same small town in PA where I’m from.
Very small world.
We’ve had Erie since 1981 except for a four year period when we lived in a state that didn’t carry Erie. We have never had a problem when submitting a claim. When one of my kids had a fender bender, since we had the policy for over 15 years we did not get a “surcharge”. We also found by raising our home insurance deductible to $1000 our premium was reduced by almost 50%.
You forwarded your person’s information to me via email – she knows you as Clever Dude, you might pick up a new blog reader soon!
It looks like I’ll save about $500/year from Allstate with a little bit more coverage. Works for me! Thanks for posting it to prompt people along.
A friend of mine has Erie and was just in an accident that caused quite a bit of damage to her car. She says they were great in handling the claim and getting things done quickly. Always good to hear it, but I haven’t found a bad thing about them yet.
Thanks, Dude! You can see my 48% insurance savings post at:
http://wild-squirrel.blogspot.com/2008/07/thrifty-thursday-how-i-aved-48-on.html