You've probably seen all the commercials on television for direct auto insurance ranging from talking lizards to being in good hands. They make it sound like the best thing since sliced bread. It may be a no-brainer for the DIY crowd, since, you'll be negotiating the insurance path without an personal agent. But rest assured, as they say, even a caveman can do it!
The business model is called 'direct' because the customer deals directly with the company without the intervention of an agent. The customer gives up the security of personal, on-going contact with the same human in exchange for lower rates. Like all insurance, the trade-off is a gamble. If your claims are straight forward, you may well be happy to deal with a direct auto insurance firm.
The majority of direct auto insurance firms operate only in states or areas where no-fault auto insurance is mandatory. In circumstances where fault determination is taken out of the settlement equation, firms can calculate their rates with much higher statistical certainty. The downside is that safe drivers must go to civil court to recover monies lost to higher insurance rates due to claim-filing for damages that were not the fault of the policyholder.
In fault-allocation localities, who pays the cost for damages and losses incurred in a traffic accident is determined by a finding of fault. It is a fact that payouts are delayed and civil court cases are many in fault-finding jurisdictions. In these jurisdictions, the job description of the insurance agent includes hand holding and claims expedition. But under no-fault rules, the payout is made simply based on damages incurred. This means an insurance appraiser, rather than an agent, is the key player.
The purpose of going no-fault is to reduce wait times for accident victims. The only kink in the pipeline is at the insurance appraiser stage. No-fault states typically avoid creating a bottleneck in the claims settlement pipeline at the appraiser by instituting state-run or licensed collision centers. For these reasons, insurance companies are willing to run in no fault states exclusively and offer no agents but provide attractive discount rates.
The most difficult area as far as consumer confidence goes for direct auto insurance lies in compensation for physical injuries. Unlike collision centers, the diagnosis of injuries to the human body, particularly central nervous system injuries, is not always final. Over the course of treatment and recovery from severe injuries, you want one go-to person so you don't have to get a new call-center agent up to speed every time you need to get a question answered.
Caution and thinking things out thoroughly must be advised when making the decision to forego the insurance agent in favor of the discounts direct auto insurance companies offer. But if you're willing to handle some of your own paperwork, then dealing with a direct insurer may be the way to go. Keep in mind that as the industry evolves, the more consumer friendly companies will be the ones to outlast even the best insurance agency in the neighborhood.
The business model is called 'direct' because the customer deals directly with the company without the intervention of an agent. The customer gives up the security of personal, on-going contact with the same human in exchange for lower rates. Like all insurance, the trade-off is a gamble. If your claims are straight forward, you may well be happy to deal with a direct auto insurance firm.
The majority of direct auto insurance firms operate only in states or areas where no-fault auto insurance is mandatory. In circumstances where fault determination is taken out of the settlement equation, firms can calculate their rates with much higher statistical certainty. The downside is that safe drivers must go to civil court to recover monies lost to higher insurance rates due to claim-filing for damages that were not the fault of the policyholder.
In fault-allocation localities, who pays the cost for damages and losses incurred in a traffic accident is determined by a finding of fault. It is a fact that payouts are delayed and civil court cases are many in fault-finding jurisdictions. In these jurisdictions, the job description of the insurance agent includes hand holding and claims expedition. But under no-fault rules, the payout is made simply based on damages incurred. This means an insurance appraiser, rather than an agent, is the key player.
The purpose of going no-fault is to reduce wait times for accident victims. The only kink in the pipeline is at the insurance appraiser stage. No-fault states typically avoid creating a bottleneck in the claims settlement pipeline at the appraiser by instituting state-run or licensed collision centers. For these reasons, insurance companies are willing to run in no fault states exclusively and offer no agents but provide attractive discount rates.
The most difficult area as far as consumer confidence goes for direct auto insurance lies in compensation for physical injuries. Unlike collision centers, the diagnosis of injuries to the human body, particularly central nervous system injuries, is not always final. Over the course of treatment and recovery from severe injuries, you want one go-to person so you don't have to get a new call-center agent up to speed every time you need to get a question answered.
Caution and thinking things out thoroughly must be advised when making the decision to forego the insurance agent in favor of the discounts direct auto insurance companies offer. But if you're willing to handle some of your own paperwork, then dealing with a direct insurer may be the way to go. Keep in mind that as the industry evolves, the more consumer friendly companies will be the ones to outlast even the best insurance agency in the neighborhood.
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