There is very little talk about why you should consider customer service when looking for a car insurance company. If you sign up for a new policy on the internet you may go several months without thinking about the type of company you signed up with. Eventually this will change quickly the day you run into problems on the road. This could be from someone hitting you on the road or even an accident when your parked car is hit. At this point it will be more evident as to why customer is important with your car insurance.
Not All Companies are the same
There are many variables as to why you will see differences when comparing customer service. One of the primary factors relates to the resources that are dedicated in serving customers. This can translate to how many trained; experienced customer service representatives are available to answer phone calls. If a company is experiencing a high level of turnover you may be stuck with someone who can’t effectively help you with your problem. A good starting point to evaluate customer service is how many resources is an insurance company dedicated to servicing questions and claims. What other areas can be looked at?
How your State Insurance Office can help
With car insurance being regulated by state insurance offices, there frequently is valuable information your state insurance web site will provide on insurance companies registered to do business where you drive. Whenever a car owner files a complaint against an insurer it will typically end up at the state insurance office. In addition, the state will monitor how each company is following the regulations for fair practices. If an insurer is not compliant the insurance office will keep track of these violations and frequently will post a summary of the total violations of each company on their web site. By spending a few minutes on your state insurance web site, you can get an idea of who customers are complaining about and which insurers are not following the rules of the state.
Look at the Business Model
Another good way to see which company will provide solid customer service is to look at the type of business model they are operating under. Generally you will see 2 forms of an operating model. The first is a direct sales model where the insurance company will sell insurance directly to the customer. A good example of a direct business model can be seen with Geico. Geico operates with a small amount of local business offices and is able to keep their overhead down because of this. Most of their support will come over the phone and you will not deal with a direct sales agent for your account. The second type of business model is where you deal with an agent directly. This is typically the person who signed you up for your policy and is the person you can speak with if there any questions. Examples of these companies are Allstate and State Farm. These companies will typically have a local dedicated agent assigned to support you. If you have an effective agent this is an excellent way to make sure you are being served effectively. Make sure you understand how your insurer is setup to help understand how you will be supported.
In Summary
In summary, it will help to spend extra time looking at the insurance company you plan to go with. A company like State Farm and Allstate may be a good choice if you want an established agent that is familiar with your policy. If want to save money on your premiums and take a chance on customer service it may make sense to go with a company operating under a direct sales model.
