JD Power Customer Satisfaction Ratings
According to the 2006 National Auto Insurance Study by J.D. Power and Associates, U.S. auto insurance customers are most satisfied with one of the nation’s oldest car insurance companies and least happy with the world’s largest insurance firm.
Auto Insurance Now Considers More Factors Determining Premiums
According to a Kiplinger's personal finanace report, auto insurers are now taking a much closer look at the driving records and credit histories of its policyholders. In the past, most insurers based their premiums on only a handful of variables--type of car, place of residence, age, marital status and driving record. Now they focus on 30 or more factors.
Insurers have been taking your credit history into consideration for some time because they've found a strong correlation between credit history and insurance claims. Now they study credit reports in even more detail, noting, for example, if you've made payments 30 or 60 days late.
Insurance companies are also looking more closely at the type of car you drive. In addition to studying damage and theft claims for that model, they're examining passenger injury claims and the amount of damage done to other vehicles and their occupants.
Because they now have the computing power to pinpoint risk and match it to specific prices, insurers use a lot more pricing pricing tiers. As a result, drivers with the best records saw their rates drop as much as 25%. With more sophiscated pricing models, mainstream auto insurance companies are offering to cover riskier drivers, often at lower rates than those of high-risk insurers. |
