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“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”
~John Fitzgerald Kennedy
“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”
~John Fitzgerald Kennedy
When determining fault in a Massachusetts auto accident, MA insurance companies use the following Standards of Fault:
– Collision with a lawfully or an unlawfully parked vehicle
– Rear-end collision …
When determining fault in a Massachusetts auto accident, MA insurance companies use the following Standards of Fault:
For For more information regarding MA automobile insurance, call the Massachusetts Division of Insurance Consumer Hotline at: 617-521-7777 or visit their website: http://www.mass.gov/doi. For more information regarding your driving record, call the Massachusetts Merit Rating Board’s Customer Service Section at: 617-351-4400 or visit their website at: http://www.mass.gov/mrb.
For a competitive, Massachusetts Auto Insurance quote, please call or click us today.
“For now, it is up to the Independent Insurance Agent, to get the best rates for our clients, to package policies and to round accounts. It is time to save our clients money. It is time to advise and to advocate. It is time to demonstrate our value …”
We published the following article on April 21, 2008 and find it worth a re-print.
Geico entered the Massachusetts auto insurance market in May of 2009. They spent a billion dollars on advertising in 2013 and they are a marketing force.
However, five years after their Massachusetts auto insurance market launch, this independent insurance agent’s fear of the little green lizard is gone.
We compete against them and we’ve taken business from them.
Six year after the article, our belief still rings true:
“For now, it is up to the Independent Insurance Agent, to get the best rates for our clients, to package policies and to round accounts. It is time to save our clients money. It is time to advise and to advocate. It is time to demonstrate our value.”
Boston, MA – 4/21/2008
Never in the history of the Massachusetts Professional, Independent Insurance Agent community, have five letters been so feared.
Not, “t-h-e-f-t.”
Not, “f-r-a-u-d.”
And no, not, “c-l-a-i-m.”
I am talking about “G-E-I-C-O.”
Not since my childhood Godzilla days, have I been so scared of a lizard.
For years they have advertised in our proud, Commonwealth and for years I have smugly told customers, “GEICO? They don’t even write insurance in Massachusetts!”
Nationally they don’t use Independent Agents, either.
They use call centers and service centers and they don’t write home insurance.
When you work with an Independent, Professional Insurance Agent you are working with someone who who has your best interest in mind. You are working with someone who will shop your insurance with many different companies to get you the best rate. You are working with someone who is your advocate at claim time. Who, at GEICO, works as your advocate? Who, at GEICO, sells multi-lines of insurance and shops your insurances with many different companies?
Like the chilly winds of our Massachusetts’ autums, it seems inevitable that GEICO is coming. When? I don’t know. 2009? 2010 at the latest, is my guess.
For now, it is up to the Independent Insurance Agent, to get the best rates for our clients, to package policies and to round accounts. It is time to save our clients money. It is time to advise and to advocate. It is time to demonstrate our value.
What is Gap Insurance?
If a car is stolen or declared totaled, the auto insurance company will pay actual cash value for the car.
The actual cash value can be a lot different from what is owed on the vehicle.
The difference is “the gap.” Gap insurance covers this amount …
What is Gap Insurance?
If a car is stolen or declared totaled, the auto insurance company will pay actual cash value for the car.
The actual cash value can be a lot different from what is owed on the vehicle.
The difference is “the gap.”
Gap insurance covers this amount.
Without gap insurance the lender will hold the individual responsible for paying the difference between the actual cash value and the amount left on the loan.
Many companies allow Gap insurance to be added to the Massachusetts personal auto policy.
The cost for Gap insurance can range from between +$25 annually to +$120.
Sometimes Gap insurance coverage is included in lease agreements. If leasing, make certain Gap insurance is included.
Is Gap coverage a good idea? Depending on the gap … it might be a great idea.
Give us a call to find out more about Gap insurance on your MA auto policy.
Secretary Davey said: “We have re-imagined the RMV and are prepared to deliver improvements in the short term and for the next generation of drivers. At the core of our ten point promise is the effort to diversify our service delivery channels.”
Over the years the Massachusetts RMV has taken quite a bit of heat. Most of it deservedly so, and some of it coming from this humble, MA Auto Insurance Web Log.
Although, as lines outside the door testify, the RMV is not perfect, over the past 20 years some things have improved.
Recently MA Department of Transportation Secretary & CEO, Richard Davey and Mass Registrar of Motor Vehicles, Celia Blue, offered a ten point promise to Massachusetts RMV customers which we find encouraging.
Secretary Davey said: “We have re-imagined the RMV and are prepared to deliver improvements in the short term and for the next generation of drivers. At the core of our ten point promise is the effort to diversify our service delivery channels.”
Registrar Blue added: “Our ten point promise is a commitment to our customers. It will serve as a roadmap on our way to delivering extraordinary
service.”
The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles is encouraging consumers to go online.
We recommend you go online too, then go running rather than to the RMV.
According to a news release on the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles website (MassRMV.com), Registrar Celia Blue is encouraging MA consumers to go online to renew licenses and registrations.
The article quotes Blue: “MassRMV.com is designed to help our customers save time and to allow our branch employees to focus on more complex transactions. By making MassRMV.com their first stop, customers will find they are able to renew in a matter of minutes or discover they need in-person attention at one of our branches.”
As witnessed recently by this local, independent insurance agent (btw: that offers complimentary Registry running services) the Registry of Motor Vehicles can be a zoo, with lines out the door.
The Registry mails postcard reminders letting consumers know if they are eligible to renew online.
A new picture, for licenses, is required every 10 years.
All vanity and trailer plates expire at the end of November. Commercial plates renew at the end of December.
According to the article: “Many commercial renewals require the registrant to visit a branch in person, making the last days of each year some of the busiest for RMV branches.”
By the time it’s all over, you’ll have paid out: $3,840 in additional insurance premiums.
If your coverage includes accident forgiveness, guess what?
No additional premiums.
Take a moment, look at your policy or call your agent.
Do you have Accident Forgiveness?
It might be the best financial question you ask yourself all day.
Do you have Accident Forgiveness?
Some insurance companies make you buy it, some make you earn it .
Most will only include Accident Forgiveness if you have a perfect, or near-perfect driving record.
Some will only apply it if you’ve been with them for a certain amount of time.
If you have an at-fault accident, the insurance company will not apply the surcharge your policy.
In insurance terms, I’ve read somewhere that average, annual Massachusetts auto insurance premium is $1,600.
Let’s say you are a 99 driver and you get in an at-fault accident.
If total damage is less than $500 paid out (almost never), there is no surcharge.
If damage totals less than $2,000 (minor accident), at-fault driver is surcharged: 3 points.
If damage is more than $2,000 (major accident), at-fault driver is surcharged: 4 points.
The MA SDIP driver rating system is, sort of, difficult to figure out.
The best driver in the state is a 99 (no at-fault accidents, no violations 6+ years). Credit step.
The next best is a 98 (no at-faults, no violations 5+ years). Credit step.
Then you’re a: 0 driver (note: you’re also a 0 driver when you first get you’re licensed.) Neutral driving record.
Points get added starting with 0, for at-fault accidents and violations.
So, for the example above, if you’re in an accident and more than $2,000 is paid out (usually), you go from a 99 to a 4.
Each step is, somewhere, around 8% in annual auto insurance surcharge, so you go from a 99 to 98 to 0 to a 1-2-3- 4. The realized premium increase will be around 48% more at renewal time (+$768) … for the next 3 years! Then it will go down by, maybe, 8% to + $640 in surcharges years 4 and 5. After year 5 you will go back to a 0 driver and you’ll only be paying about +$256 in surcharge.
Approximate surcharge totals:
Year 1: +$768
Year 2: +$768
Year 3: +$768
Year 4: +$640
Year 5: +$640
Year 6: +$256
By the time it’s all over, you’ll have paid out: $3,840 in additional insurance premiums.
If your coverage included Accident Forgiveness, guess what?
No additional premiums.
Take a moment, look at your policy or call your agent.
Do you have Accident Forgiveness?
In order to make certain you are getting the best rates, it’s important to shop around and look for every discount available …
Six years ago the Massachusetts auto insurance industry welcomed “managed competition” to the state.
Managed competition has helped usher in a new era for MA auto insurance consumers.
Companies that long ago fled the state, came back. Some that were never here entered the state.
In order to make certain you are getting the best rates, it’s important to shop around and look for every discount available.
The first place to start when looking for the best auto premium is by packaging your auto insurance with the same company as your home insurance.
If you don’t own a home or condominium, it might be time to purchase apartment insurance coverage. If not for the only reason of taking advantage of an auto insurer’s “account discount.”
Other discounts to consider:
If you insure your auto & home through Massautoquote, you can ensure that you are getting the best rates, coverage, programs & discounts available …
If you insure your auto & home through Massautoquote, you can ensure that you are getting the best rates, coverage, programs & discounts available.
Companies offer huge discounts on both home and auto insurance if you insure them with the same company.
Sometimes the account discount on the auto can be larger than the cost of an apartment policy.
So, in essence, you can carry an apartment insurance policy for free and save money on your auto insurance!
There has never been a better time to consolidate your insurances.
Call or click to discuss if you insure either your auto or home somewhere else.
Massautoquote is your independent, online Massachusetts insurance resource.
You can get Massachusetts auto insurance quotes just about anywhere these days.
You can pick up the telephone, you can stop by an office, or you can get on the computer.
The question then becomes: Who do you want to buy insurance from?
You can get Massachusetts auto insurance quotes just about anywhere these days.
You can pick up the telephone, you can stop by an office, or you can get on the computer.
The question then becomes: Who do you want to buy insurance from?
There are three choices:
When you buy insurance through MassAutoQuote, you’re buying through a Massachusetts Independent Insurance Agent.
We are a pro-active independent agency with a sharp pencil. We shop our clients renewals and take advantage of different companies’ discount and insurance programs. Over the years we save our clients a ton of money.
We’ve put together our Top 10 list of why it is important to utilize a Massachusetts independent insurance agent when going through the very important insurance buying process.:
#1. Your Independent MA Insurance Agent makes house calls!
Call or click us for your free, no-obligation insurance quote.
You’ll be glad you did!