sperling, Author at Massachusetts Auto Insurance

Massachusetts Auto Insurance Review

It is important to understand your insurance coverage.

Each year at renewal time, we ask our clients to spend 5 minutes reviewing their insurance with us …

It is important to understand your insurance coverage.

Each year at renewal time, we ask our clients to spend 5 minutes reviewing their insurance with us.

They can come by, phone, or exchange e-mails with us. We are here to help.

Yes, it can be boring, but it’s not rocket science. This renewal: become an engaged insurance consumer!

Some questions to ask us:

Do we carry adequate liability limits? Limits should equal, at least, your net worth.
Should we carry Umbrella coverage?
What is the value of our vehicle? If the value is low, should we still carry collision coverage?
If our car loan is paid off, should we remove the lienholder on our policy?
Are we getting all available discounts?

Call us for your annual insurance review, explanation of coverage, and discount double-check.

Some Scary MA Driving Statistics

– 43% of first year drivers and 37% of second year drivers get into accidents.
– The average driver’s education student in MA only gets 6 hours of professional training …

October, of course, is the scariest of all the months.

MassAutoQuote.com offers some scary … and sobering teen driving statistics:

43% of first year drivers and 37% of second year drivers get into accidents.
The average driver’s education student in MA only gets 6 hours of professional training. Plumbers and electricians often apprentice for 8,000 hours to get a license to practice their job!
Driving accidents are the #1 killer of teens. The rest of the top ten killers (#2 -#10) combined don’t kill as many teens.
93% of all teen accidents are caused by “driver error.” The majority of fatal teen accidents do not involve speeding or alcohol.

Call or click us at MassAutoQuote to get your free, no obligation, MA auto insurance quotes. You’ll be glad you did.

MassAutoQuote: Have you thought about …

Umbrella Coverage?

A Personal Liability Umbrella Policy “sits-over” your home and auto liability limits. Coverage limits start at $1,000,000 and provide you protection from lawsuits.

Umbrella Coverage?

A Personal Liability Umbrella Policy “sits-over” your home and auto liability limits. Coverage limits start at $1,000,000 and provide you protection from lawsuits.

Coverage is relatively inexpensive to purchase.

$1,000,000 of coverage sitting over two autos and home might cost about $180 annually.

Umbrella Policies require underlying motor vehicle liability limits of $250,000 per person/$500,000 per accident.

In addition to coverage limits, insurance companies provide legal defense.

So, in essence, when you purchase higher limits you are also purchasing improved legal defense.

Call or click us to find out more about Massachusetts Personal Liability Umbrella Coverage.

We Now Offer VT Mutual “Real-Time” MA Auto Insurance Quotes!

“The time was right for Vermont Mutual to begin offering online quotes through MA independent agents, according to Shaun Farley, Vermont Mutual’s Vice President-Marketing.”

Vermont Mutual plugs into SinglePoint Leads

Supports independent agents while giving online shoppers what they want

Vermont Mutual is the 8th MA Auto carrier to join SinglePoint Leads, providing Real-Time online Auto quotes to consumers via agency websites and/or Facebook pages.

Vermont Mutual’s participation is the latest step in an ongoing collaboration among agents, carriers and Boston Software, according to Charlie Walsh.”We are all trying to deliver the kind of products and services that today’s consumers want,” he said. “Things are really starting to click now. Nearly 500 agencies participate in Leads and this year alone online insurance shoppers have generated more than 50,000 quotes and quote requests. The addition of a great company like Vermont Mutual will definitely help with the momentum.”

The time was right for Vermont Mutual to begin offering online quotes through MA independent agents, according to Shaun Farley, Vermont Mutual’s Vice President-Marketing.

“Our main focus is our partnership with independent agents, and we always want to help them in any way we can,” Farley said. “A lot of people are beginning their insurance shopping online, and this is something we can do to help our agents be as competitive as they can be and bring the greatest value to the consumer.”

Understanding Your MA Auto Insurance Coverage

Part 5, Optional Bodily Injury to Others, is, perhaps, the most important coverage on the Massachusetts auto insurance policy …

Part 5, Optional Bodily Injury to Others, is, perhaps, the most important coverage on the Massachusetts auto insurance policy.

In this independent MA auto insurance agent’s opinion, it’s the heart of your coverage.

What is Bodily Injury Liability?
Bodily injury liability coverage to others provides coverage if you are in ant at-fault accident and another person is injured. Coverage will pay for injuries up to policy limits, and, in addition, provides legal defense.

Part 1, Bodily Injury to Others, in Massachusetts, are compulsory limits of $20,000 per person/ $40,000 per accident. You cannot increase or lower Part 1 coverage on the MA auto policy. Coverage is limited to Massachusetts and does not apply to private driveways or parking lots.

Part 5, Optional Bodily Injury to Others, is the coverage you purchase to protect your assets and to protect you where the MA Part 1 coverage is limited.

What does Bodily Injury Liability cover?
Bodily Injury liability limits are typically shown like this: $100,000/$300,000.

This reflects the “per person” and “per accident” policy limits.

In this example there would be $100,000 available per person and $300,000 available per accident (if more than 1 person is injured).

MA auto insurance consumers purchase high limits of Part 5, Optional Bodily Injury to Others, coverage to protect against the catastrophic-type auto accident which could jeopardize their financial stability.

How much coverage do I need?

In an ideal world, consumers want their liability limits to, at least, equal one’s assets, including property and future earnings.

When choosing your Bodily Injury liability limits, you should consider all of your assets, including your home and future earnings.

Once consumers have purchased limits of $250,000 per person/$500,000 per accident, most insurance companies recommend additional coverage in the form of a Personal Liability Umbrella policy.

Umbrella policies start at $1,000,000 of coverage typically going up to $5,000,000. Coverage “sits-over” your auto and property liability limits.

Call or click us at MassAutoQuote to find out more about your MA auto insurance coverage.

Did We Mention Discounts?

If you signed up for Massachusetts auto insurance with MassAutoQuote.com, chances are, we saved you money.

We also probably improved your coverage …

If you signed up for Massachusetts auto insurance with MassAutoQuote, chances are, we saved you money.

We also probably improved your coverage.

Our job, as MA independent insurance agents, is to shop your coverage with multiple companies, make coverage recommendations, and help you if you ever have a billing question or claim problem.

We re-rate renewals and suggest coverage improvements, insurance or discount programs.

Some of the traditional Massachusetts automobile insurance discounts include:

Age 65 or Older, Passive Restraint, Annual Mileage discounts, Anti-theft, Multi-Car, Driver’s Education, Public Transit

Additional discounts may include:

Account discounts, Excellent driver & excellent driver plus discounts (99 & 98 drivers), Pay in full discounts, Hybrid vehicle discount, Advanced driver training discount, Alumni & professional group discounts, Good student discount (“B” or better), Student away at school discounts

Call or click us for your free MA auto insurance discount review!

New Boston Registry of Motor Vehicles Opens

On September 15, 2014 the MA Registry of Motor Vehicles opened new, Haymarket Center, Boston location …

On September 15th the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles closed down the old, Washington Street, China Town Registry of Motor Vehicles and opened at their new location at Haymarket Center (136 Blackstone Street).

The full-service Registry Branch is adjacent to Haymarket Station.

According to the Registry of Motor Vehicles:

Boston is the RMV’s busiest branch. During the month of August more than 32,000 customers were served. Customers working to reinstate their licenses, following periods of suspension or revocation, visit the Boston location for hearings, with approximately 7,000 held there each month.

A ribbon cutting ceremony took place this morning at 10:30 am.

Mass Auto Quote of the Week

Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down
quietly, may alight upon you.

– Nathaniel Hawthorne

Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.

– Nathaniel Hawthorne

MassAutoQuote: 8 Gas Saving Tips!

1. Go easy on the brakes and gas pedal. Avoid “jackrabbit” starts …

Go easy on the brakes and gas pedal. Avoid “jackrabbit” starts. Try to anticipate stops to avoid sudden braking.
Avoid long idles. Turn off the engine if you expect a lengthy wait. Idling burns more gas than restarting the engine.
Avoid carrying unneeded junk in the trunk. More weight equals worse gas mileage.
Avoid driving at high speeds. Mileage improves by 15% if you drive 55 instead of 65 mph.
Keep air conditioning to a minimum. Try rolling down the windows instead.
If you have overdrive, use it. It’s more economical at high speeds.
Keep tires inflated properly.
Get regular tune-ups and maintenance checks, both of which improve mileage.

MA Independent Agent vs. Geico …

GEICO has funny commercials, a cute lizard, and they can, sometimes, have good rates.

From my independent, Massachusetts insurance agent perspective, however, that’s were the funny, cute, and good stuff ends …

GEICO has funny commercials, a cute lizard, and they can, sometimes, have good rates.

From my independent, Massachusetts insurance agent perspective, however, that’s were the funny, cute, and good stuff ends.

We have a long time client that was hit head on by a vehicle insured with GEICO.

The GEICO vehicle was at-fault, allegedly skidding on black ice (our insured thinks the person was texting).

GEICO appraised the vehicle (a 2005 Honda Accord LX with 141,000 miles) and deemed it to be a total loss.

The N.A.D.A. values for her vehicle are: $8,050 (retail) and $5,650 (trade).

GEICO offered her: $4,555 as settlement.

We had our client’s insurance carrier appraise the vehicle and they, in turn, offered her the full retail value: $8,050 (+ $503.12 … 6.25% sales tax).

We recommended our client accept her company’s offer and let GEICO know she has decided to go first party through her own insurance company.

As I hung up the phone with our client, I thanked her for insuring with us.

Her response was: “Always.”

Having an independent agent as your advocate, whether deciding on coverage that’s right for you, or at claim time, can really make a difference.

That’s my biased, independent Massachusetts agent position.

Call or click us today for your free, no obligation Massachusetts auto insurance quote.

You will be glad you did.