Things Auto Insurance Companies Need To Improve On
Insurance companies have improved dramatically over the last decade, mainly due to the Internet and more educated, selective policy holders. Even so, there are a number of ways in which the insurance industry can improve. Drivers who are looking for great auto insurance coverage should know what to expect from insurance providers, and likewise, insurance companies should consider various ways to improve their offerings.
Transparency is important in any industry, but some insurance companies aren't very good at explaining how their costs compare to competitors. Insurance discounts are often used to provide drivers with a sense of getting a "good deal," even though an insurer's discounted rate isn't necessarily less than what its competitors are offering. Some insurance companies provide their competitors' rates to show savings, but these numbers can be skewed. Drivers need to look up their own auto insurance quotes with third party quotes in order to get a realistic idea of which insurer offers the lowest rates on various levels of auto insurance coverage. Better transparency would make it much easier to shop for a new insurance policy without spending extra time evaluating the fine print of insurance contracts.
Insurance companies can also improve their customer service departments, although customer service has become more important for insurers in the last several years as customers have become savvier. Poor customer service causes drivers to look for other options, and many insurance companies throughout the country have taken a special interest in improving their customer service departments to improve word of mouth. Still, there are some insurance companies who regularly receive average to poor customer service ratings. In difficult economic times, customer satisfaction usually improves in the auto insurance industry as insurers look for ways to respond to claims and questions more quickly in order to improve customer retention. Better customer service means faster claims resolution and quicker responses to common insurance questions.
Finally, car insurance companies their auto insurance coverage add-ons. More add-ons mean more coverage options, and again, this is another aspect of auto insurance that has improved dramatically over the last several years. Add-on coverage types like roadside assistance, which typically covers towing and related charges, have become very popular. Other examples of popular add-ons include accident forgiveness, which prevents a single accident from increasing a driver's insurance rates, and custom parts and equipment coverage (CPE), which pays for additional damage to seriously customized vehicles. Insurance companies could conceivably offer more add-ons to increase the coverage that they can provide to drivers. Policy holders should look into coverage and consider every possible aspect of an insurer's offerings before signing up for new auto insurance coverage.
