Can anyone recommend a reputable insurance company in Calgary? After 26 accident-free years of premiums, my insurance company says they're going to raise my rates if I claim a fender bender.

Last week I hit a Mini Cooper as I was backing out of a parking spot. It's so small I couldn't even see what I'd hit. At first glance it looked like the damage could be fixed with a damp cloth, but there is a wrinkle in the fender. (No damage to my Jeep of course)

So, I did the right thing and left a note containing my contact info, driver's license number, etc, then called my insurance company. They recommended that I pay out the damage myself, as otherwise my rates would go up. They didn't even say "Thanks for 26 years of premiums on your cars, motorcycles, personal belongings, and houses, Sucker".

It ended up being almost $1600 damage to the Mini. The insurance company will raise my rates by $2360 over the next 8 years if I submit the claim. That's almost $300/year.

So, is there a reputable insurance company with decent rates in Calgary? As well, what is the downside of letting my insurance company foot the bill and then pulling my business and going elsewhere?

 

Something to add... I discussed taking my business elsewhere and was told that I have an 8-star* rating with my current insurance company, but a new company would start me off with a 0-star rating. Is this true?



*I think this is insurance-speak for "This guy is a chump. Soak 'im for everything he's worth".

 

Look at it this way -- What good is your 8* rating, if it gets you nothing. Sounds like you're better off starting at 0 with another company.


Who are you currently with btw?

 

Just call around and get some quotes. I use a insurance company in Airdrie and they have been awesome. Its called Airdrie Insurance. I was using Toole Pete but they were brutal to deal with. You can get a quote done within a half hour

 

I've been dealing with Royal Sun Alliance. I haven't been happy with them for a long time. For instance...

Last year they decided that the shingles on my garage needed to be replaced. They were right, but I told them that the garage was going to be torn down in a few months, so there was no sense in replacing the roof. They agreed. So, they reduced the amount of coverage should something happen *and* they increased my rates. The joke will be on them in the end, because once I have a new house and garage that don't have 76-year-old electrical and plumbing, my business will go elsewhere. (This was the intention before the car incident. Now I'm just going to pull everything)

 

Try State Farm
teh guy i use is

Jake Yu
403-685-1100

FOr my insurance needs he was competitive and very responsive to any questions or changes i needed done.

Don't know if its a fit foryou or not, but i have no complaints with him.

 

Try Silvercrest Insurance, they were good to be and a good price for under 25 full coverage.

 

i called state farm also and got the best rates out of anyone else i called.

Also they have the best setup for paying monthly with no huge initial payment.

 

I used to be with State Farm and they were pretty good to deal with. I also have a buddy who went through Silvercrest and they gave him a smokin deal on his truck insurance. He was (at the time) a 20 year old buying a brand new dodge truck and his payments were less then my pl/pd on my 1992 prelude. I had about 3 speeding tickets on my record and he had about the same and a accident.

 

heh i would have thought you'd be able to only get Kingsway with that record

you must have had at leat one clean yearsinceyour last ticket for anyone but kingsway to insure you?

 

Try Wendy at Bow Valley 297-9409 , tell her Gary referred you. She's always taken good care of me, takes care of stuff over the phone with prompt service.

 

We're with Canadian Direct - we shopped around a lot and got the best rates there. We used to be with State Farm, which provided good rates and service for many years. Then in the late 90's, we switched over to auto-withdrawal instead of semi-annual premiums. They screwed that up repeatedly over several months, requested a cheque for the missed months, which they got, then proceeded to continue to screw up the AFT for a couple more months - at which point they dropped me for non-payment of premium without a call or letter. We drove around a couple months not knowing we weren't insured, until I bought the 7 and wanted to add it to the policy, at which point I found out. Rather than reinstate our coverage, they were going to treat us as new customers, after 14 years, at a 300% higher rate - for their F-up! (that would tend to support what ShaunO was told about starting with a new company tho'). Needless to say, that was a thank-you, NOT. I had the same coverage at a better rate than I had been getting with State Farm before I left work that afternoon, with the teacher's group plan at Morgex.

 

I'm with Silvercrest right now and am searching around to switch brokers. I always end up talking to some chinese guy who speaks horrible english. I have a hard time understanding him. I sold my 1990 and bought a 1988 RX-7. It took me almost an hour in his office trying to tell him that i bought a different year RX-7. They sent me my insurance card with the 1990 still on it rather than the 1988 twice! Then another week to mail the right one to me because for some reason they would rather mail it than have me come pick it up.
Then when i should have gotten a new insurance card for renewing my insurance they didn't send it. I was driving around like racer.ca for several months without proper insurance papers.
I haven't had any good experience with them at all.
I'm going to give State Farm a call monday.

 

Sooo Shaun, what did you finally work out?????

 

Hey S. --- you might want to call TD Meloche Monnex (Subsidiary of TD bank) My wife and I are on a group plan through SAIT (I'm a SAIT alumni), but I *believe* they have decent rates even if you're not on a group plan.

For the record, our premiums for two '91 econoboxes (Tercel and Sentra XE, to-and-from work, 60 and 80kms one way respectively), one spare car ('92 Mazda B2200, pleasure use only) and two 1st gens (storage only) comes to around $1200 per year for 1 million liability and specified perils. Our home insurance is an additional $800 through them, for a total of around 2k per year.

The above is with my clean driving record and my wife's dirty one--- she had an at-fault claim in February of 2003 after spinning out on icy roads.

We switched to M-M about a year ago. Had we stayed with Peace Hills our rates for all of the above would have been around 4K.

 

Thanks guys. State Farm and TD Meloche Monnex seem to be the consensus favourites. (I've been asking around work as well)

Gary, I haven't done anything yet. Asked the insurance company to package up all the details of my 'portfolio' and e-mail it to me. (So I can shop it around) They told me they'd have it to me by last Wednesday or Thursday. Nothing yet... I'm sure they're in no rush.

Insurance companies definitely hold all the cards. Where is does someone have a product that the law dictates you *must* subscribe to, but the producer discourages you from ever using?

It's a little like Vegas, except the odds are *really* slanted in the house's favour, And, if you 'win' you're not allowed to leave the table, and you have to increase your bet.

I'm going to have to look into some rules of thumb for optimizing insurance. Seems to me a good jumping off point would be to get the lowest possible rates by increasing the deductible. Seem reasonable? (This is assuming I can go another 26 years accident-free)

 

I'm with TD Meloche Monnex, and the rate is good.

However, they wouldn't cover me, if i had your fd. They grilled me on modifications and said they wouldn't cover me if it makes 20% over stock hp, and they if it wasn't written off, no upgrades will be covered.

I've alos heard from a friend who's wife suffered long term injuries in a car accident, that getting money from them, is like getting blood from a stone.

But, they're cheap.

 

Hmmn... Kind of a double-edged sword

I've always lived in fear of having the car written off or stolen and then not getting the true replacement value of the car. I'm not sure I want to chance it.

I've got a crack in the windshield on my winter vehicle. I think I'm going to have another unpleasant surprise when I call the insurance company tomorrow.

 

Ever had your car Appriased Shaun? If not, thats definately something to consider, even if your rate is more.

A work friend of mine just wrote off his brand new $71,000 Ford F350. The insurance payout was $48,000. Not even close to the money required to cover the lease. There are more details to the story, but to sum it up finanially, the insurance company felt thats what his truck was worth.


Now imagine your Priceless FD burning down in a garage fire, having a drunk driver hit it parked or what have you, and your insurance company gives you the cost of the liscense plate in return........

 

The bigger problem is actually getting insurance once they know of all the mods!