BBB® Industry of the Month: Insurance Providers

BBB® examines industries with most activity in 2009

As hurricane season approaches, your Better Business Bureau focuses on insurance providers. As an industry, insurance businesses were in the top 25 industries with inquiries to BBB|Northwest Florida.

{sidebar id=1}Your BBB|Northwest Florida is focusing on the industries that had the most activity last year and plans to highlight one each month in 2010. BBB hopes to proactively provide the information that consumers seek from BBB as the leader in advancing marketplace trust.

When looking for a trustworthy insurance provider, BBB urges consumers to take the following precautions:

Choose the right policy: Study your needs. Determine the factors that are most important to you as well as the risks that would be a damaging issue.

Choose the right provider: If you’re not searching for a specialty insurance policy, be sure you limit your search to mainstream businesses that don’t specialize in smaller niche markets to ensure an affordable policy.

Research the provider you are considering: Most states have records of how insurance providers deal with past customers. Start with bbb.org to get a free BBB Reliability Report on specific businesses and in Florida, check with the Department of Financial Services (www.myfloridacfo.com or 877-My-FL-CFO) which regulates insurance providers in Florida. Businesses that have repeated problems should be marked off your list because cheap insurance policies that cause problems are not worth the hassle when you need to make a claim.

Read all quotes and information carefully: Most providers will be up-front with you about policies. However, some may seem more affordable than others because of their thin coverage. Compare the quotes you receive as they might not have the same coverage or deductible. Certain businesses can appear cheaper at first, but prove to be a headache long-term.

Compare quotes not price: When comparing various quotes, be aware that price isn’t necessarily the primary objective. You ideally want to work with a business that has many years experience in the field. Look for a business that can assign you a representative at the firm who works with you from the get-go to create a policy to meet your needs.

Do your homework: Talk to your neighbors for recommendations. Contact your BBB for a free list of all BBB Accredited insurance providers or for a free BBB Reliability Report on a specific business.

For additional information and advice you can trust, start with bbb.org .

This information originally published on April 26, 2010.

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