The changing world of insurance and how to plan for rising costs. (auto property and liability)

Hey all, I am an insurance broker based out of NY and licensed in property/casualty/life and disability(i dont touch health insurance i cant answer that). I have multiple letter combinations after my name which boils down to being a certified underwriting specialist and risk advisor. I wanted to go about quickly what we can do with the current world of insurance and the rising costs. I will answer questions on why specifically these increases are happening but i wont include in the main body more than the following.

insurance is based upon the law of large numbers. a large amount of people coming together to pay a little to avoid an individual losing everything they own in the of getting hit with the realities of life. it is meant to restore you to your financial status prior to an unforseen event. it is not designed to enrich you in anyway. how people have used insurance over the years has changed drastically. using it not for catastrophic losses or events(housefire/accidentally killingsome) but rather as a matenence plan. This actually has the effect of enriching the insureds rather than just restoring you to your previous state. An example, you have a 30 year roof that "looks fine" but in reality doesnt withstand the same hailstorm that a new roof would. You file a claim, pay the deductible and you get a brand new roof to replace the old one. Thats coming out financially ahead. Auto is different thats more about people as a whole are just driving more carelessly(phone, not looking, driving unsafely due to being in a rush). Basically the raw data is companies are in danger of failing or not being able to follow state laws and if something doesnt change then its going to be harder and harder to find insurance that you can reasonably afford. and then if something happens youll either need to pay out of pocket or your lifestyle has to change and your plan goes out the window.

genrally speaking if you dont or cant pay for an accident/crime commited to you/nature happening/making a mistake. then you should have insurance. The problem being the more claims you have the harder it is to get more insurance. i have seen it all fyi.

The best defense against raising rates are no claims, Claims on home is weighted way way more than claims on auto. If you have want specific property insured(rings,collectibles) ask about getting a separate inland marine policy to protect them. If you bundle that with your home coverage if you lose it break it or it gets stolen it wont count as a home claim. Driving safer, taking your time, if something breaks or wears out fixing it. Thinking about whats the worst thing that could happen and thinking about how to best avoid it.

Credit Score is not the end all be all of insurance UW. An example is Geicos ideal credit score is in the 600s (unverified but what ive seen). Each company is going to have very different criteria to what kind of business they want and the specifics are proprietary information. The most important thing is to have a reputable broker with access to multiple companies that if something changes in your life they can reshop it to get you the best price possible. Their is no way to guess how an individual will rate you just need to try as many as possible.

kids getting on the policy will generally kill your insurance but their are ways to lower that check with your broker the discounts related to youthful drivers(they may need to take a driving class but it will save you more than what the class costs) this veries state to state.

Cystomer retention is another big one. being with the same company for multiple years with possible different milestones for example in my state that if youre with them for five years they add on a 20% discount. So if youre on year four and they raise your rates a little bit it might be unwise to switch. 3-5-10 are usually the big milestones.

things on the home distance to firestation/source of water matter. Age of home(some companies like older some like newer). pools chimneys state of property all matter. Keeping your house updated is the key to not only preventing claims but also stopping from getting dropped altogether.

Newer technology matters. Water/temperature sensors that alert you of problems, security systems that notify emergency responders. having a mini fire extinguisher, having a generator etc. each company will offer different discounts and different rates. this goes for auto and home. always double check to see how to qualify for the most discounts.

Even if you arent looking but making renovations on the house. Let your insurance guy know. if you bought a home with a 30 year old roof and get it replaced. or a new water heater they can help get your premium down and is factored into the decision of whether a company is going to drop you.

this is a general overview of how to lower claims, lower chances of cancellations, and keep your premium down. Obviously you all want the best price possible, or why would you be on this subreddit. Shopping around is always okay and healthy and can be worthwhile but just remember companies can see how often you switch insurance carriers. The process to sign on a new client is expensive and is a lot of hidden work behind the scenes. Generally companies lose money on each person they sign on until around year 3. So if you do switch every year to save a couple bucks that is going to impact your options.

I hope this helps enlighten a little bit. again their is so much more i couldnt discuss. ive literally taken 400 hours of classes on this and i still learn new things every day. if you have more specific questions i can try and answer as many as I can. Stay safe guys and protect your self. The world is a dangerous place.