Autopay phenomenon. What are you guys seeing?

[LostDollar]

Any chance this billing issue is not specifically being done by the carriers? Is it possibly the issue of the software vendors they use that seem to have a monopoly on the business? Most carriers have paid tens of millions of dollars for these new & improved systems to end up having them be less user friendly to users & cause way more billing issues of which many can't even be explained. Would that explain it more than thinking carriers are colluding to cause billing problems to allow them to stop collecting premiums they need to pay bills & claims

I made a post earlier this week and then deleted it. With your comment above I will put the gist of the post back.

I am a resident of Kansas. I do not use autopay. I have had Safeco Home and Auto coverage for several years. I don't remember filing any claims under either coverage. (We have had one or two comprehensive auto coverage needs, but they were less than the deductible so I told my wife we just needed to pay for repairs and not worry about insurance.) I am currently able to pay my annual insurance bills in one annual payment.

with those parameters,

My Safeco renewal communications for 2024 happened just as they always have, in a timely and orderly manner. I got the auto coverage cards and the new home policy declaration pages. A week or so later I got the notice that my bill was due (actually coming up due). I was able to login and pay the bills easily. I did not have any reason to experience any sense of unease about the process.

So my consumer experience with Safeco seems to run counter to what OP is experiencing with some of his clients. I don't know if it would have been different had I had a lot of claims in the preceeding years. I don't know if it would have been different if I lived in another state. I don't know if it would have been different if I was actually trying to use a quarterly or monthly autopay process.

 

[Gulliver]

Tread lightly with your carriers folks. Lots of agency terminations going on country wide.

You are correct. As some others have stated, carriers are trying to shrink policy counts. It seems absurd, but this is the easiest way to fix their capacity issues. Most carriers are looking for a reason to get rid of a few agents, not just individual policies. Tread very lightly.

 

[marindependent]

I have always hated escrowed payments.

Me too

AND... I tell clients that is THEIR responsiblity to confirm that payment is made on time. Do not depend on the bank, do not depend on the insurance agent. It is your legacy rated insurance policy, nobody elses. Call the bank to confirm payment sent, Call the Insurer to confirm receipt. If that sounds like too much work, take it off Bank Pay and Pay it yourself.

 

[Policy Monkey]

Interesting. In Florida (and apparently only in Florida), any lender billed home policies have a statutorily mandated 90 day grace period, but not for insured billed policies. Most carriers will give between 15 and 30 days for insured billed, but not required by law.

 

[Hawaii Agent]

you should have so many carriers that you shouldn't care if you loose one. People on this forum specifically depend on way way to few carriers. You should have admitted markets, E/S carriers, captive programs, MGAs, you need EVERYTHING! Stop trying to make them happy and build a relationship with one or two. It doesn't work and I've never seen any evidence of it working. You need to be writing with everyone and anyone.

@MIGA1626 try living in HI, the options are VERY limited. We try to get contracted with others (impossible), even E&S brokers don't want to write in HI (RT pulled out a few years back, hoping they'll start writing again soon). Our only reliable personal lines E&S broker said she's retiring because the demand is so great, but she gets no support...FML. This market is going to kill me.