Does the Insurance Agent You Buy from Make a Difference in Claims

[F350]

I sell insurance, I dont do claims.

I would probally retire if i had to handle claims.

 

[Newby]

Two weeks ago I was sitting in my office building waiting for an appointment to show up. A large school bus backs into my building and knocks a concrete block wall out.

The lady driver (yes, lady driver) has Auto Owners Insurance. I never heard of them before. The lady went and told her local agent who I know to be independent. The agent calls me and says a claims adjuster will contact me that day. He does. I snap a couple photos with my iPhone and email them to him. He says get an estimate. I do and email to him. I have the check in my hand 2-days later. No delays, no problems.

I've had claims with State Farm through the years and they don't go nearly that well.

 

[drcoastline]

Hello,
I have two quotes for my condo + car insurance. One is from State Farm and the agent selling the insurance is highly rated on Yelp but is a little about $50 more expensive than the other quote which is from AllState. I don't really know much about the agent from AllState and can't find any reviews on him. The State Farm agent I can say with high confidence is pretty passionate and hardworking about their business. I was wondering when it come to claims does this make a difference. After all the claims is going to be handled by a different department. I am most interested in ensuring that when it comes to claims I get good service and a legitimate claim is not rejected.

An agent can have an effect on your claim. In your scenario I would google the reviews of the carriers claim service before committing to either. A carriers claim service will have the most effect on your claim. Any agent/company can take your money the proof is when it is time to pay. Soem carriers pay some carriers don't.

That being said in my experience independant agents usually have a closer relationship with inspectors/adjusters than do captive agents.

If an agent has a good rleationship with an adjuster that can effect how quickly and how much you get paid.

Most captives write a policy and send the paperwork to the home office. The home office takes it form there.

It's all about relationships.