[speeder]

Originally Posted by Evans, Marv

Every once in a while, I check around for auto insurance rates. I'm a veteran, so qualify for USAA. I have car insurance through Costco (used to be Connect but now American Family Insurance). The last time I checked with USAA, the Costco insurance was about half the price of USAA and other companies. I've had good experience with claims also. Since it was such thrifty insurance, I thought claim payment could be a hassle. I've had two claims, one for a windshield, & the other for rodent damage. They settled almost instantly and fairly.

That's interesting info, Marv. I do not have a Costco membership but maybe I should reconsider that if their insurance is cheaper. I've been with AAA forever and when I shopped them against State Farm, the SF was considerably more expensive for apples/apples coverage. The AAA was getting very expensive even with a clean driving record and no claims, USAA is 50% of cost with (slightly) better coverage.

Originally Posted by A930Rocket

Do you guys have all of your insurance bundled… home, auto, umbrella with Costco or USAA?

I did have everything bundled w/ AAA but the renters insurance, (alternative to home owner's for renters), turned out to be worthless. Here is why... my truck got stolen back in 2021 and eventually recovered by LAPD. It was moderately damaged and everything inside the cab and large tool storage box in bed was gone. I lost a lot of valuable tools and equipment. AAA was actually about to pay out a very fair settlement for the truck when it got recovered but of course did not have to. They gave me a fair check for the damage done by thieves but for the missing contents, I had to file that with my renters policy. If I owned my home, it would have been with the home owners policy.

I thought it was a little strange since I had comprehensive coverage on the truck but whatever. It turned out that they wanted receipts or other evidence of everything I lost, which of course I did not have. Who has receipts for $1k worth of Snap-on tools and a Stihl chainsaw that was in the box, etc.? Most of that stuff I had for years and I was going off memory as to what was even in there. I understand that they need to protect themselves against fraud and made-up claims but what would stop a dishonest person from claiming a bunch of stuff w/ receipts that wasn't actually stolen? At some point, they need to either believe you or not.

This is where it gets stranger. I did not have photographic proof or receipts, so I had to drop the claim and just eat it. The next time I renewed my insurance, they denied me the renters insurance because I had filed a claim. I asked, "what claim?" They looked it up and it was the PU truck dropped claim. Even though I dropped it, they counted it as a claim. It was also news to me that if you ever had a paid claim, they would immediately cancel you. What a racket.

The moral of the story is to make a video on your phone of everything in your house or apartment, plus valuable tools in garage or truck, they would have apparently accepted that as proof.

Originally Posted by sc_rufctr

(From Australia)

As a veteran I qualify for reduced health care insurance only (my ex wife and kids also qualify).

My cars & house are with one company, "Shannons". They're one of the few insurance companies that insure classic cars.

IMO Like everything else with insurance you get what you pay for.

Your last sentence is true often in life but with insurance, I have found it not to always apply. Sometimes identical coverage can vary widely in price. You have to ask around online, (this forum is a good place), to find out how a particular company services claims. My one time family fortune, (lost way before I was born), was made in insurance. My great-grandfather was a math professor who invented the tables that were used to create group coverage insurance, believe it or not. He was a brilliant guy and became a founder of a large company that still exists today, 100 years later. Insurance is a racket...the house never loses.