Welcome to 2025! May the odds ever be in your favor. This year is already in full swing! I’m truly struggling to remember to type 2025 instead of 2024, but I’m determined to get there! Whether you’re a new year’s resolution type of person or not, my hope is that this year is full of achieved goals, successes and joy for you.
As we continue in this new year, our team wants to take a few moments to give you some tips and answers to your personal insurance needs. One of our board members always tells us, “To be unclear is to be unkind,” and what better what to start the year than with clear communication concerning your polices. Buckle up buttercup!
1. The BIGGEST question of 2022, 2023, 2024, and I’m 99.987444% sure in 2025 : Why did my premium increase? There are multiple facets of a premium increase. It’s true that every carrier in the United States is taking a rate increase, no one is immune. Some carrier increases are as low as 20% and others as high as 52%. That’s step 1. I also encourage you to consider these other options: the increase of cost of building materials (increases your dwelling coverage), the amount of natural disasters such as wildfires/tornado/earthquake/hail/wind/water damage, as well as medical costs increasing which increases liability premiums. Another nugget to take away is to ask yourself did I file a claim last year? Did I move? (each geographical area is rated differently) Did I add a car? Did I add a driver? These all contribute to your premium increases.
2. What is included in my premium? Your premium includes the item(s), property(s), people covered by the insurance carrier. Homes, rentals, vehicles, scheduled jewelry, boats, RVs, trailers, campers, motorcycles, household members are all included. Liability, your responsibility to people outside your vehicle or those who step onto your property are included. A base home or auto policy gives very little coverage. Your agent is always looking out for your best interests, and offers additional coverages for your policy that will give you the most comprehensive coverage. State minimums will not even cover an auto accident. We don’t want you to have the minimum amount and run the multiple risks associated with terrible coverage.
3. What’s a deductible? A deductible is the monetary amount that you and the insurance carrier have agreed that you will pay in the event of a loss, before they pay the balance of the loss or repair. For example, you have a $2500 homeowners deductible. Your Dwelling coverage is $300,0000. If your home burned down and needs to be rebuilt, you are responsible for the first $2,500 of that $300,000. In the past, home deductibles were allowed to be as low at $250! Over the years, insurance carriers have steadily been increasing that amount. Most carriers today require a minimum homeowners deducible of $2500.
4. What discounts are available on my home? Every insurance carrier offers different discounts. Some common discounts are updating your roof/HVAC, empty nest, increasing your deductible, paid in full payment plan, EFT/ACH payment plan, security alarm system, automatic generator, water shut off system etc.
5. What discounts are available on my auto? Every insurance carrier offers different discounts. Some common discounts are low mileage/pleasure use, increasing your deductibles, paid in full, EFT/ACH payment plan, security alarm, car safety features etc.
6. What discounts are available for my youthful driver? Every insurance carrier offers different youthful driver discounts. Some common discounts are a good student discount (3.0 GPA or higher), drivers ed training, GPS Monitoring (an app such as Life 360), a plug in device to monitor your driving for 90 days, and some carriers offer a specific driving course thru that carrier.
7. How can I pay my bill? The best way to pay your bill is to download the app from your carrier, if available, that way you have 24/7 access to your billing information and policies. You can normally pay your bill through the app! A large majority of carriers also have an online presence where you can create your customer account and be able to pay directly there as well. Our team has found that those who enroll in automatic payments, through EFT/debit or credit card, have far less frequent payment issues. Prefer to mail in a check (no cash)? Please make all payments out to your insurance company directly, not Synergy. When we receive checks, we mail them straight to the insurance company. Keep in mind that sometimes the post office is slow, so make sure you mail your check to your insurance company in a more timely manner. You may also call the carrier directly, or our agency and we will get you to the billing department.
8. How do I file a claim? First and foremost, we hope you’re ok! If it’s after our agency hours, please call your insurance company directly. During agency hours, please call our personal lines team at 574-231-6596, and our claims team is happy to help with the process. We will file a claim with the insurance carrier, and you will be assigned an adjuster. Throughout the claim, you will mainly work with the adjuster (claims rep from your carrier), and we will assist to make sure everything between you two flows smoothly. If repairs are needed, please keep in mind that your insurance company may want receipts or photos of completed repairs so keep those records as well.
Thanks for hanging in there! We understand that you may have more questions or you want to discuss any of the above questions further. Our team is ready to assist you as best we can, we just wanted you to be aware of a lot of factors that are impacting the insurance industry and trickle down to your policies. We want you to have the best experience with our Synergy Team and we look forward to helping you navigate your policies when you need us.