If you enter any sort of contact information, yes, they'll contact you (it's in the fine print of all those types of sites). I've never used one, though. We're USAA members and would never change. :)

Check out Amica. They were great with being on top of and calling with the progress for my fender bender and didn't raise our rates because the claim was under $1500.

Getting quotes for car insurance is as easy a sending a copy of your insurance card to a few companies.

I'm not such a fan of USAA insurance. I switched a homeowner's policy to them six or seven years ago for a 10 percent premium reduction. The second year's premium was double the first. I made several calls, asking if they'd made a mistake and they assured me that no, the new premium was correct.

I switched back to my old insurance company and even with annual increases, the cost is still well below what USAA proposed.

We had State Farm for home and auto (same family agency) for over 30 years. I was only upset with their service once about 12 years ago and was going to switch but never got around to it. I was noting in the past few years that our cars were getting older but our premiums were going up. I shopped around and Amica was $700 less per year and highly rated.

When DH called to cancel State Farm they offered a huge discount. He was livid. He told them "I've been your customer for over 30 years and you only offer me a discount now that I'm canceling? As a loyal customer, you should have offered me this discount a long time ago!"

We use Esurance for our vehicles. Apples to apples we can't find lower rates for our particular vehicles. Plus we have never had a problem with them when filing claims. Claims have always been handed professionally, promptly and with full disclosure. We even used their repair centers which is normally not in my DNA to do. But again I experienced excellent work and customer service. Esurance (Allstate) really went to bat for me when someone lied about the circumstances of the accident we were involved in.

I only had a problem one time. A female claims rep (early in the process, info gatherer) simply could not understand what a rear quarter panel on a pickup truck was. I tried to explain it to her in every way possible. In our family the almost 3 and almost 5 year old understand this. It took the estimator and the body shop sending pictures to clear it up. LOL

Last year I did an online comparison quote and my home phone was BLOWN up for weeks. I won't do that again.

I agree with what a lot of you are saying. I was a claims adjuster for AAA & USAA a long time ago. I don't have insurance with either and I had an employee discount.

The Hartford has the highest Medpay and Liability limits in the auto industry, with low premiums by comparison. On the other hand bundling for me is a problem. I live against the woods and my zipcode isn't insurable for some(Progressive for instance).

I'm not opposed to calling each individually. I definitely wont be doing one of those online type comparisons, thanks for the heads up.

What about an insurance broker? Or do you think they steer you to certain companies? I do know someone that works for an insurance broker but they medical, auto and life insurance. Or would I go with a broker who only does auto insurance?

Insurance brokers are the middle man. Yes, they have to get paid to sell someone elses product. The few I was steered towards wanted me to come to their office, sit down and this means a commitment of time on my part. They think this is more likely to close the deal. Uh....no. The lower price would have closed the "deal".

When you shop online how is it that you can know what your actual need is? Have you done a financial analysis to be sure that your securing enough coverage? I sell for one of the big Illinois companies. Some of our customers come to us after having done a quote online. They are generally missing the most basic of coverage's. I've been licensed to sell for 20 years, I renew my license every 2 years and take continuing education in order to do so. If you looking for state minimums and liability only perhaps online may be enough but at state minimums have you protected your assets and do you know how much they are? There's nothing wrong with going to a broker, yes I sell for that Illinois company but I don't have their products protecting me, my cars and my home. I use a broker who represents a company that I new I wanted to cover us. The company I right for does not have earthquake coverage in Wisconsin. I wasn't going to insure my home without it. In the area it is a risk, we've already had 3 tremors in my area since moving there in 2005. It's worth your time to go sit with someone, review your current coverage's and know your risk. You may not save any money but you will gain some knowledge afterall, how many of us can afford to self insure?

Over-insuring is not fiscally wise either. An example would be to continue full collision coverage or comprehensive on an older vehicle whose value is so low it would simply be salvaged. Better to self insure except for liability and uninsured driver coverage.

I've been a homeowner in Earthquake Country for 41 years-three different houses and an investment property. I've never had earthquake insurance and am still happy with that approach.

Referring to online comparison, using your current coverage to compare with other companies. Doesn't matter though because I don't plan on going that route. I'll call the insurance companies directly to get prices and go off what my coverage currently is so that its compared accurately.

Don't do it!!! It's not just all the phone calls and emails, they sell the Info as well to other businesses.

After a substantial increase for no obvious reasons, I decided to shop around this past year. For the first time ever, I used an Insurance Broker and I have to say, it was a GREAT experience. They represented several companies and between our house and autos, we ended up saving about 1,000/yr for better coverage. I dropped off a copy of our current policies and didn't have to do a darn thing but answer some quick questions. Two days later, we was good to go. OH! And for what it's worth, they do not work off of commissions.

We had Amica for several years. They weren't bad but every year they had substantial increases.

If the broker isn't paid by the insurance company getting the business, how are they paid?

watchmelol....it's not that simple. My 3 vehicles are really old and I have full coverage on 2 of them....so I can have Med-pay, uninsured motorist coverage, an umbrella policy and $100 glass replacement that doesn't raise my rates no matter how often I use it.

I had a long addendum to my earlier post about earthquake insurance in my prior post but decided to cut it and not post it. The shorter version that as a California resident for 66 years where we get tremors/ quakes regularly, I have never had earthquake insurance nor do I know anyone who has. I don't know a single suburban homeowner who has ever sustained a loss due to the quakes. Even those who live near to places that sustained major infrastructure damage during the largest quake in my lifetime, the Loma Prieta.

Three tremors in 12 years in an area not even on the geological radar as being earthquake prone? There is a reason the companies don't offer the insurance. Buying it is burning money for no reason. Possibly better spent to address the earthquake anxiety issue.

I've had USAA for about 42 years. Their rates are always excellent and I usually have a good experience with claims. They are "member-owned" so at the end of the year I get a share of the profits - usually between $300-450. Since I've been a customer so long, I also get a Senior Bonus which is several hundred dollars. It would take a LOT to make me quit them. I have noticed that their rates have gone up since they changed their membership criteria from "officers-only" to both officers and enlisted. Enlisted tend to be younger and often are more impetuous and not as good drivers as officers. I know - a broad generalization but there WAS an actuarial reason for that long-standing policy - just not PC anymore.

Nicole I can get uninsured motorist coverage and med/liability without full collision and comprehensive on my policy. I never take glass coverage. It's not something I need. Getting a window or wind shield replaced is not that big a deal for me. Lower than my deductible. Each vehicle we own is insured according to it's specific needs. Right now both are new and newish. But we drive our vehicles into the ground so when blue book value drops to a low it is silly to keep full coverage on the vehicle.

watchmelol....a Land Rover windshield is $800-$1200. Full coverage is an additional $200 per year. Med pay is for the holder of the policy. Only offered on full coverage.

Check your state Insurance Department website. They may have price comparisons online.

Beats me, but I was told their pay is not "commission driven" (maybe by the insured?) and I was shown the rates as a comparison, we're happy.

I remember when we switched to Amica the agent was able to pull up on his computer what our coverage was with State Farm and gave us a quote for like coverage.

The commission is included in the premium you pay unless this is unlike any insurance I ever heard of. For an agent or broker to suggest otherwise is less than honest.

One thing you need to factor in is bundling discounts and discounts for being with a company for a while.