More Insurance Shopping
I have to pay both health insurance and car insurance for next month, but both of those rates were based upon my residence in Illinois whereas I’ll be moving to Virginia in less than a week.
My first call was to my Blue Cross/Blue Shield (BCBS) of Illinois provider and, it didn’t take long for them to tell me that I wont have to change coverage and I can continue paying my health insurance to BCBS of Illinois. The main problem: My rate went up 50% per month just because of switching locations. I don’t really understand the big price increase, because my lifestyle hasn’t changed I’m just changing my residence. I don’t get how they figure out premiums but apparently my life is worth more in Virginia than it is in Illinois. I was paying $75/month but that has no increased to $120/month; I’m a little frustrated on that but I knew my cost of living was going to increase before my move regardless.
So I got the health insurance taken care of, so now its time to move on to car insurance. If you’ve kept up with this blog then you will remember that I had to shop for car insurance a month ago because of my expensive Farmer’s Insurance expiring. To recap: Farmer’s was charging me $1000 for 6 months drive my car and Progressive was just over $520. However, it seems there is a reversal in fortune. In Virginia, Progressive was going to charge me over $1000 to drive my car and Farmers $1200. Again, I don’t get it that much because my lifestyle isn’t changing; is it the fact that I have an increased chance of getting into an accident in Virginia than Illinois? I have no idea.
So now comes the annoying part: more car insurance shopping. I started with insurance.com like I did previously and I wasn’t impressed with the rates. The cheapest one was by Unitron for $780 for 6 months, almost 50 % more than I’m currently paying. I then decided to call Progressive to see what they’re quote was, as it wasn’t in the lowest tier that was returned to me from the website. I had to call a Progressive Agent in Virgina and I was given several numbers; I chose the first one and went from there.
First, let me start by saying the Agent in Alexandria was extremely nice and helpful; she seemed to really care that I got the lowest price for the best coverage. However, it was true that Progressive was going to be real expensive; but she was also an agent for Traveler’s Insurance and the entire process was an hour or more on the phone. As she plugs in the information I’m searching online for other quotes and that is where I got Farmer’s Sky High rate. Traveler’s Insurance was a little less expensive than Progressive but not as much as I’d have hoped. I then went to Geico.com.
I was real impressed with both the level of service and the cheapness in price. So much so that I really can’t believe how they can charge so little for such high coverage. At Progressive, I was getting 25/50/25 for everything (the minimum in Virginia) and it cost me $1000 for 6 months. At Geico I got 100/300/100 for everything (the standard/good rate) and it cost me $520 for 6 months!!! I don’t understand, I really don’t. I also don’t care because I’ll be paying the same amount as I am in Illinois for better coverage so I guess I’m pretty happy.
I next need to change the addresses on my rental and life insurances, as well as cancel my old Progressive policy, so that will be fun.
