Changing Car Insurance Companies

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There are many different reasons you may be considering switching your car insurance policy, but there are also quite a number of things that you need to consider before you do make that switch from the old one to the new one.

First of all, you need to make very certain that your new policy is already active and working for you before you do make your switch. Having written confirmation of this coverage will enable you to make your switch with confidence. Using email or faxes, insurance companies can now deliver proof of insurance fairly quickly and without delays.

Once you do have that proof of insurance, you can request that your old company cancel your coverage. You have to be careful to make sure that you are providing the old insurance carrier with your new policy information. This is because insurance companies are required to notify the Department of Motor Vehicles if there is a gap or loss of coverage on your part. Giving them the new name and number they don't end up notifying the DMV- and this can save you a lot of grief later on.

Depending on the policy that is replaced you may still yet have some work to do before you can really be sure that everything is properly set into motion. If you changed carriers at the end of your car insurance term, it is usually not all that different from filing for a renewal. You will likely have to obtain a new invoice for your premium payment, new policy ID cards and make sure that your policy terms and conditions are correct. However, if you did change insurance mid policy, this may require a bit more legwork to do correctly. Firstly, make sure that you get a cancellation endorsement. Simply canceling your policy and letting the old insurer know is not sufficient- many people do this and then find that they have a bill for the next premium anyway, so make sure that you get this in writing.

Toss out your old insurance ID cards and replace them with the new proof of insurance. When the old insurance policy has not run its full term, the cards you have will show the current policy term. This can really be beneficial if there is an accident so you are sure to be using the correct cards should something happen.

Also, make sure that you understand what your old insurance carrier does about unearned premiums- sometimes, insurance companies charge for short rate cancellation factor and this will be a percentage of your unearned premium more often than not.

Switching car insurance policies is generally easier than it may look here. As long as you are certain to make sure that everything you have from proof of insurance with the new company, to proof of cancellation of the old is in writing, you should be fine. Making the transition generally doesn't involve any sort of lapse in coverage and usually goes smoothly for those who have decided that they prefer one company or carrier to another.

Thanks To : Insurance, Auto Insurance