Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Home Insurance Rate -- Ways To Qualify For Cheaper

By Chimezirim Odimba

We all will be glad to get a very affordable rate provided it comes with enough coverage. But how can this be achieved? Let's explore a number of proven ways of achieving just that...

Government home insurance policies might really be costing you more than what you can now get with private companies. It used to be very tough to find insurers if you reside in certain high crime areas or places that were affected by particular natural disasters. The only way out for such people then was to go to a government agency that sold government homeowner's insurance. The case is quite different now as private insurance companies have started to cater for such regions.

Yes, government homeowner's insurance may still be your best option depending on where you live. But for people whose areas are now serviced by private insurance companies, you can expect to pay cheaper premiums than you would with government agencies.

People seem to take more preventative measures against fire than water damage by not doing routine checks on their plumbing and upgrading as regularly as they should. Of all home insurance claims, water damage is the most predominant. Consequently, proving to any insurance carrier that your home has little or no risk of water damage will get you a good discount. And do not forget to tell your agent if you upgrade your plumbing.

Ensure you have fire extinguishers in your house at very strategic points or near all fire sources. If you don't have any other place, make sure your kitchen has one. You must also make sure it's adequate for your kind and size of kitchen.

Make sure they are within easy reach and ensure they are working well. This may seem insignificant but you'll get higher rates if you don't have them in your home.

Having a smoker in your home will increase your rates substantially. And statistics have it that over 23,000 residential fire every year could be traced to smoking. Do your utmost to make sure no one smokes in your home and you'll get cheaper rates. For folks who smoke, bear in mind that you're eligible for a downward review in your rate if you quit smoking for more than twelve months. Unless your insurance provider is one of the few that do NOT use smoking as a factor in calculating your premium, change to another insurer if your rate is not reduced after this.

Don't forget: You will save a lot of money in home insurance if you obtain and compare home insurance quotes from quotes sites. You will realize savings if you visit only one of such sites. But, you'll get more by using at least five.

The plain logic in this is that you'll obtain a greater number of home insurance quotes from many more insurers. This increases your chances of receiving better rates.

While obtaining cheap rates should be of interest to you, you should be more interested in an insurance company's rating. It is one thing to pay your premiums faithfully and another thing for an insurance company to keep to the deal. It is vital that you spend time to first verify from your state's department of insurance website or its equivalent. Find out if your preferred insurer is licensed to sell home insurance in your state.

BBB, A.M Best Company, Phelps, Inc., Standard & Poor's Insurance Rating Services, Moody's Investor Services, Inc. are resources that you will do well to visit before you buy a policy from any insurer.

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