THE RISING COST OF INSURANCE AND HOW TO COPE

There is no denying that insurance costs across the board are beginning to rise. For the past five years insurance costs kept on diving and diving, dipping lower and lower than I have ever seen before in the marketplace. Insurance carriers were writing risks at alarmingly low rates that I knew would not be able to be sustained. One of my previous bosses used to call those carriers “the flavor of the month”. And boy was he right.

Now fast forward to this year. Carriers are beginning to tighten up their reigns and become more
strict on what they will accept and what they will decline. Minimum premiums are beginning to rise again and you most likely are seeing more carrier declination’s from your broker than quotes. Some carriers that flourished during these tough times are at “capacity” and not writing any new business. Ahhhh, the flavor of the month. In turn, some of my clients are having to now scramble, move carriers yet again and take a substantial premium increase due to choosing those insurance carriers.

A few things to note during these times.

It pays to stick with an insurance company that is established and not premature to the marketplace. Your premiums may be a bit higher than the “flavor of the month” insurance carrier. But if you can afford the few extra dollars, stick with the more secure, proven carrier. You will save money in the long run.