Time for Your Insurance Renewal? What You Need to Know
Taking out insurance policies and ensuring that you have the correct insurance cover is crucial to protecting the important things in your life.
Insurance is available to protect all the valuable things in life, including your health, your business, your automobile, and your home.
Insurance offers the reassurance that when things go wrong, you are covered.
Without insurance, if something goes wrong, all the most important parts of your life could be at risk.
This includes your health and livelihood, and material possessions such as your car, and the contents of your home.
Not having any insurance coverage, or having inadequate insurance coverage can have a devastating impact on your life.
When your insurance renewal is due to come along, it is vital to take the time to give your renewal some attention.
With so much at stake, it is more than worth spending a little time ensuring that you have the right level of coverage and at the most affordable price.
Policy Renewals
Insurance renewals typically happen annually, in most cases, 12 months after you first took out the insurance policy.
One year is the standard duration of an insurance policy for most types of insurance, including automobile insurance, home insurance, medical insurance, and business insurance.
When you take out an insurance policy, your policy documents will state a start date on them.
The start date is the day from which your insurance policy is valid.
The document will also specify a date that your current policy expires, and your insurance renewal is due.
It is crucial to be aware of these dates and to know when to expect your insurance renewal so you can make sure that you, your business, and your belongings have the appropriate level of insurance cover at all times.
If your policy lapsed, and you haven’t renewed it, you would be unable to make a claim to recover costs.
During the 12 month duration of your policy, your insurance policy usually remains unchanged.
It is rare for a policy to change over the policy term unless you have changes to your circumstances.
This means that throughout the terms of the plan, the amount you pay shouldn’t change, and your level of cover should remain the same as agreed when the policy was first taken out.
Typically, you shouldn’t need to think too much about your policy at all unless you need to make a claim, or your circumstances change.
What to Do When Your Insurance Renewal is Due
Around four to six weeks before your insurance is due for renewal, you should receive a reminder either through the mail or via email.
The reminder will let you know the exact date that your current policy is due to expire.
A declaration page will also be included with your renewal documents.
You will need to read through the declaration page thoroughly for two reasons.
First, to make sure that all the personal information contained within it relating to yourself, your circumstances, and your level of cover remains correct.
Second, your declaration page can be used for comparing insurance policies when you are shopping around for a quote.
Comparing policies will help you choose the policy most suited to your needs and at the most affordable cost.
Renewal time is your opportunity to adjust your policy to suit your needs, and it is also the best time to shop around for the most competitive deals.
It is advisable to shop around for quotes before your insurance renewal is due, as you don’t want to leave any gaps where you are not covered.
Speaking to an independent insurance agency is one of the best ways to find a policy that provides the right level of cover and at the best possible price.
Unlike going direct to an insurance company, an insurance agent will be able to offer you a personal service and a range of policies so that you can select the option that best suits your requirements.
Insurance Renewals and Price Changes
When your insurance renewal shows up in your mailbox, you may be surprised to find that the cost of your policy has changed from the previous year.
Noticing a rate increase on your renewal quote is frustrating, especially if you feel that it isn’t justified.
There are many reasons that can impact the cost of your insurance. For example, your auto insurance renewal costs may increase if you were involved in an at-fault accident during the previous year of your cover, or even if you have added an extra driver to your policy.
For businesses, insurance costs may increase if you take on more employees, or you stock higher value goods or equipment.
External factors can also influence price hikes on insurance renewals.
For example, if your home insurance costs increase, this may be because there has been a rise in the number of claims made for burglaries in your area.
In this situation, your insurance company may increase the perceived level of risk of insuring a home in your neighborhood, and the price of your insurance renewal would reflect this.
Using an insurance agent to shop around for your quote can help you lower your insurance rates, and you may be able to save money on your automatic renewal quote.
Changes Your Insurer Needs to Know About
There may be times during the duration of your insurance policy that you need to make changes to it.
It is crucial that you inform your insurer right away about changes that affect your policy.
Otherwise, your policy may be invalidated.
It is vital to let your insurer know about changes to your personal information such as a change of name through marriage, or a new address.
Informing your insurer of changes in your circumstance is also crucial to keep your policy valid.
Let your insurer know right away if you change jobs, your medical history changes, or you have children, as these can all affect your policy.
If it’s time for your insurance renewal and you want to chat with us about your policy, contact us here.