AUTO INSURANCE 2009 Company of the Year

"We’re grateful to the Indiana Big ‘I’ for choosing State Auto to receive this honor,” said State Auto Chairman and CEO Bob Restrepo. "Our association with Indiana’s independent agents dates to our founding in 1921, and to this day, Indiana remains one of our most significant states of operation. Working with our agents, we’ve produced a track record of financial security and stability, along with products and service that benefit our tens of thousands of Indiana policyholders.”

The State Auto Insurance Group has been named 2009 Company of the Year by the Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana (IIAI). According to the IIAI, this award recognizes the company that most demonstrates a strong commitment to the independent insurance agency system in Indiana.

State Auto received high scores for its commitment to growth in Indiana; the uniqueness of products, value added services and programs offered to agencies; a strong, long-term marketing plan for Indiana; and the quality of its Indiana staff.
The State Auto Group, which includes State Automobile Mutual Insurance Company, also scored high for its stability in the marketplace, and for being one of 13 property and casualty companies to have maintained an A+ rating from A.M. Best each year since 1954. State Auto’s strong commitment to and support of the independent insurance agency system, along with its support of IIAI, also delivered high scores.

Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana (IIAI)

The Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana is a trade association representing over 800 independent insurance agencies in the State of Indiana. The association was formed so insurance agents and insurance consumers have a unified voice in government and can share common goals and information. Among the numerous services IIAI provides to its membership are over 100 continuing education seminars across the state annually, offering over 30 property and casualty programs, and over 20 Life/Accident/Health self study programs. IIAI’s education opportunities provide increased knowledge and insurance license continuing education credits to independent insurance agents in Indiana.

State Auto Insurance Group

State Automobile Mutual Insurance Company, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, is a super regional property and casualty insurance holding company. The company is primarily engaged in writing personal and business insurance products exclusively through independent insurance agencies in 33 states and is proud to be a Trusted Choice® company partner. State Auto Mutual is part of the State Auto Group. The State Auto Group is rated A+ (Superior) by the A.M. Best Company and consists of State Automobile Mutual, State Auto Property & Casualty, State Auto National, State Auto Ohio, State Auto Wisconsin, State Auto Florida, Milbank, Farmers Casualty, Meridian Security, Meridian Citizens Mutual, Beacon National, Beacon Lloyds, Patrons Mutual and Litchfield Mutual Fire.

State Auto Mutual also writes specialty insurance and workers’ compensation products through its Rockhill insurance subsidiaries. The Rockhill insurance subsidiaries, rated A- (Excellent) by the A.M. Best Company, write business on a non-admitted basis in 49 states and the District of Columbia, and are licensed on an admitted basis in 42 states and the District of Columbia. Additional information on State Auto Mutual can be found online at http://www.StateAuto.com/.
Read More..

SAVING ON AUTO INSURANCE

If you want to save on car insurance you can do yourself a big favor by talking to as many auto insurance companies as possible. The more options you have for yourself, the better chance you have of one of those options giving you a good price. Year long rates can vary by as much as $1,000. If you haven't yet purchased a car and cant decide what car to get, see what premiums you'll have for each. Generally, the more powerful and expensive the car is, the higher your car insurance costs will be. Furthermore, the more safety features a car has, the less the premium will be. One of the most popular ways to save money on car insurance is by increasing your deductible. Your deductible is how much money you pay out of your own pocket to fix your car before the insurer pays for the rest of the damages. You just don't want to open yourself to too much riskSection 3171 of the Act allows injured policy holders to access the full benefit of their own insurance plan, prohibiting insurance companies from deducting the amount of insurance carried by the negligent driver in the accident. In addition, health insurance companies cannot deny coverage for medical care if medical expense coverage is included in one’s auto insurance. The result being that injured individuals may have access to a greater amount of financial coverage for medical costs due to injuries.“These new laws are extremely important for people injured in car accidents as they can have a big impact on the settlement an injured person may be eligible to receive,” said Steve Eisenberg, Wisconsin personal injury attorney and one of the founders of Eisenberg Law Offices, S.C., of Madison, Wisconsin. “You need a lawyer that understands the new laws and how to maximize your recovery.”The budget also mandates that insurance companies will no longer be able to deny coverage for hit-and-run accidents because physical contact did not occur. This gives injured drivers access to uninsured motorist coverage if they can provide independent, third party evidence of the accident.New minimum coverage amounts have been set for auto liability insurance, requiring that policies must cover “$50,000 because of bodily injury to or death of one person in any one accident and $100,000 because of bodily injury or death of two or more persons in any one accident, and $15,000 because of injury to or destruction of property of others in any one accident.”Other changes include the requirement of all liability policies to include underinsured motorist coverage if at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident. Along with the new insurance mandate is the repeal of a 14-year-old law that banned insured drivers from stacking auto insurance policy limits for uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.
Eisenberg Law Offices, S.C. provides superior representation in Wisconsin personal injury, criminal defense, family and divorce, drunk driving, and civil litigation cases. They have over 25 years of experience representing injured victims of auto, truck and other vehicle collisions and have won millions for their clients in Wisconsin personal injury cases.

Read More..