All too often when choosing insurance people tend to select an Illinois homeowners insurance company based on price alone. And while price is definitely a big consideration (who doesn’t want to find the best price out there?), good value for your IL homeowners insurance consists in more than finding the cheapest premium.
Along with price, other factors need to be considered: the reliability of the Illinois homeowners insurance company, an insurance company’s longevity, and finally, whether or not you feel comfortable working with a particular company. Most homeowners insurance companies in Illinois have employees with good people skills, but as in all fields, there may be certain individuals you would rather not work with.
Find the Illinois home insurance company where you feel the agents will go the extra mile to help you find just the right policy to meet your specific needs. To search and compare offers from top companies across the state of Illinois simply enter your information into our free Illinois homeowners insurance quote tool at the top of the page.
The Regulation Of Illinois Homeowners Insurance Companies
Illinois has a state agency that is responsible to regulate insurance companies, agents, and agencies throughout the state; it can provide a wealth of information concerning any insurance entity with which you are interested in doing business. It is called the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation of Insurance. From this agency you can find out if your company is licensed to sell home insurance in Illinois.
Making sure that your agency or company is licensed in Illinois is important because unlicensed companies are not required to adhere to state insurance laws. Being unlicensed in Illinois also means that a company cannot be a part of the Illinois Insurance Guarantee fund. This Fund protects policy holders in the event that an insurance company goes bankrupt. When a disaster hits an area in which a large number of homes are affected, the high volume of claims on an individual insurance company can put them into bankruptcy.
Another drawback to purchasing insurance from an unlicensed company is that you cut off a major avenue of help if you have difficulties settling a claim with your insurance company. The Division of insurance has a certain amount of regulatory control over licensed insurance companies and can assist consumers when they experience problems with a licensed company. It has little or no authority over an unlicensed company.
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation division of Illinois is also where you need to go to find out a company’s complaint ratio. Statistics are kept on file that will document the number of complaints filed in regard to settling a customer’s claim. Records of the number of complaints are kept on file for recent years. Comparing the complaint ratio of one company to another will give you an idea of how responsive a company is in meeting the needs of its policy holders.
No one wants to fight tooth and nail to get an insurance company to pay up for what was promised in a policy or even worse have a company that does not pay its claims. If you are having difficulty contacting your insurance company the Illinois Division of Insurance also provides the company’s address and phone number.
Choosing A Reliable Illinois Homeowners Insurance Company
The Illinois division of Insurance provides much information about homeowners insurance companies in Illinois, but it does not actually rate their performance. Private rating services grade insurance companies based on financial data they collect. However, each rating service bases their analysis on different criteria. It is important to know what that criteria is in order to understand what the rating indicates. In comparing two rating service’s analyses’ of a company there may be a disparity in regard to the financial appraisal of the insurance company in which you are interested.
Ratings can be obtained by mail, phone, or Internet. Four of the most widely used rating services are A.M. Best, Fitch, Moody’s, and Standard and Poor’s. These rating firms provide unlimited ratings via their websites, but usually limit the number of free ratings given over the phone to 3-5 per call. Some rating services offer written reports on an insurance company and these are available for a fee ranging from $5 to $45 (an in depth report on the company).
When checking the rating of a particular insurance company, don’t forget to look at a company’s ratings for previous years. Comparing recent ratings will give you a better overall picture of the company’s financial standing.
Look once again to the Illinois Department of Financial and professional Regulation division of insurance to find the length of time a company has been licensed. Although you may appreciate the American Spirit and admire the entrepreneurial spirits of those beginning new companies or recently meeting the requirements to obtain licensed status, longevity is definitely an asset that needs to be considered. Reliability is not only measured by performance but also by time.
Finding The Best Illinois Homeowners Insurance Company
With the wealth of information available through the Internet and even on the pages of a phone book, don’t forget to ask people for recommendations. Those who’ve already had experience with filing a homeowner’s claim in Illinois could point you to a company that was courteous and knowledgeable or steer you away from one that was less than helpful.
Compare Quotes From Multiple Illinois Homeowners Insurance Companies Now!
Now that you understand some of the criteria for choosing a top notch homeowners insurance company in Illinois then use our free Illinois home insurance finder at the top of the page to get started comparing quotes from top companies side by side now!