Auto Insurance - DeKok Insurance Group, Inc.

Slow Down – Save Lives and Money

July 22, 2013 By Jon DeKok

How many times has the following happened to you? You’re speeding down highway 52 when you spot a MN highway patrol car. You quickly hit the brakes and slow down, relieved that you didn’t get caught … this time.

Now take a minute to think what could have happened if you hadn’t been so lucky.

First, your speeding could have hurt somebody — or yourself. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, speed is a contributing factor in more than 30% of fatal crashes and nearly 20% of non-injury accidents. That’s a big risk to take.

Second, getting a ticket could put a big hit on your wallet. Of course, that’s not nearly as important as the health and safety impacts of speeding, but in this economic climate, more and more people are watching every dime. And who wants to write a check to the state for speeding?

At DeKok Insurance Group, I want you to be safe. I also want to make sure you get a great price on the insurance coverage you need. Thankfully, easing up on that lead foot can help accomplish both.

How a ticket impacts your insurance

If you get a speeding ticket, that violation can stay on your driving record for three years or even longer. And because your driving history plays a large part in determining how much you’ll pay for insurance, the fewer tickets you have, the better.

Different carriers have different policies when it comes to checking your driving record and dealing with drivers who have violations. If you receive a ticket, and it’s your first in several years, you may not see much of an increase — depending on the severity of the offense. In fact, many states will allow you to enter a deferment program if it’s your first ticket, keeping the violation off your record if you complete a safety course and avoid further tickets.

But that second ticket (or third, or fourth …) can bring some serious financial penalties. While there are too many variables to say specifically how much each additional violation will increase your premium, it’s safe to say that the jump will be significant. And unfortunately, you can be stuck paying those higher premiums for years.

Significant violations can have a bigger impact as well. If you’re going 20 miles per hour over the limit, you’ll likely pay more than someone with a ticket for 5 mph over. Insurance companies know that speeding increases the risk of accidents, and they’ll view you as an increased risk — for good reason. In fact, if you have a serious violation, or too many tickets, your insurance carrier could drop your coverage altogether.

For younger drivers (typically under the age of 25), it’s especially important to avoid tickets, because companies already view these drivers as riskier than the general population.

And keep in mind, having a violation on your record could prevent you from receiving the lowest possible rate on your insurance.

When you slow down, not only will you avoid tickets and possible insurance hassles, but your risk of accidents will decrease. And you’ll get better gas mileage.

Jon

Email: [email protected]

Phone 507-226-8121

Better coverage. Better prices.

Jon DeKok has been serving insurance clients for over 30 years. He specializes in home, auto, umbrella, recreational vehicle, business, and life insurance. He is licensed in the state of Minnesota.

If I Borrow My Friend’s Car, Am I Covered?

July 11, 2013 By Jon DeKok

Most people have an idea of what’s covered and not covered under their various insurance policies. But at DeKok Insurance Group, we are often asked about borrowing or loaning a car.

Now that summer is here, and you might be looking to borrow your neighbor’s truck for a home-improvement project or a trip to the local landfill, we thought it was a great time to provide a little more information.

Generally, insurance coverage follows the vehicle rather than the driver. So in most instances, as long as the owner of the car has insurance, it’s covered even if someone other than the owner is driving it — as long as they have the owner’s permission.

The borrower’s insurance is considered secondary, meaning that in the event of an accident, it could apply if the owner’s insurance is insufficient to fully cover the damage.

It’s important to note that there are some exceptions to what is called “permissive use” coverage. For example, permission must be given by the owner, unless the borrower has a reasonable belief that they are allowed to use the car. However, the borrower cannot give permission to someone else. So if your teenager allows one of his or her friends to drive your car to {local destination}, your coverage likely won’t apply.

Coverage might also be denied if the borrower operates the vehicle in a negligent or criminal manner. And if the borrower is using your car for business purposes, your personal auto policy likely won’t cover that.

If you have a regular long-term arrangement to either borrow or lend a car, the borrower should probably be added to the owner’s personal auto policy. Those who don’t own a car, but often borrow one, might also consider “named non-owner coverage,” an endorsement that provides bodily injury and property damage liability, uninsured motorists coverage and more.

Ultimately, it’s usually safe to loan your friend your car for occasional errands or projects. And the same goes for borrowing a car. Just make sure it’s for “normal” use. You’ll want to confirm that the car has coverage and that your insurance, whether you’re the owner or borrower, will apply.

Feel free to give us a call at 507-226-8121 if you have any questions — after all, you don’t want to wait until after an accident to get answers!

Jon

Email: [email protected]

Phone 507-226-8121

Better coverage. Better prices.

Jon DeKok has been serving insurance clients for over 30 years. He specializes in home, auto, umbrella, recreational vehicle, business, and life insurance. He is licensed in the state of Minnesota.

Is It Important to Have Better Coverage?

May 15, 2013 By Jon DeKok

First to answer this question we need to know, better coverage than what? What I mean is better coverage than you now have.

On auto insurance, it might be the right thing to look at what limits of coverage you have if you are at fault in an accident and someone sues you. This coverage is Bodily Injury and Property Damage liability. If you currently have a $100,000 limit and your total assets are worth more than that, better coverage (like higher limits), could save you a lot of heartaches later.

On your homeowners insurance, it may be making sure your dwelling limit is protected by having increased replacement cost coverage. It could also be having special form (all risk) coverage on your personal property as well as your dwelling. Do you have coverage if the sewer or drain backs up? If so, what limit have you chosen? Are your firearms covered at a high enough limit? Most companies limit coverage for firearms without an endorsement. Safeco Insurance does not limit coverage for your firearms (other than the total personal property limit).

Please call, email me, or stop in. I will be happy to go over the coverage you now have and suggest area’s where it may be important to have better coverage.

Jon

Email: [email protected]

Phone 507-226-8121

Better coverage. Better prices .

Jon DeKok has been serving insurance clients for over 30 years. He specializes in home, auto, umbrella, recreational vehicle, business, and life insurance. He is licensed in the state of Minnesota.

Graphic used with permission from Microsoft Free Gallery

Are Your Insurance Rates on the Rise?

October 17, 2012 By Jon DeKok

Don’t you hate it when your insurance rates go up? I do too! Being an independent insurance agent helps, in that I can shop several companies for a better rate, and most of the time find one, but not always due to several factors.

More about that in another blog.

Getting back to rate increases. It makes sense to see your rates increase some, after all, some of the things that make your rates what they are, are increasing in cost (car repairs, medical costs, lumber, materials, labor, etc.). However, what doesn’t make a lot of sense is when you haven’t had any losses, and your rates go up 40% or more.

All insurance companies try to anticipate what their losses will be each year, in 5 years, etc. in order to set their rates. The goal is to collect enough premium dollars to pay for the losses, pay their expenses, set aside money in reserves to take care of unexpected losses, and make a profit. Insurance companies are a business and should make a profit in order to stay in business and motivate growth.

There are some other things that come into play when looking at several different insurance companies rates. One company may be doing business in the whole country, and some are only doing business in one or more States. This can have an impact on that company’s specific rates since some States are more prone to different types of hazards (Wind storms, tornados, hurricanes, fires). For instance, the Mid West has had a higher than the normal amount of wind storms in the last five years, causing rates to increase on most homeowner’s insurance policies (roof damage, etc.). Another factor is underwriting (an insurance company’s rules to accept business). Each company accepts new clients based on rules they feel will keep them profitable. Some of these are based on the client, and some are based on the property to be insured.

Some companies have been surprised by the amount of losses they find themselves paying due to an unexpected number of storms, and other losses. When this happens, they will try to tighten up their underwriting rules, and raise their rates to get back to their comfort zone.

I don’t necessarily hate a rate increase when it is needed, but what I do dislike an awful lot is when a company panics, and jacks their rates up 40% or more or takes other drastic immediate moves that are detrimental to their clients.

If your insurance company has raised your rates in a panic kind of way, or if you would just like to see what I can do for you, please feel free to call (507-226-8121) or email me at [email protected] for a comparison.

Jon

[email protected]

507-226-8121

Renting a Car? How Are You Insured?

July 30, 2012 By Jon DeKok

Have you or your family flown somewhere for vacation, like Florida, California, or Hawaii? You are picking up your rental car, and the rental agency’s service person is asking you to purchase insurance for the rental car. Do you really need to purchase their extra insurance?

The State of Minnesota has addressed this issue. In short, if you have a personal vehicle insured in Minnesota, and you rent a vehicle, your current personal auto insurance policy will cover it anywhere in the United States. Even if you have only one vehicle insured and it is covered for liability only. The rented vehicle will be fully covered since coverage for damage to the vehicle extends from your personal auto’s Property damage liability coverage.

Here is the statement the State of Minnesota requites rental car companies to attach to their rental contracts (65B.49, 2011 Minnesota Statutes).

“Under Minnesota law, a personal automobile insurance policy must: (1) cover the rental of this motor vehicle against damage to the vehicle and against loss of use of the vehicle; and (2) extend the policy’s basic economic loss benefits, residual liability insurance, and uninsured and underinsured motorist coverages to the operation or use of a rented motor vehicle. Therefore, purchase of any collision damage waiver or similar insurance effected in this rental contract is not necessary. In addition, purchase of any additional liability insurance is not necessary if your policy was issued in Minnesota unless you wish to have coverage for liability that exceeds the amount specified in your personal automobile insurance policy.”

If you have any questions concerning insurance coverage for a vehicle you are renting, please feel free to call 507-226-8121 or email me at [email protected].

Jon