Having insurance protects us from the possibility of having to pay a considerable sum in case of an accident and/or can help provide for our dependents in case of our death. Thus, it is very important to have insurance and to make sure you have purchased insurance from a reliable company. It is very easy to get confused and overwhelmed when researching what company and which policy you should buy. Luckily, there are some agencies that can help. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners keeps a record of complaints against life insurance companies, provides consumer alerts, and other resources including online education about insurance at http://www.insureuonline.org/ . There are also several agencies that provide insurance company financial ratings such as A.M. Best Co, Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investor Service, Standard & Poors and Weiss Ratings. You will also want to take into account a company’s quality of customer service and how quickly they respond to claims by talking with the agents at the company and current (or past) customers. Be sure to take your time and research the company thoroughly so that you can choose the right company and obtain coverage in case of an emergency.
-Kathryn M.
Sage Personal Finance 