Q. I have a question that is not within the categories shown on FreeInsuranceAdvice.com (auto, home, health, life). Can you help?

A. We will certainly try to answer your questions. Some are within our editorial scope, such as renters insurance or damage claims, but others are outside our mandate; for example, marine insurance, hazardous materials insurance and many business insurance issues. However, do feel free to send them in and we’ll do our best for you.

Q. I have been with the same insurance agency for years, but they don’t seem to really be current with new technology and services. Is that a sign to change?

A. We believe that the ‘best of breed’ providers recognize the major changes in how consumers communicate these days, especially online. Many carriers are trying to offer consumers more online options. However, the insurance industry is in general somewhat slow to adapt because of all the federal regulations and privacy policies that must be followed. So your specific carrier might in fact be highly qualified and just right for you even though they may not offer features such as ‘Buy Online’. Looking at other providers certainly won’t hurt, but your best bet may just be to contact your agent and the carrier and let them know what services you want. A small but vocal minority can often make positive results happen for both parties.

Q. When I use tools to get quotes, I notice that policy prices vary by a wide margin. How does that happen?

A. The insurance industry is highly regulated by individual states, no two of which have the same rules. In addition, each insurance carrier has a different set of specialties, customer demographics, product mixes and risk tables that go into determining the final bindable price of any particular policy. There’s more to it than your address and the cost of your car or house – everything from your credit score to local environmental conditions (such as in New Orleans or Florida or Texas) come into play. It’s a very complex mix that means a single consumer could, and often does, receive dramatically different pricing. However, every state has a Department of Insurance that oversees the pricing matrixes. Rest assured, there is no chance that you can be over-charged by any legal insurance carrier – you can only be over-insured. And that rarely happens and you can learn how to avoid that here on FreeInsuranceAdvice.com.

Q. Are ‘independent’ agents really independent? Mine always seems to push a select group of products from the usual suspects.

A. It may seem cliché, but yes, most independent agents really ARE independent! And they tend to be very objective as a group because they have a lot more products from different carriers at their disposal. It only makes sense – they don’t care if they sell you Plan A or Plan B, as long as it meets your needs and has distinct advantages. An agent who only has Plan A to sell you will obviously try to sell you that plan… unless, like the majority of truly professional insurance agents, they realize it is not right for you. Then they will offer another solution or tell you honestly they can’t help. Are there unscrupulous agents? Of course there are. But these are very few and far between because the industry is highly regulated, tightly audited and monitored by public agencies. It’s much harder for an insurance agent to be dishonest than it is for any of us to claim our dog as a dependent on our taxes. So just maybe your agent is actually steering you with good advice even though it may seem biased.

Q. I’ve never had an accident but my policy costs have continued to go up year after year. What gives?

A. This is a tough question because it doesn’t seem to make logical sense. I mean, after all, if we’ve proven ourselves to be safe drivers and conscientious home-owners, why are we penalized? The truth is that it is not just about you – but about your neighbors as well. A higher incidence of accidents in your area, or other higher risk factors such as fires or floods, contribute to ‘risk tables’ that insurance carriers use to determine the rates they need to stay in business. Don’t take it personally! If the cost goes beyond what you can afford, shop around. You may find another carrier assesses risk differently and your premiums will go down. But do rest assured, that with any given carrier, you are being treated equally and fairly based on the market conditions.

Q. I noticed that FreeInsuranceAdvice.com is a ‘property’ of InsWeb.com. If they are underwriting your website, how can you claim to be objective?

A. We are funded by InsWeb.com and you will see that we link to their quote tools as a service to our readers through their affiliate program. However, we are run entirely independently, with a separate outside editorial and production team. We earn our revenue through advertising and content partnerships and do not represent or sell any carrier policies directly on our site. And in fact, many of the experts that we have available to help with questions are not marketing partners or associated with InsWeb in any way whatsoever. They contribute because they believe in the value of our editorial platform, and of course, it helps get their name out in the public. Our goal is to be an objective and trusted information resource for everyone.

Please note that the information displayed above does not represent the views of InsWeb Corporation, its officers, directors or employees, and is not to be considered legal advice.