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Charleston Homeowner's Insurance Coverage ::

 

Charleston Homeowner's Insurance ::

 

Agent Owned Realty offers some of the Charleston area's best homeowner’s insurance policies and rates through All State Insurance. 

If All State Insurance is not willing to underwrite your homeowner's insurance, then we will broker it out to other homeowner’s insurance carriers that would be willing to write you a policy in the Charleston area.

Agent Owned Realty works hard at offering great homeowner’s insurance through Allstate insurance all at the industry's most competitive prices. 

Agent Owned Realty also enjoys helping you become the best informed consumer in regards to understanding exactly what your homeowner’s insurance policy will cover.

 


 

Here are some important points of discussion when comparing Homeowner’s Insurance Policy’::

 

Earthquake Insurance Rider- You will probably want to add earthquake insurance as a policy rider.  Although, it has been over 100 years since the last major earthquake hit the Charleston area.  My wife and I remember the last tremor to hit the Charleston area back in November, 2002.  We were living at Wild Dunes Resort located on the Isle of Palms and remember the house shaking on its pilings. 

 

Guarantee Replacement Rider-You will also probably want to guarantee that you can rebuild your home the same way it was before the major peril hit.  This replacement value coverage was designed to protect home owners against the risk of inflation. This rider is generally found in the dwelling coverage section of your policy.  I would highly recommend discussing this policy rider with your insurance agent.  There are different types of guaranteed replacement coverage.  This rider might allow you to rebuild your home no matter what it costs or it might provide you with a higher percentage of the total home’s policy coverage which is generally 120%.  This extra twenty percent in additional monies does provide you with a nice rebuilding cushion, but only if the policy coverage is up to date with today’s current rebuilding costs.

 

Replacement Cost- You will also want to discuss how the replacement value for your personal property is determined.  Otherwise you might get stuck with only the depreciated value of your contents which are lost or damaged and not being able to replace them. 

 

New Zoning Costs-The ordinance-and-law coverage is also important for the Charleston area because with each new storm brings new building codes and requirements.  You want these new building code costs covered.

 

Temporary Housing-The displacement rider coverage is another viable option for you should you need to find alternative living arrangements while your home is being rebuilt.

The important facts to remember is earthquake, hurricanes, tornados, and flood perils are normally excluded from your homeowner’s insurance policy.  You need to verify this yourself through your insurance agent that these sometimes costly perils should they occur will be covered by your homeowner's insurance policy.

You’re receiving the best homeowner’s insurance policy coverage that the Charleston homeowner’s insurance market has to offer is very important to us.  Therefore, I will provide you with a list of Homeowner’s Insurance Companies found throughout the Charleston area so you can shop rates and coverage’s.  Agent Owned Realty encourages you to comparative shop your homeowner's insurance policy rates and coverage.  How else will you know that we are committed to providing you the best homeowner's insurance policy coverage throughout the Charleston area?

 


 

Story last updated at 7:25 a.m. Thursday, December 16, 2004

State Farm trimming home insurance rates

Current policyholders will have to wait until Feb. 1 to get the rate reduction, which will average 5.1 percent

BY MATTHEW MOGUL
Of The Post and Courier Staff

State Farm, South Carolina's biggest insurer of homes and cars, has rolled out its first rate cut in close to 15 years for homeowners.

The company cut its rate by an average of 5.1 percent Wednesday for all new business it writes in South Carolina. Those renewing their policies need to wait until Feb. 1 to take advantage of the reduced rates.

The rate reduction was spurred by a range of factors from more competition and better business conditions to a pickup in the stock market, where insurance companies rely on making solid returns. The same factors were behind the company's decision to lower its auto rates earlier this year by an average of 2.6 percent.

"The frequency of claims and the amount we were paying out went down, so that, in a nutshell, is the reason" for this cut, said Ron Payne, who oversees the company's personal lines -- home and auto -- in South Carolina. "Last year we thought future payouts would be higher. They dropped, so we adjusted to meet that."

Payne said a deregulation law enacted during this year's legislative session also factored into State Farm's decision. The law, which gives insurers more leeway to raise or lower rates without getting state approval, is meant to bring more insurers to the state and increase competition.

"We need to make sure our rates are competitive," Payne said. "If you can decrease a rate, then you do it."

Hana Williamson, an attorney with the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs, said the reduction was "great news" and she hoped other companies would follow. Still, she said, it's too early to tell if the new law is behind this or any other cuts to come.

"The data is not there to prove this," Williamson said. "And the law is still being implemented. Some of the provisions don't start until next year."

Williamson said the reduction is because of a stock market turnaround more than anything else. For years, insurers have turned to the markets to make up through investment gains what they pay out in loss claims. With the stock market depressed since 2000, insurance companies haven't had that option.

"These things are cyclical," Williamson said. "We have been saying all along that companies were forced to raise rates because of the big market losses. Now things are a little better and they can cut rates."

A year ago, State Farm imposed an average 18.7 percent rate increase on its homeowners' policies, the biggest one-time rise in more than a decade. That increase was a compromise, negotiated down from 27 percent by the state's consumer affairs office, and followed a long series of rate hikes by State Farm and most other carriers going back to the early 1990s.

Dean Kruger, chief actuary at the South Carolina Department of Insurance, said a bad string of hail incidents in the late 1990s and early 2000s were likely the main culprits behind the recent rate rises. "Companies like State Farm were incurring big losses because of this," he said.

As someone who had a hand in fashioning the deregulation law, Kruger said Wednesday's announcement is only the beginning. "It will make things more competitive for sure, and I think we're seeing that with State Farm's move today," he said.

Matthew Mogul covers insurance and banking. Contact him at (843) 937-5594 or at mmogul@postandcourier.com.

 

Call or email me the Charleston Home Advisor to receive additional information regarding Homeowner's insurance premiums for the Charleston area.

 

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