The Quality of Premiums is Strained.

OK. I'm back. Recent developments caused by a brief bout of self-doubt and one too many bubbles in a beer can necessitated the clearing of a confused mind. But trust is of the utmost importance in our daily lives. We rely on trust. As consumers, we look to the businesses we patronize to be trustworthy. We want them to think of us as more than a mere account number. A personal relationship rather than a public clone. Let's talk insurance companies.

A couple of friends of a friend have found out the hard way that you are not always in good hands when it comes to insurance. Both friends had fires damage their homes. The insurance company provided compensation according to their respective plans and coverage. That's where the good deeds became done and now both friends will not be renewed for insurance once their homes are again habitable. Seems that once you suffer a catastrophic event, you will be subject to the same event in the future at least according to the insurance industry.Think for a moment. Unless you are living in hurricane or tornado alley, the chances of such an event repeating are very slim. Then again homeowners in Missouri have found that a hailstorm, an "Act of God", resulted in the nonrenewal of homeowners insurance. Insurance is much like a reverse lotto; you pay hoping not to ever be in the situation where you have to collect, but if you do, you lose.

Did you know that insurance companies check your credit history? They do and not for the purpose of ascertaining your risk of nonpayment of premiums. They can check you out without your permission to determine by their standards whether or not you are a risk to file a claim. Lower credit scores or even no credit scores equate to a good chance that you will become a claimant.

Even minor claims can result in a raise of rates. A few years ago, I filed a claim for towing my disabled vehicle to the shop for repairs. The claim was for less than $50. Total raise in rates for the two years after the fact: $120 per year. That only amounts to $10 per month and so you don't think much about it. But if you get pissed and seek out another insurer, will you really win? You are caught in a form of Catch-22. While the new insurance company can not ask if you have ever been faced with nonrenewal or cancellation for that is illegal, claim data is posted by a clearing house for all the insurance world to see. It is known throughout the industry that you have been a claimant. And the same holds true with medical data if you are looking for health or life insurance.

If you want more information on your rights, lack thereof, or the insurance companies that lead the league in complaints, go to: http://www.insurance.state.mo.us/