Erie: superior coverage
Written: Dec 06 '03 (Updated Dec 06 '03)
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Pros: Comprehensive policies, low premiums, good financials
Cons: One industry watchdog sees weakness
The Bottom Line: Anyone who's in Erie's coverage area should certainly take a look at their policies and prices.
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| prh2s's Full Review: Erie - Home |
I'm putting this review in the homeowner's category, although really it's an assessment of the complete property/casualty package available from Erie: auto, homeowner's, and personal umbrella liability (PUL) (if you don't know what a PUL policy is, visit the FAQ at www.insweb.com/learningcenter/qa/umbrella-a.htm). Those who are interested only in homeowner's insurance can skip to the second and fourth sections of the review.
Personal Umbrella Liability: Excellent
When I was shopping for property/casualty insurance last year, I started by looking at the strength of companies' PUL policies. Erie's was as comprehensive as any I found, and more comprehensive than those offered by GEICO and Amica (two popular favorites). Rather than bore you with the details of the policy contracts, suffice to say that Erie was the only one of the three to respond affirmatively to each of the following test questions:
* A mother watches as my car accidentally strikes and kills her young child. The mother suffers no bodily injury, but sustains severe psychic trauma. Will your policy pay for the mother's injuries?
* I rent a cottage in Scotland for a weekend. I build a fire in the fireplace, and sparks from the fire burn the cottage to the ground. Will your policy cover the damage, and will you have a representative in the UK to defend me?
* I host a large party, with a caterer providing refreshments. I sign a contract with the caterer assuming full liability for any negligence on the part of the caterer. The caterer serves tainted food, and several of my guests become ill. Will your policy cover the liability I assumed in the contract?
Of course no policy offers complete coverage in every possible situation (which is why it's wise to make sure that your PUL covers the risks that you most need/want covered), but Erie was willing to touch things that many other insurers wouldn't: psychic injury, damage to rental property outside the US, and contractually assumed liability. Incidentally, psychic injuries like the one hypothesized above are not uncommon, and coverage for such injuries has been the subject of a lot of litigation. Most insurance companies whose policies cover only "bodily injury" refuse to pay for psychic damages that are not accompanied by physical suffering. It's reassuring to have a policy that covers all kinds of injuries.
(This year's PUL policy renewal included an amendment stipulating that Erie would no longer cover personal injuries brought about by mold and fungi. I gather that this has become a standard exclusion, given all the hysteria over household mold. Still, any exclusion is hard for the policyholder to swallow--especially in a PUL policy, where comprehensiveness is most desired.)
Homeowner's: Excellent
Our homeowner's policy is Erie's "Ultracover," an HO-3 "special form," "all perils" affair. It is exceptionally good: it covers full replacement cost of the dwelling, "ordinance or law" expenses (when repairs cost more than simple replacement, due to changes in local building codes), and damage to other people's personal property held in the homeowner's custody. There are many other nice extras, too, which Erie brings to the policyholder's attention by placing an "X" in the margins of the contract next to "coverage not found in most homeowners' policies." This makes it a little easier to comparison shop among policies.
One quirk of our homeowner's policy is its coverage for loss of use (i.e., payment for alternate lodging while repairs are done on the home). Most policies provide a fixed amount of coverage--usually up to 20% of the value of the insured property--but Erie's promise is more nebuolous: "we will pay all reasonable additional living expenses while you and members of your household reside elsewhere." This raised a red flag, but my agent quickly allayed my fears by providing examples of additional living expenses Erie had approved for other clients. All were very comfortable arrangements.
Auto Liability: Good
There are already plenty of Epinions praising Erie's auto insurance. This isn't the place to add another one. I will note, however, that those who expect to do more than occasional driving outside the US and Canada may want to look at a PUL, since Erie's auto policy is geographically restricted.
General Matters
Finally, here are some of the other things about Erie that merit consideration:
* Excellent financial strength ratings from everyone--except Weiss (www.weissratings.com), which gives Erie a "C" because of weak profitability. I find this puzzling, since Erie has long been among the most profitable property/casualty insurers.
* Low premiums. Very low premiums. My auto policy, for instance, costs nearly 20% less than a comparable policy with GEICO--and almost 50% less than a policy with State Farm. The homeowner's policy was about 20% less than it would have been with Amica or Travelers (my former insurer). There's no mystery as to why the premiums are so low: Erie's underwriting is as stringent as any in the business.
* Good customer interface. It's nice to have an agent rather than a phone rep. I also enjoy the quarterly magazine Erie sends to policyholders, which is full of smart safety tips.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
prh2s
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Location: Virginia
Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 1 member
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