The Texas Insurance Broker

To quote general liability insurance for business owners we need information about: 1) The Business Entity- name, address, entity type, year formed, main contact's info 2) Operations Description- what type of business, industry, profession and job duties? 3) Gross Annual Sales 4) Number of Employees and Gross Annual Payroll 5) Any special insurance requirements or requests from vendors, contractors, etc? 6) Loss Runs or Claims History for the business

An independent insurance agent can save you time and effort finding you the best insurance for your situation instead of having repetitive conversations or data entry with multiple insurance companies. They don't work directly for any particular insurance company and have your best interest at heart. Direct agents and staff are going to be biased and push you to purchase their policy. If you quote yourself you can unknowingly make mistakes. Call center or direct agency staff might not have much industry experience, enjoy what they do or have long term plans to continue their insurance career. An independent insurance agent usually has year of experience, plans to stay in this industry long term and they can shop your insurance as your needs change. There's no added cost to the policyholder so put your insurance in the hands of someone reliable who knows what they're doing.

Find an insurance broker you trust to work with long term and match you with insurance carriers that have the most favorable rates for your specific underwriting risk. Example- one of our auto insurance carriers only runs claims reports back 3 years. Most auto insurance carriers check 5 years. A client who had tickets/accidents 4 years ago wouldn't know these little carrier differences that we use to save them hundreds of dollars. Other ways to reduce auto insurance costs: -Increase deductibles for full coverage vehicles -Newer, more expensive vehicles cost more to insure. Consider trading in for older liability only vehicle -Billing discounts. Most carriers offer discounts for paying in full or charge less fees for monthly drafts vs monthly credit card charges -Paperless discount -Early sign up discount -Bundle other insurance with your auto -Enroll in safe driving programs offered -Complete a defensive driving course -Practice safer habits to reduce risk of claims/tickets

If you're financing property in a high risk flood area then your lender will require you to carry flood insurance. Even if you're NOT in a high risk flood zone you should talk to neighbors about the area's flood history and consider purchasing a flood policy because 33% of flood damage occurs in low risk flood zones. NFIP flood rates are only $150-$450/year for low risk flood zones depending on the selected coverage amount. For residential homes we just need the property address to quote most flood insurance policies.

The bare minimum info we need to quote multiple auto insurance carriers for our clients is: 1) Driver Names 2) Driver Birthdates 3) Drivers License Numbers 4) Primary Address where vehicles are garaged 5) Vehicle Year/Make/Models This is the minimum info to get started and narrow down carriers but the more information provided the more accurately we can quote your situation and provide accurate rates. Other info that helps upfront and saves time later: 1) Vehicle VIN numbers 2) Claims History- Accidents, Tickets, Claims- Everything will show up before the final rate. It's better to enter those details in advance 3) Current Coverages- if you have existing auto insurance and can provide us your current policy information then we can match coverages line by line for an accurate comparison and then offer suggested changes if you seem over or underinsured.

Bare minimum details we need to quote your home insurance: 1) NAME of property owner(s) 2) BIRTHDATE of property owner(s) 3) INSURED ADDRESS of the property we're quoting 4) **If we're quoting a seasonal residence, investment property or newly purchased property then we also need your CURRENT PRIMARY ADDRESS. RISKS and DISCOUNT factors don't have to be discussed immediately but discussing these sooner helps narrow down which insurance companies are going to have the highest odds of being your best option for price and coverages. Here are the main risk and discount factors discussed for home insurance: 1) Pets 2) Past Claims 3) Updates to home (mainly applies to older homes) 4) Safety Features (smart devices, alarms, etc) 5) High Value Items - Jewelry, Performance Bicycles, etc 6) Property Features- Pool, Trampoline, Overhanging Trees, Guest House, etc

Except for surplus commercial insurance we do not charge any mark up or fees. Some of our insurance companies only offer policies through independent agents (like us). Some of our insurance companies also have their own direct agents, call centers or offer the ability to quote yourself online through their website or a third party site. We're all quoting in the same systems for any specific insurance carrier so if information is entered the same by all parties then final rates should all be the same for that carrier. The real rate differences depends on each insurance companies underwriting guidelines and unique rating system. You can spend hours researching, quoting and comparing several insurance carriers yourself to find the one whose underwriting and rating systems benefit you most or just let us help you for free.