Keeping Your Auto and Homeowner Insurance with the Same Company

Auto and home insurance are what is known in the industry as “must-have” insurances – if you own a home and drive a car, you are basically required by law to have insurance.

If you do need to take out both homeowner’s insurance as well as car insurance, it may be better to have them both through the same insurance company. Having different policies through the same company is often called a multi-line discount. If you currently have your home and auto insurance separately, ask your insurance company if they can be combined.

It is almost certainly less expensive having your car and home insurance through the same company – you can potentially reduce your premiums by anything between 5% and 15% by having your homeowner’s and auto together.

You may be able to have your life and medical insurance with the same company too, thus reducing costs further. And if you own more than one home, for example an investment or vacation property, the same rule applies. Try to insure all properties and cars through the same company.

Not only is it usually less expensive this way, but it’s a little bit easier to budget and keep track of payments as you can usually pay both policies with just one payment. Your monthly bill is simply one amount that includes payments for both home and auto policies. Many insurance companies allow you to track and make your payments online, thus making it even easier to make a scheduled payment.

If you have assets to insure beyond your house and car, it is also easier and cheaper to take out additional coverage through that same company. This extra coverage can provide up to a million dollars in personal liability insurance, over and above the standard amounts.

One of the disadvantages of having everything lumped together is that it can be difficult to determine increases in your premium amount – whether the increase was for the car or home insurance. Most people simply pay their bills and just don’t look at them that closely.