Auto Insurance Benefit Selling

The first thing I would like to mention is that the first two coverages we are going to discuss are the only ones required by law. Everything else we are going to talk about is optional. My job as you agent is to advise you of your exposures and let you pick the coverages that our most important to you. Ultimately I want to make your future more predictable.

The first coverage is:

Bodily Injury Liability: It provides coverage for injuries that you have caused to another person when you are at fault in an auto accident.

“I know this is a strong question but if a drunk driver killed your wife in an auto accident, how much would you sue him for?”

“How much do you think you would get sued for if you killed someone in an auto accident?”

I used to think that this kind of stuff did not happen when I sat on your side of the desk but when I became an insurance agent I starting seeing cases where clients were being sued or forced to cover the injuries of people that had been hurt in an accident. I quickly realized how valuable this coverage is.

We recommend that everyone carry a minimum of 1.5 million in Bodily Injury liability coverage. You want enough coverage to protect your assets, pay defense costs and some extra for hassle factor.

Most clients do not realize that the auto policy states under the liability section that the insurance company’s duty to “defend ends when the company’s limit of liability is exhausted.” What this means is that if you carry limited or low bodily injury coverage the company will write the check and walk away without providing any defense cost. Ultimately leaving you with the responsibility to get an attorney and pay any additional damages you may be responsible for. If you don’t have the cash to pay the damages the court usually files a judgment against you. A lot of folks end up making monthly payments for years to satisfy it.

The real benefit to carrying these higher limits is that you get the “A” team. Having so much of the insurance company’s money at risk usually makes them give you their seasoned adjusters and best attorneys.

Property Damage Liability provides coverage for damages you cause to other peoples property while driving your covered vehicle.

Most people don’t really consider what this means. “If you are the cause of a five-car pile up on the freeway you are responsible for the damages to all of the cars. If your daughter puts the car in drive instead of reverse and accidentally drives into the side of a CVS Pharmacy or you glance down, swerve off the road and hit a stop light control box the repair cost would be expensive.”

We recommend that you carry a minimum of 1.1 million in property damage liability coverage to protect you from situations like this. Again you want enough coverage to protect your assets, pay defense costs and some extra for hassle factor.

Just like Bodily Injury coverage the company’s duty to “defend ends when the company’s limit of liability is exhausted.” Carrying these higher limits gives you the same benefits as higher limits of bodily injury does: You get the “A” team and the peace of mind that we will protect you.

Personal Injury Protection is no fault coverage for medical and funeral expenses associated with a motor vehicle accident. In addition this coverage will pay you 80% of your lost wages or the cost of substitute service for a stay at home mom or dad up to the policy limit if you cannot work due to the accident. It provides coverage for you and your passengers.

What this means it that you or your passengers can get the benefits no matter whose fault the accident is. This proposal includes $5000 of coverage but it is optional and you do not have to purchase it. Some things to consider are:

  • Do you have health coverage?
  • Do you know what you health deductible is?
  • Do you have enough cash to pick up $2500 to $5000 of medical expenses?
  • Will you get your paycheck if you miss a few weeks of work?
  • Do you have life insurance or a way to pay for funeral expenses?
  • Are you retired or not working?

The real benefit to purchasing this coverage is that it can provide an easy source of cash for your injuries if you’re involved in an accident.

Medical Payments is similar to personal injury protection as it is no fault coverage that pays for medical and funeral expenses that you or your passengers incur as a result of an automobile accident. The major difference is that Medical Payments coverage will not pay for lost wages or substitute services. In addition the coverage is paid as a shared benefit, which means that if you later collect payments for the same injury from your health carrier or another party, you will be required to reimburse us for the double payment.

The real benefit to purchasing this coverage is that is can provide an easy source of cash if you’re involved in an accident at about half the cost of Personal Injury Protection.

Depending on your situation you can pick one: Personal Injury Protection or Medical Payments. Remember you are not required to take either.

The next coverage is:

Uninsured / Under-Insured Motorist. This coverage pays for your injuries and damages when someone with no insurance or not enough insurance, as well as a hit and run driver causes an accident with you. We recommend that you carry $500,000 for bodily injury and a limit not less than the value of your vehicle for property damage liability.

The policy actually sates “We will pay damages which a covered person is legally entitled to recover from the owner or operator on an uninsured motor vehicle that you are entitled to recover because of bodily injury sustained or property damage caused by an accident.” What this means is that carrying this coverage will basically replace the coverage that the other person should have had in place. The real benefit is to be able to protect yourself from the 1 and 5 drivers on the road in Texas who are driving without insurance.

Comprehensive covers your vehicle for losses resulting from things other than collision like theft, fire, hail and glass breakage. After you pay your deductible the coverage will cover up to the Actual Cash Value of your car. Actual Cash Value is the market value of your car at the time of your claim. I want to make sure you understand that the policy will only pay that amount even if you owe more than that on you loan. Our Insurance Company will let you pick a deductible from $50 to $2000. The higher the deductible, the lower your premium will be since you are taking on more of the risk. A few things you might want to consider when evaluating deductibles are:

  • How often have you used this coverage?
  • Do you have the cash available to get your car out of the shop or fix the damage from a claim that does not meet your deductible?
  • Is the savings worth it? (Divide difference in deductibles by the savings in order to get years until payback.)
  • Is there any benefit to having the coverage? (

One of the great things about of having comprehensive on your policy is that we repair rock chips that are smaller than a dollar bill for free. We’ll even send the repair guy to your home or office.

Collision covers damage to your car when you collide with another vehicle or object. After you pay your deductible the coverage will protect you up to the Actual Cash Value of your vehicle. Just like comprehensive you need to make sure you understand the policy will only pay the Actual Cash Value even if you owe more than that on the loan. The Insurance Company will let you pick a deductible from $50 to $2000. The higher the deductible, the lower your premium will be. You should always ask yourself the same questions when choosing a deductible:

  • How often have you used this coverage?
  • Do you have the cash available to get your car out of the shop or fix the damage from a claim that does not meet your deductible?
  • Is the savings worth it? (Divide difference in deductibles by the savings in order to get years until payback.)
  • Is there any benefit to having the coverage? (

One of the great things about Our Insurance Company’s auto policy is that it provides Diminishing Deductibles. We will credit your policy up front with $100 off your deductible and you will earn an additional $100 credit every 12 months you do not have a claim. This feature can reduce your deductible all the way down to $100. If you do have a claim the deductible will reset to its original level with an instant $100 credit. The real benefit to you is the fact that your out of pocket expenses is greatly reduced the longer you go without a claim.

Another great feature of the our auto policy is The Total Loss Waiver: The waiver will eliminate your comprehensive or collision deductible in the event your vehicle is deemed a totaled loss from a covered claim. This is a great way to have a little more down-payment cash in you pocket for a new car if you total yours.

The true benefit to carrying comprehensive and collision on your auto policy is that we provide original equipment manufacture parts when we are repairing your vehicle from a covered loss. This means that we will not give you used or aftermarket parts. Your _____ will get new _____ parts. I know this may not seem valuable but consider the fact that your engine or transmission could be damaged in an accident. Do you want a junk yard motor or a new ____ motor? Most of our competitors provide used, refurbished, or duplicated parts.

Another great benefit to having a our auto policy is that we provide $1500 in customization to cover things like: Upgraded leather seats, rims, tires, spoilers and special paint. We can add additional customization coverage above the $1500 provided and we would be glad to add coverage for your upgraded sound system.

Rental Reimbursement will reimburse your expenses for a rental car needed during a covered loss such as a collision. We recommend a limit of $60.00 per day up to a maximum of $1500 per claim. We provide this high limit so you can be sure to get a good rent car without any out of pocket expense.

Roadside AssistanceBasic/Plus is a great coverage that will provide you with a technician or tow truck when you are stranded due to a flat tire, have locked your keys in the car, need an emergency tow, need a jump start or your car has run out of gas. The real benefit to you is to make sure you are taken care of in a situation like this with little or no money out of pocket. The coverage actually follows you and your family members as a person not your covered vehicle. You can even use the coverage when you are riding in someone else’s car. The BASIC plan will cover you up to a 15 - mile tow or $75 of service. The PLUS package will provide for up to a 100 - mile tow or $300 of service. The Insurance company will provide you with a wallet id card and key fob so you have access to your coverage at all times.

Our policy has a comprehensive forgiveness package that includes:

Accident and Minor Violation Forgiveness: We will forgive one accident per policy and one minor violation per driver in a 35 month period. These features enable you to have rate stability when your driving record deteriorates a bit. We will not surcharge your policy for the tickets or accident and you also get to keep your claims free discount. We realize that everyone is not perfect and the true benefit to being insured with us is that we will not raise your rates for a minor violation or accident.

The price for the valuable protection is ______per 6 months or ______per day. What day would you like it effective?

We can save you an additional $60 per year by setting up a electron funds transfer account.

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