Auto Insurance Premiums and Homeowners Insurance Premiums Are On The Rise
According to a recent report from TransUnion, auto and property insurance shopping rates shot up by 7% and 5%, respectively year-over-year in the fourth quarter of last year.
“Insurance shopping was down significantly in Q4 2021 and generally suppressed throughout 2022,” TransUnion said in its report.
The report notes that 2021 and parts of 2022 were lackluster years for insurers due to a variety of factors that included high inflation, and supply-chain issues which resulted in slower sales in the auto and housing industries
“Our report found greater shopping activity among certain geographic and demographic segments,” Michelle Jackson, the senior director of personal property and casualty insurance in TransUnion’s insurance business, said in a recent press release. “For example, the Western U.S. saw the highest shopping for auto and renters insurance.”
“Throughout 2022, the economy still felt the lingering aftereffects of COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, inflation and supply-chain disruptions,” the report concluded. “But for the insurance industry, if the end of the year wasn’t a time of new growth, it was at least a return to form for insurance shoppers.”
Price is major concern for insurance shoppers
According to Insurify’s 2022 auto insurance trends report, the average American paid $1,705 for auto insurance in 2022. This is a 4 percent increase from 2021 and a shocking 17 percent rise from 2020. These price increases have made price a major factor for insurance shoppers this year.
In a recent survey by data company AnalyticsIQ, 50 percent of respondents who were considering switching insurance companies claimed their policies were too expensive and 37 percent said they would switch carriers if they found a better deal.
While price is considered a major factor, customer satisfaction with their insurer is also important to buyers. “Moreover, level of satisfaction predicted one’s projected likelihood of switching insurance carriers,” AnalyticsIQ said in its survey report. “As satisfaction scores decreased, the likelihood of saying ‘yes’ or ‘maybe’ to switching carriers increased,” the report found.
Auto insurance premiums are not the only rates on the rise, homeowners insurance premiums are heated up as well. Due to an increase in natural disasters, many homeowners saw their insurance costs go up in 2022. A recent analysis by Safehome.org found that a whopping 43% of Americans reported that their annual homeowners insurance premiums increased from 2021.
SafeHome data found that the average premium for homeowners insurance was $1,584 a year or $132 a month. The report broke down the premium data by region as well:
- South: $1,834
- West: $1,473
- Midwest: $1,441
- Northeast: $1,301
The report also found that one in ten homeowners are planning to switch to a different insurance company soon and of those people 76% are switching to pay a lower premium.
“The increasing number of catastrophic weather events like hurricanes and wildfires are straining homeowners and insurers, leading to significant changes in the insurance marketplace,” the Safehome report said. “As a result, homeowners are facing rising costs or even canceled premiums.”