Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

DH's car got broken into - they shattered the driver's side window and took the Satellite Radio.

Our coverage is through Geico and when I called, they said we had $1,000 for our comprehensive coverage...essentially, we have to pay the first $1,000 and that they'd pay anything over.

I thought it was the reverse, and the woman told me that it's better to lower the comprehensive to $50 that way Geico will pay anything over $50 should it happen again.

Now onto the question - his car is financed and the insurance coveraged is at the max....is it possible to change the policy so that the deductible is lower and is this a good idea?

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

You can make the deductible lower, but remember it will increase your premium. There would be a greater likelihood of Geico having to pay out of pocket anything over $250 than over $1000, kwim?

You don't have glass coverage? Definitely get it. Ours is something like $5/month and it covers any glass breaking.
When DH's windshield got hit with a rock on the LIE, they came and replaced it free of charge.

ETA: Well not really free since it's $5/mo

Message edited 8/29/2007 6:13:18 AM.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

wow $1000 deductible? I didn't even realize it went that high. I have $250 on my car and DH has $500 on his.

the cost to repair the window & replace the radio should not cost more than $1K. I would change your deductible to $500. your rates will go up, but not by much.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Definately lower your deductible but be prepared for a rate change like others have said.

There must be a string of this going on, my neighbor's min-van was broken into tow nights ago for the same thing

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Like the other posters said, you can lower the deductible and have a higher premium (I did this when I lived in NJ because Geico doesn't offer policies with glass coverage there).

That being said, Geico does have glass coverage on NY policies so the window replacement may be covered under your policy. I had my back windshield smashed in once and they paid it in its entirety (no deductible even).

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

But then if you lower the deductible, your insurance will be a lot higher...we have Geico as well and we also have the $1000 deductible on the comprehensive coverage...I mean its up to you...Mike was hit while parked and we bought the car in for an estimate, the damages were quoted at $1400, we had to lay out the $1000 and Geico covered the rest...you can get them to give you an estimate and you can take the car to be fixed elsewhere...but yeah thats how it works.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

$1000 is a high deductible. We have $500 on each of our cars and we lease. The comprehensive coverage is what is maxed not theft.

I'm not sure if you can change your deductible now that you've had an incident. You may have to do it afterwards.

Also, the glass should be covered at 100%. You should only incur the cost of replacing the satellite radio if you want. I don't think that comes to $1000.

eta: you may be able to submit the theft under your homeowners/renters policy. Check it out.

Message edited 8/29/2007 10:10:44 AM.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Hey Chris

I'm not sure exactly what Geico said to you, but I have Geico as well, and the same exact thing that happened to Ricardo, happened to me. The phuckers broke into the car by smashing the driver's side glass (searching for my GPS system which was with me, luckily). They took some undelivered Xmas gifts which were in the trunk (value about $200). Did the whole police report thing, sent it to Geico. I opted to pay for the repairs myself up front and get reimbursed by Geico later (hoping I'd get some of my $$ back from them). I took the car to BMW, got it fixed, sent the paid bill (almost $1G) to Geico and about 4 weeks later, to my great surprise, I got a check from Geico for the entire amount of the repairs. I didn't bother to file a claim for the gifts since the amount wasn't much and I couldn't find the receipts, but a Satellite radio might be worth putting in a claim for.

Good luck. I know it sucks. If I can help, FM me.

ETA: Yes, you can change your deductible amount. They will just amend your policy at that point in time and adjust the premium higher or lower, depending upon what you wanna do.

Message edited 8/29/2007 10:22:09 AM.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Chris, as an ins rep....I wouldnt of put in as a comp loss, I would of had you repair it on your own, submit the bill and then I would get your reimbursed for it, like a glass loss.

So there would be no need to pay the $1k out of pocket.

As for deduct changes, all up to you if you want to pay higher premium.

Message edited 8/29/2007 10:24:07 AM.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

First, I would get a couple quotes for the window (tell them you don't want to use insurance, they charge more if you are using insurance).

Depending on how much the window cost and the satellite radio is worth, it might be worth it to pay for it yourself.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

DH took it to a family friend, and they're going to replace the window and tint it to match the rest for $120 - so we got a great deal, and not going through Geico.

I also lowered the comprehensive to $500 deductible and included FULL GLASS coverage....it increased our policy by $25 per month...so we're good to go!

Thanks everyone!!!!!

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

Message edited 7/14/2009 9:08:27 AM.

Re: Two part question - DH's car got broken into & if there are any insurance agents...

I have $1000 deductible too, but only because DH is in the business and can get everything fixed at cost... Lowering it might be a good option.