“No enemy is worse than bad advice”
Sophocles
Would you ask a plumber to rewire the electrical service in your home?
How about asking a baker to install a new head gasket in your car?
If your answer is “Yes!”; stop reading.
However, if you think the answer to these questions is an obvious “NO!”, then I have a suggestion:
Be wary of insurance advice from an auto dealer.
Recently, a client (I’ll call “Bob”) asked us to add his grandson (I’ll call “Trevor”) and a new car to his auto policy. I asked Bob if he owned the car. He said it was Trevor’s. I then asked Bob if Trevor lived with him. Bob said Trevor never lived with him.
I tried to explain to Bob that we could not add Trevor to his policy, since he did not live with him, he’s not a dependent, and he is not enrolled in school.
Bob was confused…, “But the car dealer said it was no big deal!” he exclaimed.
And there-in lies the problem. The car dealer should have said, “Bob, you should really check with your insurance agent to make sure your grandson can be added to the policy”. But he didn’t.
Why not?
Maybe he thought Trevor lived with Bob.
Maybe he just assumed it was okay, since Bob was co-signing the loan.
Maybe he simply didn’t no what he didn’t know, or…
Maybe he didn’t want anything to hinder the sale.
Whatever the reason, one thing remains clear…he had no business giving insurance advice. Unfortunately, too many people want to provide unlicensed advice about insurance policies they know nothing about.
Bob and Trevor had to scramble to get the proper coverage, and it cost more than they had anticipated. In fact, Trevor, may have not bought the car if he had known, in advance, just how much the insurance was going to cost.
Avoid this mistake by contacting your insurance agent/insurance company to confirm any assumptions made on your behalf. Your agent should be able to give you a “what if” price for the insurance, so there are no surprises afterwards.
In addition to car dealers, also be wary of insurance advice from:
- Real estate agents
- Mortgage officers
- Roofers
- Alarm companies
Make sure these professional stick to their respective areas of expertise…and call your insurance agent to find out the impact of a purchase BEFORE you make a final decision.