knasman

Hi,

This is probably slightly off topic, but trying to dip into the US Porsche brain trust here. Hope it is OK.

Long story short, family and I moved to the US about 3 weeks ago. Waiting for delivery of my 991, will be here in about a month, I posted about that previously. Ordered a car for my wife as well, which we took delivery of yesterday. Through an agent at State Farm, I got quotes for insurance on both of the vehicles. They sent me several quotes in pdf form in email, and I agreed to the last one. My wifes car arrived 2 days early, so I had to call the agent yesterday to ensure her insurance was valid from that day, since it was set to start 8/1 originally. When I do that, he casually mentions that they had to adjust the rates "a little bit", since he discovered they don't count drivers experience in a foreign country. When I ask what kind of adjustments they made, turns out the 911 insurance is now 65% more than quoted, and my wifes car is 57% more.

Since I'm away from my old network and have little US legal experience myself, I'm wondering what my options are here. Seems borderline fraudulent to quote one price (which we agree upon), then charge a different one. Especially when it's that much higher. The fact that they don't even contact me to notify me of this price increase is even more suspect - I have to learn about it through contacting them on a different topic.

What should I do? If anyone has a good (and decent) insurance agent they can refer me to, ideally I'd just like to jump ship. I don't like doing business with people that attempt to scam you.

j080808

First, welcome to the states!

Interesting situation. While I have no formal training, I would head to the internet and start generating online quotes or start calling toll-free numbers and speaking to a live person. Unfortunately the downside is that some insurers will run your credit report which is a negative. I can see from an insurers perspective that they can't run an MVR on you and know your driving history which determines their risk and thus the premium.

Perhaps you could advise what city/state you are in and someone on the board could refer you to an agent they know/trust.

knasman

Thanks!!


That's a good idea, I will do that. And yes, not having a credit history is problematic in other ways too. I'm doing what I can to build it up quickly, but right now it is non-existent.

I'm in Utah, Park City.

barihunk

Unfortunately this is not suspect at all. Most insurance salespeople are just that, salespeople. They submit a quote with details, which has then to be approved by the back office underwriters, and some times the results come back ugly, as you have experienced.

Check your state laws, but I do know that some states do not consider foreign driving experience, so that part is not surprising as well. All you can do is call and ask around for quotes, and go with the lowest with reasonable coverage.

Also, some membership organizations offer discounts with certain insurance companies. I do not think the PCA has this arrangement but I think clubs like the BMWCCA and AAA have some discount arrangements with various insurance companies that you could seek out for discounts.

SkandoSchwabe

I had a similar situation 13 yrs ago and found that Allstate honored foreign drivers experience. I got a statement from my European insurance company and got the full discount from Allstate right away. Things may have changed in 13 years but it could be worthwhile trying.

meine911

Same experience here. I was an expat a couple times and just needed to get a statement from the foreign country insurance agent about my claims experience to get credit. Also, like others have said, there are plenty of insurance companies out there looking for your money. Shop around. Good luck and hope you enjoy yourselves here.

knasman

Thanks, I will try that. As is mentioned above, this may be a state thing as well, though that sounds very weird in my ears. I got a voicemail from the agent yesterday saying he "had good news for me", so calling back this morning and checking what that might be. Not getting my hopes up, however.

I will get a quote from Allstate too.

Thanks all for your replies, most appreciated! New life abroad isn't always without it's hickups...

knasman

One more update... The agent called me back, and apparently the fact that I had a US drivers license from '92-'93 is enough to make them happy. So the original quotes rates will apply!

SkandoSchwabe

Great! Glad it worked out.