You have walked down the aisle, said your vows, and went on your honeymoon and now its time to begin your life together. Your life has probably changed so much! Over the next year, you will probably have many more changes.
As your begin your life with your new spouse, your finances and insurance will likely change too. Most people think this is as simple as putting your name on your spouses policy but think again. Here are some changes that you will want to make.
Car Insurance
Statistics show that married drivers are less likely to get into a car accident in comparison to single drivers. This might help you save money on your car insurance. Make sure to let you agent know exactly when you got married so they start taking into account you are married rather than single. You might see a nice savings! When you combine policies, you will must likely qualify for a multi-car discount. Typically companies will give a discount for having two cars on your policy rather than just one.
Can We Keep Our Policies Separate?
Each company has a different approach to this question. Most times it makes sense to combine your policies but there is certain situations where it can cost your more money. Here are a few situations where it might not make sense to combine polices:
-Your spouse drives a classic car. Usually these are best covered by a company that specializes in classic cars.
-Drives a high value car. A high value insurance company might be be able to better assist their needs.
– Has lots of tickets. Sometimes this limits the number of companies you can purchase insurance from.
If you do decide to keep your policies separate, you want to make sure to talk to your agent to discuss this. Sometimes companies will make you exclude your spouse from your vehicle if you don’t want to include them on your policy. This can be an inconvenience when you want to drive each others vehicle.
Home Insurance
Whether your are buying a new home, moving into your spouses home, or renting, you will most likely need to make some changes.
Now that you have twice the amount of personal property, your coverage will need to change on your renters or home insurance policy. It is important to have the right amount of coverage to make sure to your treasured belongings are protected. What could be worse that starting off a marriage by having to choose which items you want covered because you didn’t update your policy? Sit down with your spouse and make sure you have enough coverage to cover all of your items combined.
If either you or your spouse currently own a home, you will want to make sure that your agent changes your policy rating to married. On home insurance, this might not have as large of an impact but sometimes it can lower rates. You also want to get your spouse added to your policy just in case something was to happen to you.
Wait what about the Ring?
In most instances, your ring can be covered on your home or renters insurance policy but you have to schedule it. This means that you will need to let you agent know about the ring and ask him to put it on your policy. Never assume that it is just covered. Besides your car and your home this is probably your most valuable possession but believe it or not most don’t have coverage on it. Take the time to talk with your agent about the difference in price to add it to your policy. Typically, it will cost less than a few dollars per month.
After getting married it is probably one of the best times to shop around for insurance and make sure you have adequate coverage. You want to make sure your spouse isn’t putting you on a policy with lower limits. Millennium Brokers’ advises couples to compare policies to make sure you each have the coverage you need. This is a good time to contact an Independent Insurance Agent that works with multiple companies.
To get a policy check up or compare premiums with multiple companies you can visit our Get-A-Quote page.