For home insurance, most Canadians want to comparison shop. Some may be looking for the lowest priced premium available, along with a company that offers great customer service. One excellent website that offers a comparison review for home insurance is Rates.ca. The site delivers a quick price overview for home insurance companies and prices, almost instantly, after a quick online form is completed.
Home Insurance by Rates.ca is very user-friendly, and saves customers both time and money, as it handles the majority of the research work for quotes. The website boasts a 10% savings for home insurance customers. They work with approximately nine companies, with major providers like Aviva, as well as smaller ones like Sonnet and Square One.
To start with, clients need to head to Rates.ca and click on the “home insurance” option. The next step for customers is choosing the province they reside in, and then clicking on the “Get Quotes” button. This takes clients to the first page of the online form that needs to be filled out for their home insurance quotes. On the page, customers will be required to fill out their home address, as well as the number of years they’ve lived in this house.
After clicking the “Continue” button, clients are taken to the next section of the online form, which will pull up a photo of their home, via Google Maps, a very neat function that helps to confirm the house in question. After a customer has confirmed the home that requires insurance from the photo provided, the next page outlines more information about the homeowner. Personal information is needed: a first and last name, home or mobile number, as well as email address and birth date. A disclaimer pops up, notifying clients that certain home insurance providers use the information from this section to do a soft credit check and claims history; however, this does not affect a customer’s credit score. Lastly, there is a button to opt-in for “Personalized Offers”, where clients can sign-up for a chance to win an Amazon.ca gift card, valued at $500.
After clicking the “See My Rates” button on this last page, a list of home insurance quotes will pop up. It takes about 10-30 seconds for Rates.ca to process all the questions answered and find the home insurance provider quotes that match the information provided. It’s important to keep the “processing” window open during this time, so no quotes are lost! Depending on where you live and your home, three to five quotes will pop up, with the name of the insurance provider, phone number, a quote code, plus the annual and monthly premium price.
There’s also an option at the bottom of the page. This is a “Modify Your Quote” button. If clients click on this, they are sent to another online form with more detailed questions about their home, to help further search for home insurance quotes. The first page outlines property details. Questions include the year the home was built, occupancy type (whether one family or more resides in the home), type of house (i.e., detached, semi-detached, townhouse, etc.), and the number of storeys.
After clicking the “Continue” button, the next part of this form outlines the structural details of the home. Questions include the type and size of the garage, the basement (whether or not it is finished), information about possible pools in the backyard, plus, the type of siding, roof, and wiring the home has. Heating and water information is required for the next page. Clients will need to know their home’s primary heating method, water heater type (plus the last time it was replaced or when it was installed) when the waterline was installed (or replaced), septic (if applicable), and overall water system information, as well as details about the home’s fireplace (if applicable).
After this page is complete, the next part of this “modified quote” questionnaire is the “Safety and Security” of the home. Details about fire hydrants and firehall locations are required, security systems within the home, plus smoke detectors are needed. This page also asks whether a portion of the home is rented out and if smokers reside there. After clicking “Continue” the next portion of the online form reviews a client’s “current” insurance policy details. Questions include the number of years insured with a current policy, whether a claim has been made, possible refusal of coverage/canceled policy, potential co-applicants, the date needed for the new home insurance policy, as well as the number of mortgages held by the applicant.
Once clients proceed, the next page outlines the coverage a client is looking for in terms of personal liability amount, replacement costs, water damage, and overland water coverage. Amount of coverage options are provided for this section, which makes it easy to navigate through.
The final section of the questionnaire reviews possible “discounts”. For clients that have a CAA membership, their account number is required. Bundling up with other insurances also provides discounts, so this page also asks clients about car insurance that can be added to the policy. Bundling up can save customers about 15-20%. Lastly, for clients that are part of workplace unions, associations, or alumni, added discounts can equal out to 30% in savings.
Once this final step is taken, the quote will pop up. As this is an added portion of the questionnaire, only one or two options will be provided. Quotes are listed from lowest to the highest price, and customers should expect a follow-up phone call and email from a Rates.ca representative almost immediately after submitting their online form. The first form takes about 30 seconds to complete, while the second takes about 5 minutes.
For more information, or to receive an instant home insurance quote, visit Home Insurance by Rates.ca.