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Email template to ask insurance agents for quotes

Your auto, home, or renters policy is up for renewal and the price went up, or you are buying a car or a house and need coverage by a date. Shopping by phone means repeating the same twenty facts to each agent and getting quotes that are hard to compare because each one quietly changed a deductible or a limit. Sending one email with identical facts to several agents gets you written quotes built on the same coverage, so the differences are real. An independent agent can quote several insurers at once; a captive agent represents one company. Emailing a mix of both, plus a direct quote from an online insurer, covers the market in an hour.

Before you send

  • Your current policy's declarations page, the summary sheet that lists each coverage type, its limit, and your deductible. Ask every agent to match those numbers exactly.
  • The facts underwriters need: for auto, each driver's name, date of birth, and license number, plus each vehicle's VIN, mileage, and how it is used. For home, the address, year built, square footage, roof age, and construction type.
  • Your claims history for the last five years and any tickets or accidents. Agents will find them anyway, and leaving them out just makes the quote wrong.
  • The date your current policy ends. Quotes are usually good for about 30 days, so ask two to four weeks before renewal.
  • A list of five to eight agents: two independents, two or three captive agents for big insurers, and one or two direct online quotes.
Subject Quote request: [auto / home / renters] insurance for [your name], effective [date] 
Hi [agent name],

I'm shopping for [auto / home / renters] insurance to start on [effective date], and I'd like a written quote from you. To keep the comparison fair I'm asking each agent to match my current coverage exactly.

Current coverage (from my declarations page):

- [Coverage type: limit, e.g. Bodily injury liability: 100/300]
- [Coverage type: limit]
- [Coverage type: limit]
- Deductible: [amount]

The details you'll need:

- [Driver or property facts, e.g. Driver: name, DOB, license number]
- [Vehicle or home facts, e.g. 2021 Honda CR-V, VIN, 11,000 miles a year, commuting]
- Claims and tickets in the last 5 years: [list, or "none"]
- Current insurer and premium: [name, amount per six months or year]

Please send the quote as a PDF with each coverage line shown, and note any discounts you applied and what they require (bundling, paperless, autopay). If you can also quote a [higher / lower] deductible of [amount], I'd like to see that too.

I'll decide by [date].

Thanks,
[Your name]
[Phone number]
[Zip code]

Everything in brackets is yours to fill in. Keep the rest as it is or change the tone to match how you write.

After you send

  • Expect replies within one to two business days. Line up the PDFs and check that every limit and deductible matches before you look at the price. A cheaper quote with a lower liability limit is not cheaper.
  • Watch for a quote that depends on a discount you will not actually get, like a multi-policy discount when you are only buying one policy. Ask for the price without it.
  • Before switching, send the best quote to your current insurer and ask if they will match or come close. Sometimes they do.
  • Do not cancel your old policy until the new one is bound, meaning the insurer has confirmed coverage in writing with an effective date. A one-day gap can be expensive.

Or don't send it yourself

Forward the job to myagent@standinfor.me and let StandIn run the whole thread.

StandIn is an email assistant that handles conversations with businesses for you. You write it one email saying what you need. It writes to the business, waits for the answer, follows up when they go quiet, pushes back on the number when it should, and brings the results back to your inbox for you to decide. You don't need to install an app or sign up. The first email you send is already the start of the task.

Hand this to StandIn opens an email to myagent@standinfor.me with the job already written out

To myagent@standinfor.me Subject Shop my insurance and bring me quotes to compare 
Hi StandIn,

Please get quotes for my [auto / home / renters] insurance from several agents and lay them out side by side so I can pick one.

Current policy: [insurer, premium, renewal date, and I can send the declarations page].
Coverage to match: [the limits and deductible, or "whatever is on the declarations page"].
Who and what is covered: [drivers with DOB and license numbers, vehicles with VIN and mileage, or the property address and details].
Claims and tickets, last 5 years: [list or none].
When I need coverage to start: [date].

Contact five or more agents including a couple of independents, get written quotes with matching coverage, ask about discounts, and come back with a comparison and your recommendation.

Thanks,
[Your name]

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