Why does your home insurance keep going up when you’ve never filed a claim? Insurance agent Dan Sardilli joins Derek Mazzarella, CFP® and Kelly Turner to explain homeowners insurance and car insurance in plain English.

We cover how rate increases get decided (spoiler: Dan doesn’t have a knob in his office), what coverages A through F on your homeowners policy mean, replacement cost vs. market value, and why your insurance company can show up to inspect your roof. Kelly explains why your lender collects 14 months of escrow at closing. We also get into engagement ring coverage, car insurance liability limits, and the $45-a-year water backup coverage that paid out when both of Kelly’s sump pumps failed.

Plus: why budget insurance can cost you more when you file a claim, how Derek negotiated an extra $1,000 on his totaled ‘93 Civic, and the small devices that can lower your premium.

The big takeaway: insurance is meant to make you whole. If you snapped your fingers after a claim, you should be right back where you were five minutes before it happened.

Chapters
00:00 Intro: Meet Dan Sardilli
00:52 Why do my insurance rates keep going up?
01:41 How rate increases actually get set
03:11 Do wildfires and storms raise your rate?
03:35 Homeowners insurance coverages A through F
04:51 Loss of use: the coverage nobody knows about
06:09 Market value vs. replacement cost
08:14 Does insurance cover an old roof?
09:15 Roof age requirements and inspections
14:01 Escrow: why your lender collects 14 months
16:38 Paid-in-full receipt vs. paying at closing
18:56 Do you need to insure your engagement ring?
21:47 How much contents coverage do you need?
23:33 Car insurance deductibles and at-fault states
24:51 Liability limits and Kelly’s three-car pileup
28:20 Are car seats covered after an accident?
29:42 Budget vs. premium insurance companies
32:15 Yes, you can negotiate with your insurer
34:47 Why you should keep your receipts
35:52 Kelly’s flooded basement and water backup coverage
38:00 Devices that can lower your premium
40:06 Where to find Dan

Guest: Dan Sardilli, Sardilli Insurance Agency (Southington, CT) | https://www.sardilliagency.com/
Hosts: Derek Mazzarella, CFP® | Kelly Turner, Mortgage Broker (@CTMortgageMom)