Mapping Out Arkansas Insurance from the Ozarks to the Delta
While it’s no surprise to those who call The Land of Opportunity home, the state of Arkansas may well be one of the nation’s best kept secrets. Be it Wal-Mart HQ up in Bentonville, the thriving University communities of Fayetteville and Jonesboro, or the agricultural hotspots of the Arkansas Delta and the Grand Prairie, Arkansas sports far more multi-millionaires these days than it does hillbillies. In fact, Arkansas has enjoyed a boom in both economic prosperity and population over the last few decades that rivals just about anywhere else in the country. From an insurance standpoint, that means there are a lot of new insurance policies being purchased in Arkansas, and a lot of new customers learning to navigate the specific laws, regulations, particularities, and potential pitfalls of Arkansas Insurance. If you’re on the hunt for insurance in Arkansas, here’s a quick hitting primer to help you get started and in-the-know.
The Hogs of Arkansas Insurance: Auto and Home
Ask any Arkansan what their most pressing insurance needs are, and it’s a safe bet that auto and home insurance tops the list. That said, it’s important that you know state laws, regulations, and other concerns that are specific to purchasing auto and home insurance in Arkansas if you’re shopping around.
- Arkansas Automobile Insurance — Let’s start with the only type of insurance coverage that the state of Arkansas mandates you to carry by law: auto. If you own a vehicle in Arkansas, you’re required to carry insurance on your automobile to the tune of Bodily Liability Coverage of $25,000/$50,000, and Property Damage Coverage of $25,000. If you’re up in arms about these requirements, keep in mind that they do, in fact, serve your best interests. If you’re determined to be at fault in an accident, this coverage will help pay for the medical bills and auto repairs that you would otherwise be liable for on your own. And if it helps to ease the pain any, it’s worth noting that the average rate of auto insurance coverage in Arkansas ($660 per year as determined by a recent study by the Insurance Information Institute) ranks 36th in the nation when it comes to auto insurance rates. To make a long story short, you could do a lot worse. Residents of New Jersey, for example, pay almost double that for their premiums, at $1,104 per annum.
- Arkansas Homeowners Policies — While homeowners insurance isn’t required by the state of Arkansas, it is required by most mortgage lenders if you carry a mortgage on your home. Add to that the fact that Arkansas experiences over 60 major thunderstorms per year (a stat that is on the rise, whether you’re a believer in climate change or not), and often gets the leftovers of Gulf Coast Hurricanes, and it’s a good idea to protect your residence with homeowners insurance whether the State of Arkansas requires it or not. As for the costs, while the type and amount of coverage that you opt to carry are up to you and will ultimately determine your individual policy premiums, a recent study by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) puts the average cost of homeowners insurance in Arkansas at $800 per year, quite a bit more than the national average of $696. Finally, if you live in the Arkansas Delta region, or anywhere else along the Mississippi, you’re probably already familiar with flood insurance. If you’re at risk, flood insurance (provided by the Federal Government through FEMA) will boost your premiums substantially, though it’s one coverage that is well worth the peace of mind and protection it provides.
Be on the Lookout for Arkansas Insurance Fraud
According to the Arkansas Department of Insurance, insurance fraud is a real and pressing concern in the Natural State, having risen a staggering 22.25% from 2007 to 2008 – figures that continue to rise. That being the case, no amount of knowledge about coverage, policies, premiums, and/or laws and regulations will do you any favors if you don’t know what to look for when you start collecting Arkansas insurance quotes. First and foremost, the more Arkansas insurances you obtain the better, and be sure to keep your radar up for quotes that are substantially out of line with what the rest of the industry has to offer. As a rule, if a quote looks too good to be true, it probably is. Besides that, the ADI stresses that consumers need to do their homework and check that potential insurance providers are licensed and registered with the State of Arkansas before they get too excited about any rates that significantly undercut the opposition.
The Secret to Finding Reputable Arkansas Insurance Quotes
The biggest secret to hunting down the best rates from reputable insurance providers is really no secret at all. As we already suggested, take the time to track down the most Arkansas home insurance, auto insurance, health insurance, life insurance and business insurance quotes you possibly can, and then follow up on your best offers with an inquisition of your own. By adopting this shotgun strategy from the very beginning, you’ll ensure that you’re getting the best possible rates for you and yours, and you’ll be able to weed out shady providers that lure in customers with lowball estimates at the cost of quality coverage, as well as those who try to take advantage of the uneducated consumer with exorbitant rates. Finally, in a state like Arkansas, where fraud is a going concern, consider using a quote referral service like NetQuote .com who vets all of its associate insurance providers prior to linking them up with customers. That way you’ll know from the beginning that the Arkansas insurance quotes you’re dealing with are on the up and up.
Arkansas Insurance Information By City:
| Jonesboro | North Little Rock | Conway |
| Rogers |
