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3 On Your Side: Save On Homeowner Insurance

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Your home is your most valuable asset, so having the right insurance coverage is critical.

But could you be paying more for that coverage than you have to. 3 On Your Side Consumer Reporter Jim Donovan finds that most Delaware Valley homeowners could save hundreds of dollars a year by switching to a lower priced company and they don't have to sacrifice coverage or quality.

Do you like the fact that your insurance company is like a good neighbor? Or maybe you like that they have a reputation of being the helping hands people? Well good for you! But when it comes to homeowner insurance premiums in the Delaware Valley, Robert Krughoff of Delaware Valley Consumers' Checkbook says, "There are a lot of people that have prices that are relatively quite high."

Krughoff and his team found big differences in premiums for the very same insurance coverage. He says, "For instance, for one wood frame house in Philadelphia, we found prices less than a $1,000 for instance at Travelers and more than $1,800 dollars at State Farm."

Krughoff suggests homeowners shop around now. He says, "All those people have to do is switch companies and they might save $500, $800 dollars a year and it's not just this year, it's next year and so on, so it's a lot of money."

According to Krughoff, "One of the nice things that Checkbook.org does is that it identifies for you companies that are going to be very good prospects."

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When Checkbook compared premium prices on the same type of homes they found these companies had the lowest rates:

In Pennsylvania: Liberty Mutual, Selective and Travelers

In New Jersey: Liberty Mutual, MetLife and Selective

In Delaware: Homesite, Liberty Mutual and USAA

According to Krughoff, "Some of the companies that had the lowest prices did very well as far as customer service." He also says, "You don't have to stick with a company because you're afraid something is going to go bad if you take some other company."

Until Monday, June 13th, CBS 3 viewers will have exclusive, free access to Checkbook's ratings of insurance companies so that you can see which offer the best rates without having to compromise your coverage.

You can access that information at:

www.checkbook.org/cbs3/homeownersinsurance

Reported by Jim Donovan, CBS 3

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