Robert Prowse

Commerce

Jumping through insurance hoops

I have found that insurance companies are trying to raise rates or cut benefits any way they can. My homeowners insurance is making me verify that I have a current subscription for my alarm system. If I can't prove it, they will raise my rates. My health insurance wants a copy of my marriage certificate and first page of my latest income tax return (with financial information blacked out) or they will drop my wife's coverage. There was a time when all this would have consumed too many man hours for the insurance companies, but now computers do it all. Unfortunately, the consumer has to jump through more and more hoops.