Should you’re like most individuals, you most likely know GEICO Insurance coverage from the corporate’s numerous tv commercials providing low charges with a 1-800 telephone quantity.
What you won’t know is that you would be able to get the identical GEICO merchandise — and way more personalised service — by calling the native GEICO workplace, the place actual individuals who stay and work in our neighborhood reply the telephone. You possibly can work with an agent who is aware of your identify, understands native insurance coverage points and needs that will help you navigate the difficult world of insurance coverage to search out what’s greatest for you.
The Wesley Chapel native workplace of GEICO is owned by Jaime Bryant and is situated within the Northwoods purchasing heart, which is anchored by Tremendous Goal simply north of County Line Rd., on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.
Whereas GEICO is usually identified for its auto insurance coverage — insuring near 30 million automobiles — the corporate additionally gives insurance coverage for houses, condos, rental residences, boats/watercrafts, jewellery, floods, cell houses/RVs, bikes and umbrella insurance policies, which offer prolonged legal responsibility protection for folks with plenty of belongings.
With hurricane season quick approaching, Jaime says it’s vital to be ready.
“Final 12 months was a busy 12 months, and this season is anticipated to be barely above common,” he says.
Jaime additionally says that one factor many individuals are unaware of is that if their house is broken by a hurricane or tropical storm, the coverage has totally different phrases than if the harm is brought on by wind unrelated to a named storm.
“Individuals don’t understand it’s the next deductible,” he explains. “Ideally earlier than storm season, however positively earlier than you contact anybody to restore the harm at your own home, be certain you realize what your out-of-pocket value might be.”
After a storm, you might have corporations providing to exchange your roof. To know whether or not or not it is best to transfer ahead with the substitute, that you must know the way a lot of that value might be your duty.
“For instance,” Jaime says, “a roofer will file a declare, the insured will receives a commission, however insurance coverage solely covers half due to the deductible. It’s actually vital to know what your deductible is and ensure you will pay that deductible earlier than transferring ahead with these repairs.”
And, he says, now’s the time to buy new home-owner’s insurance coverage. Should you’re considering of fixing insurance policies, or in case your coverage renews throughout hurricane season, generally a storm comes by and corporations pause writing new insurance policies for 30 to 45 days. In that case, you may’t get instant protection. “It’s good to be proactive with home-owner’s insurance coverage throughout hurricane season,” Jaime says. “Time will not be your pal.”
He provides that proper now is an effective time to buy new auto insurance coverage, too.
“Charges have stabilized and lots of people are discovering decrease costs now,” Jaime says.
Jaime’s workplace has 10 brokers, all of whom are skilled and educated that will help you get the precise insurance coverage for you and your wants. Every individual’s state of affairs is exclusive, so an area agent can you’ll want to ask you the precise inquiries to get the precise insurance policies in place.
Jaime has lived within the Tampa Bay space for greater than 20 years and is a College of South Florida graduate with a Grasp of Enterprise Administration (MBA) diploma. He labored for GEICO in Lakeland for 16 years, previous to opening the Wesley Chapel workplace.
He says calling his workplace, as a substitute of the 1-800 quantity, ensures that you just’re speaking with somebody who understands Florida and the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel space particularly.
“We wish to ensure you don’t have an excessive amount of or too little insurance coverage on your state of affairs,” he says. “Nothing’s ever one-size-fits-all.”
Andrea Shank is a long-time GEICO buyer who was comfy utilizing GEICO’s on-line instruments and by no means thought of working with an area agent. When her brother not too long ago handed away, her mother was coping with a probate course of and wanted to insure automobiles that weren’t registered in her identify but. Andrea’s mother had beforehand labored with somebody within the Wesley Chapel workplace, so that they reached out and linked with George, one in every of Jaime’s native brokers.
Andrea says George spent most of that total day serving them — answering questions, getting verification on difficult questions, researching solutions, calling again, sending types for them to fill out, and many others. – however she says that what stood out was the compassionate approach George handled her mother throughout the troublesome lack of her son, which was utterly surprising.
“He was so affected person along with her,” Andrea says. “He was humorous, and made my mother chortle, which was fairly great in that circumstance.”
Andrea provides that he additionally took the time to share a private advice for a corporation that would assist her mother modify the automobiles to regulate the pedals, even emailing her contact data after enterprise hours.
“He went to this point above and past, it was superb to me,” Andrea says. “The extent of customer support he supplied is a startling distinction from what we’ve come to anticipate.”
In actual fact, she says, she’s already referred her nephew, sister and greatest pal to the workplace.
“Little question,” she says, “I can’t return to a web-based state of affairs. All of us get used to what we purchase and don’t take into consideration making modifications, even when our circumstances change. That’s one thing we must always have a look at. I’ll positively proceed to name George, as a result of it was such a pleasant expertise.”
The GEICO-Wesley Chapel native workplace is situated at 1227 Bruce B. Downs Blvd. It’s open Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m.-6:30 p.m., and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sat. For extra data, go to GEICO.com/Wesley-Chapel-Bryant or name (813) 953-4200.
