If you ever decide mid-term (in the middle of your policy) to change the agent that takes care of your policy for any reason, take pity on your new agent. Your new agent is taking you on as a favor; they get nothing monetarily out of it until the renewal of our contract. The outgoing agent received the commission. So, patience or at least understanding on your part can win you some points.

Most often, an agent change occurs when a person moves too far away from an agent to make premium payments in their office. Perhaps the prior agent no longer represents that particular insurance company, and the individual needs to find a new agent for that company. If allowed by the company, the new agent will have you sign an agent (or broker) of record letter, naming them to represent you. Signing that letter authorizes them to make calls to the company on your behalf and may have limited access to your account information.

The new agent will not have any direct access to your policy until the renewal date, when everything will appear as if by magic. Until then, questions like "How much is my bill?", "When is my bill due?" or "What are my deductibles?" are questions we may not be able to answer instantly. If we are lucky, we may be able to view the policy declaration on their website.

Also, taking payments may be extremely difficult. We can connect you directly with the company to make a payment over the phone, or we’ll help you open an account online and walk you through the steps to pay. We’ll gain full access to your account at renewal.

We are always happy to be of assistance and will try to make this as smooth a transition for everyone as possible. Give us a call at Pulse Insurance for more information, 503-489-3143, to explore the possibility of making us your servicing agent. Usually, we’ll encourage you to wait until the next renewal or perhaps requote your policy if the circumstances call for it.