Sarah George is Staff Writer for Small Business Loans at BankRate and formally a personal finance writer at Finder focusing on all things banking and insurance. Her know-how has been featured in such publications as CBS, CNET and Reviews.com, and she was a panelist in Finder’s 2020 money-saving webinar. Sarah earned an English education degree and is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance.
Expertise
- Car, motorcycle, home and life insurance
- Insurance for specific car models
- Analysis of industry reports
- Insurance policy comparison
Experience
- Studying to become a Certified Educator in Personal Finance (CEPF)
- Skilled at breaking down jargon-heavy insurance principles into easy-to-understand terms and concepts
- Author of over 400 insurance articles, including reviews, informational guides, news and data-driven stats pieces
- Expertise featured in digital publications and news networks, including CBS, CNET and Reviews.com
- Panelist on Finder’s 2020 webinar, “How to Find $500 in Your Budget This Month"
Education
- Bachelor of Science in English Education | Pensacola Christian College | 2010–2014
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Industry insights from Sarah George
We asked Sarah to flex her expertise by answering a few questions about insurance risks for drivers and homeowners in 2021.
I live in an area of California at high risk of wildfires. I’m having a difficult time finding an insurance company willing to sell me homeowner’s coverage. What can I do?
You can contact the California Department of Insurance for a list of companies that insure homes in at-risk areas. At best, you’ll find private companies that will accept your home’s wildfire risk. Otherwise, you might need to use the state’s Fair Access to Insurance Requirements (FAIR) Plan. The FAIR Plan spreads the risk of insuring high-risk homes across multiple insurers while offering low coverage for homeowners — some insurance is better than none. Either way, you’ll probably work with the company on fireproofing your home to lower your risk.
Car insurance companies in Europe use dash cams to offer lower premiums. Do you see auto insurers in the US moving to this in the coming years?
Car insurance companies in the US are traditionally slow to make major changes, and some of that is tied to state laws and getting approval to lower premiums. That said, insurers are adopting more and more technology — look at the rise of insurtechs and telematics policies that have paved the way for tracking technology in insurance. If insurers encourage drivers to use dash cams, the footage could help with fighting insurance fraud, which costs companies billions of dollars every year to pay for false claims.
I don’t currently have flood insurance for my home, but live on the coast. How will FEMA’s new flood insurance rules affect me if I buy a policy today?
If you buy a policy from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) before October 1, 2021, you’ll get the benefit of being grandfathered into the new Risk Rating 2.0 system. Current policyholders won’t be subject to the new risk rating methodology until their policy renews on or after April 2022. This new rating system is designed to use new technology and industry best practices to produce rates that are fair, accurate and better represent a property’s actual flood risk. Current laws won’t allow most policyholders’ premiums to rise by more than 18% per year, unless you meet certain criteria. So buying a policy now could help you keep your premiums lower for longer if you live in a flood-prone area. In some cases, you may see a lower premium because the new system looks at your home’s risk and rebuild value, among other factors.
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