I want to shop and compare rates for home insurance without any type of hit to my credit score. What is the best way to do this?
I can’t speak for other states, but my state Department of Commerce posts comparison rates for Home and condo and Auto Insurance. While this PDF for my state will differ from yours (and even differs between our islands/counties) look to see if your state has the same type of documents. If not, perhaps start a petition to make it so. After all, why should you have to rely upon websites where they may make money suggesting you go with XYZ company.
You may find that certain insurance companys listed in the PDF are lower in many states, so you could perhaps use the companys which consistantly are cheapest in my state to start comparisons in your state.
One example I see for my island and the same coverage, the quotes go from $425 to $2,600. Now it may be that the cheapest providers will not actually insure a particular property, but it does show that you may actually (as they say on TV) save money by comparing rates.
In the auto insurance link for my location, you also see drastic differences in rates. You can tell which rates are for what they call ‘assigned risk’ people who barely can get inurance. (Insurance | Insurance Division Consumer Resources)
Just because a company has a cheap rate AND will insure you, you also want to check on their financial ratings and their customer reviews as to whether they deny claims, have horrible customer service, etc.
An enquiry by an insurance company will not change your credit score. It is a soft enquiry that differs from hard enquiries when applying for a loan. The enquiry will be a factor in determining your premium.
Based upon the recommendation from Clark, I have a freeze placed on my credit. Does that need to be removed to get quotes on insurance?
You do not need to remove your credit freeze. You only need to do that when you apply for new credit.
Get quotes from an insurance broker - not a captive agent. Bundling also helps to reduce rates. If you are a AAA member, I’d also get quotes from them.