South Carolina's beautiful coastal region has always been a prime location for homeowners looking to enjoy the stunning beaches and year-round sunny weather. However, this picturesque region has faced its share of natural disasters, including hurricanes, flooding, and severe storms, leading to a significant impact on the coastal home insurance market.

Over the past few years, South Carolina's coastal insurance market has undergone some significant changes. Let's take a closer look at the current state of the coastal home insurance market in South Carolina.

Homeowners insurance is a type of insurance that provides protection for your home and personal property in the event of damage or loss from certain perils, such as fire, windstorm, and theft. It also provides liability coverage in the event that someone is injured on your property and sues you.
When you're looking for home insurance, it's important to understand that there are different types of coverage available, such as dwelling coverage, which covers the structure of your home, and personal property coverage, which covers your personal possessions. You should also consider additional coverage options, such as flood insurance or umbrella insurance, depending on your specific needs and the risks in your area.

Introduction
Auto insurance is a must for virtually all drivers, but the amount of coverage you need and the company you choose are important factors in your insurance costs. What types of vehicles do you own? Do they require special coverage or safety features? Do they have high mileage? Are they used primarily for pleasure or commuting to work? Your answers to these questions will help you find an auto insurance policy that offers just the right amount of protection without breaking your budget.
The Basics of Auto Insurance
Auto insurance is a type of insurance that covers damage or injuries caused by automobiles. It also covers medical expenses for the insured, their passengers and third parties who are injured in an accident involving the insured automobile. Auto insurance can be divided into three types: liability, collision and comprehensive.
The first type is liability, which covers the costs incurred by an insured party to repair or replace property damaged or destroyed by an insured vehicle. This includes any bodily injuries caused by the same vehicle up to liability limits set forth by law in your state of residence. The second type is collision coverage, which pays for repairs to your car when it collides with another object or vehicle - including pets! The third and final type is comprehensive coverage, which pays for damages unrelated to accidents such as vandalism and weather-related incidents like hailstorms (not counting hurricanes).
Shopping for a New Policy
When you're shopping for a new policy, focus on what your needs are. If you own a home and have young children, for example, you'll want to get the most affordable coverage that will still protect your family in case of an accident.
You should also look into how much money you can afford. Set up a budget that allows room for insurance payments and other monthly expenses like utilities and groceries—these things aren't cheap! Try to make sure that the amount of money spent on auto insurance doesn't take away from any other areas of your budget; this way, if something unexpected happens (like a major car repair), it won't be as stressful financially as it would be otherwise.
Finally—and this is important! —be aware of all the discounts offered by different companies when choosing an insurer or agency. Discounts include things like having clean driving records over time; being part of certain organizations such as AAA; living in safe neighborhoods with low crime rates; driving less than 20 miles per day or owning more than one vehicle (or both). These discounts can help lower premiums while still providing adequate protection against accidents and bodily injury claims brought upon by others on the roadways around us every day.
Choosing the Right Car Insurance Company
The most important step in finding the right car insurance company is to get multiple quotes. You should talk to an independent agent that works with multiple companies and allow them to shop around to find you the best coverage and rates. You should also ask about any discounts available based on factors such as marital status and credit score—these could help save you hundreds of dollars each year!
How to Lower Your Auto Insurance Rates
Enlist and independent agent to shop around for the best auto insurance rates.
Check your credit score and ask about discounts. If you have a good credit score (below 590), most insurance companies will give you a discount on your policy—sometimes as much as 20%. And if you've never been in an accident, some insurers may offer additional savings on top of this.
Get a safe driver discount—and ask about it again. Some states require all insurers to offer a safe driver discount to customers who maintain good driving records without any accidents or moving violations within three years of applying for coverage; other states don't enforce this requirement but still require insurers to offer some type of reward if they're available in that state. To find out what types of rewards are available where you live, check with each individual company before shopping around: often times there'll be one or two carriers that won't offer any safe driver discounts at all because they aren't legally required to do so (and therefore don't want to get into trouble).
Does Credit Matter With Insurance?
Yes, your credit score is a factor in determining your auto insurance rates. However, it's not the only factor, and there are ways to improve your credit score if it's not currently on par with what you want.
The best way to save money on auto insurance? Read on!
Conclusion
This is a great time to shop around for car insurance. It’s important to find the best deal for your needs, and if you’re not sure where to start, we can help! Our friendly agents are ready to answer any questions you have about auto insurance coverage.

2022 Insurance Company Insolvencies

We had an earlier blog post in May regarding the reason for rising insurance rates in the Lowcountry, and one among the many reasons was the number of insurance companies to be declared either Bankrupt or insolvent. So far this year alone we have seen Gulfstream Property and Casualty, St. Johns Insurance Company, Avatar Property and Casualty, Lighthouse Property Insurance Corp, Fed Nat and now Southern Fidelity have all either gone insolvent or are "restructuring".

Southern Fidelity has about 69,000 policies between the states of South Carolina, Louisian, and Mississippi and was declared insolvent last week.

Southern Fidelity Insurance agreed to an order of liquidation from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. As part of the liquidation order, ALL remaining active Southern Fidelity policies will be cancelled effective 12:01 a.m. on 07-15-2022.

As of this announcement, there is no indication another carrier will assume the current policies or offer a transition plan. All current Southern Fidelity policies will have to be replaced by 7-15-2022.

​Conclusion

Make sure you reach out to your agent to look for other options if this insolvency affects you to avoid a potential lapse in coverage, which would undoubtedly increase your premiums for some time into the future. Feel free to reach out to GSP Insurance Group if you need help looking for alternative options or have any questions 843.707.4473, email info@gspins.com or visit our website at www.gspins.com.

Introduction

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), this hurricane season is expected to be above average with seven to 10 hurricanes. An average year has six hurricanes, three of which are major.
Here's what you need to know about hurricane season and your insurance coverage:
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forecasting an above-average hurricane season with seven to 10 hurricanes.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forecasting an above-average hurricane season with seven to 10 hurricanes. While that may sound worrisome, there’s no need to panic.
The NOAA has been predicting an above-average hurricane season for a couple of years now and after taking a deeper look at the data, we think they might be right—at least this year. Let's take a look at why this could be one of those years where we see more hurricanes than usual.
First off, they're expecting seven to 10 hurricanes this year and 45% chance of an above-average hurricane season (for reference: last year was considered below average). NOAA’s definition of “above average” is anything over 12 named storms or tropical cyclones (hurricanes), which is exactly what they're forecasting here in 2022.

Be prepared for Hurricane Season

Have a plan in place. When a hurricane is approaching, you should know where you will go and how you will get there. This can include having a stockpile of supplies such as water and food that you have purchased ahead of time; gas or other fuel so that your car will be ready to evacuate if needed; maps of the area with evacuation routes marked clearly; and any special medications that may need to be taken during an evacuation (or stored safely in a waterproof container). If there are elderly family members or others who cannot evacuate on their own, then someone else must stay behind to assist them until help arrives. If possible, have your family meet at the same location so that everyone knows where they need to go in case, they become separated from one another while trying not only survive but also recover from any damage caused by Hurricane Season.

Conclusion

It’s imperative to take the time now to prepare your home and family for tropical storms and hurricanes. In addition, it’s a good idea to review your insurance coverage with your agent to make sure you have the right amount of protection before a storm strikes.