Frequently Asked Questions

Privacy, Security and your Information

Is it safe to send my information over the internet?

This website uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) protocol. With SSL, any information you provide is encrypted as it travels between your computer and our servers. Once we receive your information, we have physical, electronic and procedural safeguards in place to protect it.

Why do you need my email address?

John Geno Insurance Agency, Inc. will correspond with you via email in order to process your quote and by filling out our quote sheets at your convienance we save you time and money. We are a local agency that cares about you so we personnalize your quote by calling you with the final price and going over the coverage so you feel comfortable with what you are purchasing. Rest assured, we do not give or sell your email address to others for marketing purposes. We will use your email address to send you information about your quote. If you don't have a valid email address, call us to get a quote over the phone!

Why do you order consumer reports about me?

Like most insurance companies, we order consumer reports such as credit-based insurance score, motor vehicle reports, claim history reports and other consumer reports to help us underwrite and rate your policy. Even if you are only shopping for a preliminary quote, we order some these reports so that we can give you a more accurate quote. But don't worry- our inquiry will not affect your credit rating!

What information do you get from consumer reporting agencies and how do you use it?

Like most insurance companies, we order consumer reports such as credit-based insurance score, motor vehicle reports, claim history reports, prior carrier reports and other consumer reports to help us underwrite and rate your policy. Even if you are only shopping for a preliminary quote, we order these reports so that we can give you a more accurate quote. But don't worry- our inquiry will not affect your credit rating!

Here's more information about some of the reports we use:

Credit-based Insurance Score: is derived from information on your credit report. Typical items on your credit report that can affect your insurance score include length of credit history, payment history, number of revolving or new accounts, bankruptcies, foreclosures and other items. We do not use income, gender, address, ethnicity, religion, marital status or nationality in calculating insurance score.

Motor Vehicle Reports (MVRs): these contain information about accidents and motor vehicles violations. They do not include information about parking tickets. We order MVRs on all licensed drivers in your household.

Claim History Reports: these provide information about household claim history.

Prior Carrier Reports: these provide information about your current/prior auto insurance, including carrier name, coverage limits, whether there were any lapses, and other information.

Where do you get the information you need to provide me with a quote?

You give us most of the information we need during the quoting process. But we also get information from consumer reporting agencies, independent reporting companies and government agencies. Some of this information is used to validate information you give us- motor vehicle violations, for example- so that we can give you a more accurate quote.

What information affects my premium?

We utilize many factors in calculating your premium. Some common factors that could affect your premium include, but are not limited to:

history of accidents
infractions
claim history
information about your prior carrier
coverage limits
insurance score

This short list is meant only as a general example of some common factors that could affect premium. Actual information used to rate and underwrite policies varies by state.

What information affects my credit-based insurance score?

Many factors affect your credit based insurance score. Some common factors that can positively impact your score include:

long-established credit history
no late payments or past due accounts
numerous open credit accounts in good standing
low use of available credit

On the other hand, the following can negatively impact your insurance score:

poor payment history or accounts in collection
numerous past due payments
high use of available credit
numerous recent applications for credit
bankruptcies
foreclosures

Why are you asking for my Social Security Number?

When you give us your social security number, it helps us get accurate information about you. This means a more accurate quote for you! Please know that we take privacy and security very seriously. As such, we take precautions to protect any personal information we have about you, including your social security number. We have physical, electronic and procedural safeguards in place to help us protect your information.

Will obtaining this quote affect my credit rating?

No! Our inquiry into your credit history will appear only as an insurance inquiry, and it will not affect your credit rating.