Maryland has a couple of features worth knowing, and clients moving in from elsewhere are often unfamiliar with them.
What is rate lock?
One of my core carriers offers a rate-lock program in Maryland that holds your auto rate until a car, a driver or an address changes. While nothing changes, your rate does not move with general increases.
There is a mechanic worth understanding before you rely on it. When one of those things does change, the rate catches up — it incorporates the increases from the intervening years all at once. That is not a penalty; it is the program working as designed. But it means that adding a teenage driver to a rate-locked policy produces a larger jump than it would otherwise, because two changes arrive together.
What else is specific to Maryland?
Water backup is the number one home claim. That has been true throughout my time in this market, and it is why I will not write a Maryland home policy with $5,000 of water backup on it.
License and registration alignment. There is a surcharge for not having your license in Maryland when you live there. Once the license and registration are updated, it falls away — but it catches people who move and delay the paperwork.
Claims timeframes. A claim carries a surcharge of roughly twenty to thirty percent for three years, and multiple non-weather claims within three years will lead to non-renewal. That is the same as the District and shorter than Virginia.
Asset exposure. Wages can be garnished in Maryland, which is a real consideration when sizing an umbrella against your net worth.
What I recommend
- Carry at least $25,000 of water backup, and $50,000 to $100,000 with a finished basement.
- Update your license and registration promptly after a move.
- If you are on a rate-lock program, ask what a new driver will actually cost before adding one.
- Size your umbrella with future earnings in mind, not just current assets.
The short version
Maryland has a rate-lock program that holds your auto rate until a car, driver or address changes, with a catch-up when one does. Water backup is the number one home claim, and a license surcharge applies until you update it after a move.
Let me know if you would like your Maryland policies reviewed.
