Changes to your Grinnell Mutual policies
Set up a new account
Grinnell Mutual is in the process of moving all personal Watercraft and Inland Marine policies to our new technology system (the transition for personal auto polices, which may include recreational vehicle and farm truck policies, is complete). This migration to the new platform will be done on a rolling basis, by renewal date through March 2024.
To continue to manage your policies online, you'll need to set up a new account on CustomerEngage. You can set up that account as soon as you receive your renewal Declarations packet for any of polices and/or your bill for your renewal term. Both documents will arrive before your renewal date. You'll need your policy number (found on both documents) to set up the account.
NOTE: If you have more than one type of these policies, and have already set up a CustomerEngage account for one of them, you can link other account(s) and policy/ies from within CustomerEngage. After you log in, make sure to choose the correct "Account Holder" if you have more than one account holder. Then click the button on your home screen that says "Add Another Account" and follow the prompts to add your other policy/ies. You'll need to have your policy number(s) handy.
Log in to your account
On or after your renewal date, you will have to have your new account set up in order to continue managing your policies and payments online.
We know transitioning to new technology can seem complicated and inconvenient, and we appreciate your patience during this process. Below you’ll find some information we’ve put together to help you navigate these changes.
If you have questions or need help after reading the provided information, please call Grinnell Mutual. You can reach our Customer Service team at 800-362-2041.
Important information
Billing: Where you pay your bill has changed
- To pay your renewal premium online you will need to create an account on the new platform using your policy number (found on your renewal Declarations page or your billing invoice for your next term).
- If you pay by mail, your renewal payment will go to a different address than it has previously. Please send your renewal payment and all subsequent payments to Grinnell Mutual Payment Center, P.O. Box 5137, Des Moines, IA 50305.
- Once the auto policy migration is complete, you'll receive separate invoices for your auto policy and any other policy/ies you have.
- Personal auto policy payments must be made separately from other policy payments as they go to two separate places.
- EFT (electronic funds transfer) users: Please read the EFT information section below.
Other things to know
- Your policy renewal date determines when your policy moves to the new system.
- Until your renewal date, you can continue to manage the non-payment functions (claims, policy info, documents) on the current platform.
- You will continue to manage all other Grinnell Mutual polices on the current platform.
A new system to serve you better
We're maintaining the functions of the online account you've had — getting your auto ID card, filing a claim, etc. — but we're adding some new features.
Easier claims filing
- We'll automatically assign claims to an adjuster upon submission
- Easier access to coverages and claims details
- Separate, simple path to file windshield claims
Other benefits
- Your agent information available from your dashboard view
- Easy access to your policy and account information
ONLINE ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT FOR EFT (ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER) USERS
Our current billing platform allows for billing “in arrears.” This means that you can set your EFT withdrawal date for any point during the month for that month's coverage. However, on the new platform, all payments must be made in advance of the coverage month.
Example: Payment withdrawn on July 22 will be credited to your August bill, not to July's as is currently done if your account is set up to pay in arrears.
You can still set the date you prefer, but the withdrawal on that date will cover the next month's payment. You won't need to set up your EFT schedule again on the new platform unless you want to change the date funds are withdrawn; your current settings will carry over.
For this renewal term ONLY: Policyholders who have set up withdrawals for dates in arrears will not receive a bill until the second month of the term. We'll spread the first month’s premium for the new policy term evenly across the remaining months of the term (five months of a six-month term, or 11 months of a 12-month term).
If you would prefer to pay the full amount due for the first month on your new policy term, that payment will be credited to the following month(s).
How this affects Jill Policyholder, who pays in arrears
Jill has a Grinnell Select auto insurance policy that has a six-month term* — Dec. 18, 2021, to June 18, 2022. She chose to have an EFT payment withdrawn on the 15th of every month.
Jill is paying “in arrears” because some of the coverage days (days 1–14 of each month) have passed before she has paid for them.
The amount due on her current policy term (Dec. 18, 2021, to June 18, 2022) will be automatically deducted through EFT on June 15 (the date Jill set).
For Jill's new policy term (June 18, 2022–Dec. 18, 2022), her premium is $100 a month. Jill's EFT withdrawal date setting will carry over from the current platform to the new one.
However, the $100 will NOT be withdrawn on June 15 as it normally would have been. Instead, that June payment will be spread among her monthly premiums for July–November, 2022, making each of those payments $120 ($100/5 months = $20 per month extra).
NOTE: This is a one-term change and will happen ONLY for this renewal period while policies migrate to the new platform. So:
On Dec. 15, 2022, the end of Jill’s first term on the new platform, her EFT withdrawals will return to $100 each month** starting with the Dec. 15 payment, and will be spread over the whole six months of the following term (Dec. 18, 2022–June 18, 2023).
Once her account has migrated to the new platform, in order to access online functions (get an auto ID card, see her policy details, file a claim etc.), Jill will need to create a new account that links to the new platform.
*This scenario also applies to 12-month terms
** The premium on your renewal term may differ from the previous policy term.
Jill’s calendar looks like this:
IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, PLEASE CALL GRINNELL MUTUAL FOR THE FASTEST ASSISTANCE. YOU CAN REACH OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM AT 800-362-2041.