(MONEY Magazine) – I read the November article ''How to Save $1,000 on Auto Insurance,'' then changed my policy. The amount of savings was 65 times the cost of my subscription to MONEY. Charles Marlow Hampton, Va.

Rates are not the most important factor in the insurance decision. The company's claims service should be first and foremost. Why else do we pay premiums? Brian Vasconcellos Bellingham, Wash.

As an independent insurance agent, I feel compelled to point out an irony in your article. You questioned the independent agent's ability to deliver ''the best price.'' Yet in the last paragraph you reported that a couple who did some ''hard-nosed'' shopping found the lowest price and the best coverage from Keystone Insurance -- a firm that sells its policies primarily through independent agents. R.C. Riley Benton, Ky.

In 1988, I lived in Virginia, my vehicle was licensed in Virginia, and my driver's license was issued in Virginia. While in South Carolina, I was given a speeding ticket. To the best of my memory this was my first violation in more than 50 years of driving. I paid the $60 fine and, because of my good record, neither the State of Virginia nor State Farm Insurance penalized me any further. I thought the case was closed, but not so. I moved to North Carolina in July of 1991 and transferred my insurance to the local State Farm agency. Even though I was receiving a ''good-driver discount,'' my rates were increased approximately $310 for the remaining year of a three-year penalty period based on that old 1988 ticket. I am lucky. Had I moved to North Carolina shortly after my speeding violation, I would have been charged about $930 in rate increases over a three-year period. I have a name for this kind of insurance practice: highway robbery. Frank J. Hoose New Bern, N.C.