Lower Your 1996 Toyota RAV4 Insurance Cost

Finding better insurance prices for your Toyota RAV4 can be an all-consuming task, but you can learn our insurance coverage buying tips to save time. There are both good and bad ways to shop for insurance coverage and we’ll show you the quickest way to get price quotes for your Toyota and find the lowest possible price either online or from local insurance agents.

It’s a good habit to compare prices every six months due to the fact that insurance rates change regularly. Just because you found the best deal for RAV4 coverage last year there may be better deals available now. There is a lot of wrong information about insurance coverage on the web, but by reading this article, you’re going to learn the best ways to find cheap insurance coverage.

Finding affordable coverage is easy if you know what you’re doing. If you are insured now or are looking for a new policy, you can use this information to cut your premiums while maximizing coverage. Drivers only need an understanding of how to compare prices on the web.

How to Compare Car Insurance Costs

Cutting your car insurance rates is not a difficult process. Consumers just need to take a few minutes comparing rates provided by online insurance companies. This can be accomplished in several different ways.

  1. The most efficient way to get quotes would be an industry-wide quote request form click to view form in new window. This form prevents you from having to do a different quote for every car insurance company. One form will get you price quotes instantly.It’s the quickest way to get rates.
  2. A harder way to analyze rates consists of going to the website for each individual company to complete their respective quote request forms. For examples sake, we’ll pretend you want to compare Allstate, Geico and State Farm. To get each rate you have to spend time on each company’s site to enter your coverage information, which is why most consumers use the first method.

    For a handy list of car insurance company links in your area, click here.

However you get your quotes, make absolute certain that you use the exact same coverages and limits for every company. If you compare different deductibles you will not be able to decipher which rate is best.

Take advantage of discounts

Auto insurance companies don’t list all available discounts in an easy-to-find place, so we researched both the well known and also the lesser-known auto insurance savings. If they aren’t giving you every credit possible, you’re paying more than you need to.

  • Payment Method – By paying your policy upfront instead of making monthly payments you can actually save on your bill.
  • Safe Drivers – Drivers who avoid accidents can pay as much as 50% less for RAV4 coverage than drivers with accident claims.
  • Multi-car Discount – Buying coverage for more than one vehicle with the same company may reduce the rate for each vehicle.
  • Discount for Swiching Early – Select companies give a discount for buying a policy prior to your current policy expiring. The savings is around 10%.
  • Defensive Driver – Taking a course teaching defensive driving skills could possibly earn you a 5% discount if you qualify.
  • Lower Rates for Military – Being deployed with a military unit could be rewarded with lower premiums.
  • Theft Prevention System – Vehicles equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems are stolen less frequently and earn discounts up to 10%.
  • Low Mileage – Driving fewer miles could qualify for a substantially lower rate.

As a disclaimer on discounts, many deductions do not apply to your bottom line cost. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like comp or med pay. So when it seems like you can get free auto insurance, you won’t be that lucky.

Insurance companies that possibly offer some of the above discounts include:

Check with each insurance company what discounts are available to you. Savings may not apply everywhere.

Toyota RAV4 rate determination is complex

Consumers need to have an understanding of the factors that play a part in calculating the rates you pay for insurance coverage. Knowing what controls the rates you pay allows you to make educated decisions that could result in much lower annual insurance costs.

  • Having a spouse can save you money – Having a wife or husband can get you a discount when buying insurance coverage. It usually means you are more responsible and it’s proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.
  • Safer cars are cheaper to insure – Vehicles with good safety scores tend to have better insurance rates. These vehicles have better occupant injury protection and any reduction in injury severity translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims and thus lower rates. If your Toyota RAV4 earned at least an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website or four stars on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website it is probably cheaper to insure.
  • Frequent insurance coverage claims increase rates – If you are a frequent claim filer, you can look forward to either policy cancellation or increased premiums. Car insurance companies generally give cheaper rates to drivers who do not file claims often. Your insurance policy is intended for larger claims.
  • Males pay more for insurance – Statistics demonstrate women tend to be less risk to insure than men. However, don’t assume that men are worse drivers. Both sexes tend to get into accidents at a similar rate, but the male of the species cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also tend to receive more costly citations such as reckless driving.

How to know if you need help

When it comes to choosing the best insurance coverage coverage, there really is not a “best” method to buy coverage. Every insured’s situation is different.

For instance, these questions may help highlight if your insurance needs will benefit from professional help.

  • Why does it cost so much to insure a teen driver?
  • What exactly is covered by my policy?
  • Should I buy full coverage?
  • How much underlying liability do I need for an umbrella policy?
  • Are my friends covered when driving my car?
  • Can my babysitter drive my car?
  • Do I need rental car coverage?

If you can’t answer these questions, you may need to chat with a licensed insurance agent. If you don’t have a local agent, complete this form. It’s fast, free and can provide invaluable advice.

Switch companies and save? Really?

Drivers get pounded daily by advertisements for car insurance savings by State Farm, Allstate and Geico. All the companies make an identical promise that you can save if you move to their company.

But how can every company say the same thing? It’s all in the numbers.

All companies have a preferred profile for the type of driver that is profitable for them. An example of a preferred risk might be over the age of 40, insures multiple vehicles, and drives less than 10,000 miles a year. Any new insured that hits that “sweet spot” gets the lowest rates and therefore will save when switching.

Drivers who don’t measure up to these standards must pay higher rates and this can result in the customer not buying. The ads state “drivers who switch” not “people who quote” save money. That’s the way companies can claim big savings. This illustrates why it is so important to get quotes from several different companies. You cannot predict which company will provide you with the cheapest Toyota RAV4 insurance rates.

Car insurance 101

Learning about specific coverages of your insurance policy can help you determine which coverages you need and the correct deductibles and limits. The coverage terms in a policy can be difficult to understand and coverage can change by endorsement.

Comprehensive protection

Comprehensive insurance coverage will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first must pay your deductible then your comprehensive coverage will pay.

Comprehensive coverage protects against things such as damage from getting keyed, a broken windshield and hitting a bird. The most you’ll receive from a claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value consider removing comprehensive coverage.

Liability auto insurance

Liability insurance protects you from injuries or damage you cause to other’s property or people. It protects YOU from claims by other people, and doesn’t cover your injuries or vehicle damage.

Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. You commonly see limits of 50/100/50 that translate to $50,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, $100,000 for the entire accident, and property damage coverage for $50,000.

Liability coverage pays for claims such as attorney fees, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, emergency aid and loss of income. How much liability coverage do you need? That is your choice, but consider buying as high a limit as you can afford.

Uninsured or underinsured coverage

Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants from other motorists when they do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for hospital bills for your injuries as well as damage to your Toyota RAV4.

Because many people only carry the minimum required liability limits, their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is important protection for you and your family.

Medical expense coverage

Med pay and PIP coverage kick in for expenses such as prosthetic devices, doctor visits, EMT expenses and rehabilitation expenses. They can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance policy or if there is no health insurance coverage. It covers both the driver and occupants in addition to if you are hit as a while walking down the street. PIP coverage is not an option in every state and may carry a deductible

Collision coverage protection

This coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision coverage protects against claims such as scraping a guard rail, hitting a parking meter, sustaining damage from a pot hole and crashing into a building. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so consider removing coverage from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.

The best insurance company isn’t always the cheapest

When you buy insurance online, you should never buy poor coverage just to save money. There are too many instances where someone dropped comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to regret at claim time that the savings was not a smart move. The proper strategy is to buy the best coverage you can find for the lowest price, not the least amount of coverage.

Cheap 1996 Toyota RAV4 insurance can be sourced online in addition to many insurance agents, and you need to comparison shop both so you have a total pricing picture. Some companies do not provide you the ability to get quotes online and many times these regional insurance providers only sell through independent insurance agents.

In this article, we covered many tips how you can compare insurance prices online. The most important thing to understand is the more companies you get rates for, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. Consumers may even find the lowest priced insurance comes from a small mutual company.

Additional detailed information can be found in the articles below: