Cheaper 1998 Dodge Stratus Insurance Quotes

Searching for lower car insurance rates for your Dodge Stratus? Locating low-cost insurance for a new or used Dodge Stratus can normally be a painful process, but you can learn a few tricks to make it easier.

There are both good and bad ways to buy car insurance so you’re going to learn the proper way to compare rates for a new or used Dodge and locate the lowest price either online or from local insurance agents.

It’s a great practice to compare prices periodically due to the fact that insurance rates are constantly changing. Despite the fact that you may have had the best price on Stratus coverage a couple years back you may be paying too much now. There is a lot of bad information regarding car insurance online, so we’re going to give you some great ideas on how to find affordable car insurance.

Cut your auto insurance rates with discounts

Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, buy you may qualify for discounts that can drop the cost substantially. Certain discounts will be applied when you get a quote, but less common discounts must be asked about in order for you to get them. If you don’t get every credit you qualify for, you are paying more than you should be.

  • Driver’s Ed – Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to complete a driver education course in school.
  • Life Insurance – Some companies give better rates if you take out life insurance.
  • Service Members Pay Less – Having a deployed family member may qualify for rate reductions.
  • Air Bag Discount – Vehicles equipped with air bags may earn rate discounts of up to 25% or more.
  • Safe Drivers – Drivers who don’t get into accidents may save up to 50% more on Stratus coverage than drivers with accidents.
  • Memberships – Participating in a qualifying organization could qualify you for a break on auto insurance on Stratus coverage.

It’s important to understand that some credits don’t apply to the entire policy premium. Most only apply to specific coverage prices like physical damage coverage or medical payments. So even though they make it sound like all the discounts add up to a free policy, it just doesn’t work that way. But all discounts will help reduce your overall premium however.

Insurance companies that may have these benefits include:

Double check with every prospective company what discounts are available to you. Discounts may not be available in your area.

Compare Auto Insurance Costs

Comparing auto insurance rates can be a lot of work if you don’t know the most efficient way. You could waste a few hours discussing policy coverages with local insurance agents in your area, or you can utilize the web to get rate comparisons in just a few minutes.

Many popular insurance companies are enrolled in a marketplace where prospective buyers submit one quote, and each company returns a competitive quote for coverage. This prevents consumers from doing form submissions to each company. To find out how much you’re overpaying now click here (opens in new window).

The one downside to doing it this way is that consumers can’t choose which companies to get pricing from. If you prefer to choose individual companies to request quotes from, we put together a list of auto insurance companies in your area. Click here to view list.

However you get your quotes, be sure to compare apples-to-apples coverages and limits for every quote you compare. If you enter differing limits it’s not possible to decipher which rate is best.

Elements that influence Dodge Stratus insurance rates

Consumers need to have an understanding of the different types of things that go into determining the rates you pay for insurance coverage. When you know what positively or negatively impacts premium levels helps enable you to make changes that can help you get better insurance coverage rates.

  • Your car’s features help determine rates – Choosing a vehicle with anti-theft technology or alarm system can help bring down rates. Theft prevention features such as vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems can thwart your vehicle from being stolen.
  • Are you male or female? – Statistics demonstrate women are more cautious behind the wheel. That doesn’t necessarily mean that men are WORSE drivers than women. Both sexes cause accidents in similar numbers, but the males cause more damage. They also get cited for more serious violations such as reckless driving. Teenage male drivers are the most expensive to insure and therefore are the most expensive to insure.
  • Liability coverage protects you – The liability section of your policy will protect you in the event that you are found liable for personal injury or accident damage. It will provide you with a defense in court which can cost thousands of dollars. Liability is cheap compared to insuring for physical damage coverage, so drivers should carry high limits.
  • Marriage pays dividends – Having a wife or husband helps lower the price on your policy. Having a significant other is viewed as being more responsible and statistics show being married results in fewer claims.
  • Older drivers save more – Mature drivers are more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents and tend to be better behind the wheel. Young drivers tend to be less responsible in a vehicle and because of this, their insurance coverage rates are much higher.

You are unique and your insurance should be too

When it comes to choosing the best insurance coverage for your vehicles, there really is not a one size fits all plan. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs.

These are some specific questions may help you determine if you may require specific advice.

  • Why is insurance for a teen driver so high?
  • When should I remove comp and collision on my 1998 Dodge Stratus?
  • Should I put collision coverage on all my vehicles?
  • What is the difference between comprehensive and collision coverage?
  • Is pleasure use cheaper than using my 1998 Dodge Stratus to commute?
  • Am I covered when driving a rental car?
  • Is my cargo covered for damage or theft?
  • Does my 1998 Dodge Stratus qualify for pleasure use?
  • Am I covered by my spouse’s policy after a separation?

If you don’t know the answers to these questions but one or more may apply to you then you might want to talk to an agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, take a second and complete this form. It only takes a few minutes and can provide invaluable advice.

Specific coverages for a 1998 Dodge Stratus

Learning about specific coverages of auto insurance aids in choosing which coverages you need and proper limits and deductibles. Auto insurance terms can be impossible to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring.

Protection from uninsured/underinsured drivers – This coverage provides protection when other motorists either have no liability insurance or not enough. Covered losses include medical payments for you and your occupants and also any damage incurred to your 1998 Dodge Stratus.

Since many drivers carry very low liability coverage limits, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. So UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Normally these limits do not exceed the liability coverage limits.

Medical expense insurance – Med pay and PIP coverage pay for expenses like ambulance fees, X-ray expenses, funeral costs, prosthetic devices and nursing services. The coverages can be used in conjunction with a health insurance program or if you lack health insurance entirely. They cover not only the driver but also the vehicle occupants and also covers if you are hit as a while walking down the street. Personal Injury Protection is not an option in every state but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Collision coverage – Collision coverage covers damage to your Stratus from colliding with an object or car. You have to pay a deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.

Collision insurance covers claims such as sustaining damage from a pot hole, rolling your car, driving through your garage door and backing into a parked car. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so consider removing coverage from older vehicles. You can also raise the deductible to save money on collision insurance.

Liability auto insurance – Liability coverage provides protection from injuries or damage you cause to other’s property or people that is your fault. This coverage protects you against claims from other people, and doesn’t cover your injuries or vehicle damage.

Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. You might see policy limits of 100/300/100 which means $100,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a limit of $300,000 in injury protection per accident, and a limit of $100,000 paid for damaged property. Occasionally you may see a combined single limit or CSL which combines the three limits into one amount with no separate limits for injury or property damage.

Liability coverage protects against claims such as loss of income, pain and suffering, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, medical expenses and funeral expenses. How much liability should you purchase? That is your choice, but buy as high a limit as you can afford.

Comprehensive (Other than Collision) – Comprehensive insurance will pay to fix damage that is not covered by collision coverage. You first have to pay a deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive insurance covers things such as hitting a deer, rock chips in glass, vandalism, a broken windshield and damage from a tornado or hurricane. The most a auto insurance company will pay at claim time is the ACV or actual cash value, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value it’s not worth carrying full coverage.

The bottom line

We just presented many ideas to save on 1998 Dodge Stratus insurance. The most important thing to understand is the more times you quote, the better your comparison will be. You may even find the lowest premiums are with a lesser-known regional company.

Drivers change insurance companies for a number of reasons such as being labeled a high risk driver, high prices, high rates after DUI convictions and even extreme rates for teen drivers. Whatever your reason, finding a new company is less work than it seems.

As you prepare to switch companies, you should never reduce coverage to reduce premium. Too many times, drivers have reduced full coverage and discovered at claim time that the savings was not a smart move. Your strategy should be to buy the best coverage you can find at a price you can afford while still protecting your assets.

Much more information about insurance is available at the links below