Have you fallen victim to an underperforming, overpriced insurance policy? Say no more because many consumers feel financially strained by their insurance policy.
Many insurance companies vie for your hard-earned dollar, so it can be very hard to choose a insurer and get the definite cheapest price
Performing a rate comparison can take time and effort if you don’t know the easiest way. You can spend countless hours talking about coverages with insurance companies in your area, or you could save time and use online quoting to get prices fast.
Many of the larger companies participate in a marketplace that enables customers to enter their policy data once, and each company returns a competitive quote for coverage. This prevents consumers from doing quotation requests for each company. To find out how much you’re overpaying now click here to open in new window.
The single downside to getting quotes like this is you don’t know exactly which companies you will receive quotes from. So if you want to choose from a list of companies to compare, we have a listing of the cheapest insurance coverage companies in your area. Click here to view list.
You can use whichever method you prefer to find lower rates, just try to keep the same coverage data for each price quote. If you compare mixed coverages it will be impossible to make a fair rate comparison. Just a small difference in insurance coverages or limits could throw off the whole comparison. Just remember that quoting more provides better odds of finding a lower rate than you’re paying now.
Popular auto insurance providers such as 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm regularly use television, radio, and online ads. They all seem to advertise claims about saving some big amount just by switching to their company. How does every auto insurance company offer drivers better rates? It’s all in the words they use.
Most companies have strict underwriting profiles for the type of driver that will add to their bottom line. For example, this type of risk profile may be over the age of 45, has no driving citations, and drives newer vehicles. A driver who matches that profile may get the lowest prices and will probably save quite a bit of money when switching.
Consumers who do not fit those standards will be charged higher premium rates which leads to the prospect going elsewhere. Company advertisements say “people that switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that much money. This is how companies can truthfully advertise the savings.
That is why you absolutely need to get auto insurance quotes from several different companies. It’s just too difficult to predict which company will have the best premium rates at this point in time.
The cost of insuring your cars can be expensive, but there are discounts available to help bring down the price. Certain reductions will be credited at the time you complete a quote, but some must be manually applied before they will apply. If you’re not getting every credit possible, you’re paying more than you need to.
As a footnote on discounts, most discount credits are not given the the whole policy. Most only reduce individual premiums such as comprehensive or collision. Just because it seems like adding up those discounts means a free policy, you’re out of luck.
If you would like to choose from a list of providers offering auto insurance discounts, click here to view.
When choosing adequate coverage, there really is not a single plan that fits everyone. Your needs are not the same as everyone else’s so your insurance needs to address that. Here are some questions about coverages that may help highlight if you would benefit from professional advice.
If you’re not sure about those questions then you might want to talk to a licensed agent. To find an agent in your area, simply complete this short form or you can also visit this page to select a carrier
Understanding the coverages of your policy can help you determine which coverages you need and proper limits and deductibles. Policy terminology can be confusing and nobody wants to actually read their policy. These are typical coverage types found on most insurance policies.
Coverage for medical expenses – Coverage for medical payments and/or PIP pay for bills for surgery, nursing services, funeral costs and EMT expenses. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance program or if you do not have health coverage. Coverage applies to both the driver and occupants in addition to being hit by a car walking across the street. Personal injury protection coverage is only offered in select states but it provides additional coverages not offered by medical payments coverage
Liability auto insurance – Liability coverage provides protection from damage that occurs to people or other property by causing an accident. It protects YOU from legal claims by others. Liability doesn’t cover damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.
It consists of three limits, bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. As an example, you may have values of 25/50/25 which stand for a limit of $25,000 per injured person, a total of $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $25,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Another option is a combined single limit or CSL which combines the three limits into one amount without having the split limit caps.
Liability coverage pays for claims like funeral expenses, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, structural damage and bail bonds. How much liability should you purchase? That is your choice, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as high a limit as you can afford.
Comprehensive insurance – This coverage covers damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first have to pay a deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive insurance covers claims like damage from getting keyed, hail damage, a broken windshield and falling objects. The maximum payout you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.
Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers – Your UM/UIM coverage protects you and your vehicle from other drivers when they do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered claims include injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants as well as damage to your 2018 Lexus IS 300.
Since many drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. For this reason, having high UM/UIM coverages should not be overlooked. Most of the time these limits are similar to your liability insurance amounts.
Collision – This pays to fix your vehicle from damage resulting from a collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible and then insurance will cover the remainder.
Collision coverage protects against things like scraping a guard rail, colliding with a tree, damaging your car on a curb and crashing into a ditch. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so consider removing coverage from vehicles that are 8 years or older. It’s also possible to bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.
Budget-friendly auto insurance can be purchased on the web in addition to many insurance agents, and you need to comparison shop both to have the best selection. Some companies don’t offer price quotes online and these smaller providers prefer to sell through independent agents.
When getting auto insurance quotes online, it’s not a good idea to skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. Too many times, an insured cut collision coverage and learned later that it was a big mistake. Your goal is to buy enough coverage at the lowest possible cost, not the least amount of coverage.