Comparing and finding more affordable premium rates for car insurance might be hard for people who are beginners to shopping for insurance online. You have so many agents and companies to choose from that it can quickly become a difficult challenge to lower your prices.
Finding affordable coverage is easy if you know what you’re doing. If you currently have car insurance, you will be able to cut costs considerably using these techniques. But consumers can benefit by having an understanding of how insurance companies compete online and use this information to your advantage.
There are several ways you can shop for insurance but some are easier and takes less work. You could waste a few hours talking about coverages with agents in your area, or you could save time and use the internet to maximize your effort.
Most car insurance companies enroll in a system where prospective buyers submit their information once, and at least one company can provide price quotes. This prevents consumers from doing form submissions for each company you want a rate for.
To find out how much you’re overpaying now click here (opens in new window).
The only drawback to using this type of system is that consumers can’t choose the providers to get quotes from. So if you want to choose specific providers to request quotes from, we put together a list of companies who write insurance in your area. Click to view list.
You can choose any of those ways to find more affodable coverage, but try to keep equivalent coverage data for each quote you get. If you have differing limits it’s not possible to find the best deal for your Chevy C/K 2500 Series. Having just a slight variation in coverage limits could mean much higher rates. It’s important to know that comparing more quotes gives you a better chance of getting better pricing.
Companies that sell car insurance do not advertise every available discount very well, so below is a list both the well known and the more hidden credits available to lower your premiums when you buy insurance online.
One last thing about discounts, some credits don’t apply to the entire policy premium. Some only apply to individual premiums such as liability and collision coverage. So even though they make it sound like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, insurance companies wouldn’t stay in business.
A few of the larger companies and some of the premium reductions they offer are detailed below.
If you want affordable insurance quotes, ask each company or agent which credits you are entitled to. Some credits may not apply in your area. To see a list of insurance companies who offer discounts, click here.
When choosing the best auto insurance coverage for your vehicles, there really is no best way to insure your cars. Your needs are not the same as everyone else’s.
These are some specific questions may help highlight whether you may require specific advice.
If you don’t know the answers to these questions, you may need to chat with an agent. To find lower rates from a local agent, simply complete this short form.
Understanding the coverages of your policy can be of help when determining which coverages you need at the best deductibles and correct limits. Insurance terms can be impossible to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring.
Liability coverage provides protection from damage or injury you incur to people or other property. This coverage protects you from legal claims by others, and doesn’t cover damage to your own property or vehicle.
Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. Your policy might show limits of 100/300/100 that translate to $100,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, $300,000 for the entire accident, and property damage coverage for $100,000.
Liability coverage pays for claims such as attorney fees, repair costs for stationary objects and emergency aid. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is a decision to put some thought into, but buy as high a limit as you can afford.
Your UM/UIM coverage provides protection from other motorists when they do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for hospital bills for your injuries and damage to your Chevy C/K 2500 Series.
Since a lot of drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. For this reason, having high UM/UIM coverages should not be overlooked.
Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage reimburse you for short-term medical expenses for pain medications, funeral costs, EMT expenses, ambulance fees and surgery. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance policy or if you lack health insurance entirely. Medical payments and PIP cover not only the driver but also the vehicle occupants in addition to any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP is not universally available but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
This pays to fix your vehicle from damage caused by collision with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You first must pay a deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision coverage pays for things like hitting a mailbox, damaging your car on a curb, colliding with a tree, colliding with another moving vehicle and hitting a parking meter. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so consider dropping it from lower value vehicles. You can also bump up the deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
Comprehensive insurance coverage will pay to fix damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. A deductible will apply then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive can pay for things like hail damage, hitting a bird, hitting a deer and vandalism. The maximum amount you’ll receive from a claim is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle is not worth much it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.