Nobody that owns a car enjoys paying for car insurance, especially when they are aware that they could find lower prices if they just compared rates.
Insurance companies such as Allstate, Liberty Mutual and State Farm continually hit you with advertising and it is challenging if not impossible to see past the corporate glitz and do the work needed to find the best deal.
It’s smart to get comparison quotes occasionally since insurance prices change regularly. Even if you think you had the lowest quotes for LHS coverage last year the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. You can find a lot of misleading information regarding car insurance online, but in this article, you’re going to get some great ideas on how to buy car insurance cheaper.
If you currently have car insurance, you should be able to save some money using this information. Finding affordable coverage is not rocket science. But drivers must understand how big insurance companies determine prices because it can help you find the best coverage.
When comparison shopping, there are several ways to obtain and compare prices from local auto insurance companies. The easiest way by far to comparison shop is to jump online and get quotes. It’s really quite simple and can be done by using one of the methods below.
For a list of links to insurance companies in your area, click here.
Compare rates however you want, just double check that you are using apples-to-apples coverage information for each quote you get. If each company quotes differing limits you will not be able to determine which company has the best rates. Having just a slight variation in coverages may cause a big price difference. And when price shopping your coverage, comparing more rates from different companies helps you find the best rates. Some insurance companies are not set up to provide online price quotes, so you also need to get price estimates from them as well.
When it comes to 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 can aid in determining if your situation will benefit from professional help.
If you can’t answer these questions, then you may want to think about talking to a licensed insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, simply complete this short form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area.
Learning about specific coverages of insurance aids in choosing appropriate coverage at the best deductibles and correct limits. Insurance terms can be impossible to understand and nobody wants to actually read their policy. Shown next are the usual coverages available from insurance companies.
Comprehensive protection – This pays to fix your vehicle from damage from a wide range of events other than collision. A deductible will apply and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.
Comprehensive coverage pays for things such as hitting a deer, damage from flooding and fire damage. The maximum payout you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the market value of your vehicle, so if the vehicle is not worth much consider dropping full coverage.
Collision coverages – Collision coverage pays for damage to your LHS caused by collision with an object or car. You first must pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the remainder.
Collision coverage pays for things like hitting a parking meter, colliding with a tree, scraping a guard rail, sustaining damage from a pot hole and rolling your car. This coverage can be expensive, so you might think about dropping it from vehicles that are 8 years or older. Another option is to bump up the deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
Liability car insurance – This coverage provides protection from damage or injury you incur to other people or property by causing an accident. This coverage protects you from claims by other people, and doesn’t cover your injuries or vehicle damage.
Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You commonly see liability limits of 25/50/25 that means you have $25,000 bodily injury coverage, a per accident bodily injury limit of $50,000, and a total limit of $25,000 for damage to vehicles and property.
Liability coverage protects against things such as medical services, emergency aid, medical expenses, repair costs for stationary objects and court costs. 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.
Medical expense coverage – Med pay and PIP coverage provide coverage for expenses such as hospital visits, prosthetic devices, doctor visits and rehabilitation expenses. They are used to fill the gap from your health insurance program or if you lack health insurance entirely. It covers both the driver and occupants in addition to any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP is only offered in select states but it provides additional coverages not offered by medical payments coverage
Uninsured or underinsured coverage – This coverage protects you and your vehicle when other motorists either have no liability insurance or not enough. Covered claims include injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants and also any damage incurred to your Chrysler LHS.
Since many drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage should not be overlooked.