1996 Volkswagen Passat Car Insurance Rates – 9 Tips for Cheapest Quotes

There isn’t anyone who likes buying insurance coverage, particularly when they could get a better deal. Vehicle owners have so many insurance companies to purchase coverage from, and although it’s a good thing to be able to choose, lots of choices makes it harder to compare company pricing.

Buying the best auto insurance coverage is not that difficult. If you are insured now or are shopping for new coverage, you can use these tips to shop for the lowest rates while maintaining coverages. Vehicle owners just need to understand the proper methods to compare rates online.

These nine discounts can lower your car insurance rates

Insuring your fleet can be pricey, but you can get discounts that you may not even know about. Some discounts apply automatically when you quote, but occassionally some discounts must be manually applied before you will receive the discount.

  • Sign Early and Save – A few companies give discounts for switching to them before your current coverage expires. You could save around 10% when you buy insurance coverage online.
  • Home Ownership Discount – Just being a homeowner can save you money since home ownership shows financial diligence.
  • ABS Braking Discount – Cars that have steering control and anti-lock brakes are much safer to drive so companies give up to a 10% discount.
  • Buy New and Save – Insuring a new car can cost up to 25% less since new model year vehicles have better safety ratings.
  • Resident Student – who are enrolled in a college that is more than 100 miles from home without a vehicle on campus could qualify for this discount.
  • Service Members Pay Less – Having an actively deployed family member could trigger a small discount.
  • Discounts for Responsible Drivers – Drivers who don’t get into accidents can save as much as half off their rates on Passat insurance as compared to drivers with claims.
  • No Claim Discounts – Insureds who avoid accidents and claims are rewarded with significantly better rates on insurance coverage quote compared to frequent claim filers.
  • Air Bag Discount – Factory air bags or motorized seat belts can qualify for discounts of 20% or more.

Drivers should understand that some credits don’t apply to the overall cost of the policy. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. If you do the math and it seems like all those discounts means the company will pay you, you won’t be that lucky.

To locate insurers offering car insurance discounts, click here.

Buy car insurance online

Comparing car insurance rates can be a daunting task if you don’t know the best way to get rate quotes. You could spend the better part of a day discussing policy coverages with local insurance agents in your area, or you could save time and use online quoting to accomplish the same thing much quicker.

All the larger companies belong to a marketplace where prospective buyers send in one quote, and at least one company can provide price quotes based on that information. This prevents consumers from doing quotation requests to each company.

To compare rates now click here (opens in new window).

The only drawback to using this type of form is buyers cannot specifically choose the insurers you want pricing from. So if you prefer to choose specific insurance companies to compare rates, we have a listing of low cost car insurance companies in your area. Click to view list.

The method you choose is up to you, but make darn sure you compare the same coverages for each quote you get. If you enter different values for each quote it’s impossible to determine which rate is truly the best.

Different people need different car insurance coverages

When buying coverage, there really is not a single plan that fits everyone. Every situation is different and a cookie cutter policy won’t apply. Here are some questions about coverages that might point out if you would benefit from an agent’s advice.

  • Am I covered if hit by an uninsured driver?
  • Should I rate my 1996 Volkswagen Passat as pleasure use or commute?
  • Is my teen driver covered when they drive my company car?
  • Do I need rental car coverage?
  • Do I have newly-aquired coverage?
  • Do I benefit by insuring my home with the same company?
  • Can I afford to pay high deductible claims out of pocket?
  • What is an SR-22 filing?
  • Does my medical payments coverage pay my health insurance deductible?

If you don’t know the answers to these questions but you think they might apply to your situation, then you may want to think about talking to an agent. To find lower rates from a local agent, simply complete this short form or click here for a list of car insurance companies in your area. It’s fast, doesn’t cost anything and may give you better protection.

Can you really save $416 a year?

Drivers can’t escape the ads for car insurance savings by companies like Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm. They all seem to state the claim that drivers will save a bundle just by switching your coverage to them.

That’s great but how can every company make almost identical claims?

Many companies have an ideal profile for the type of driver that will generate a profit. An example of a profitable customer might be described as a married female, owns their home, and drives less than 5,000 miles a year. A driver who fits that profile will qualify for the lowest prices and therefore will pay quite a bit less when switching companies.

Potential insureds who cannot meet those criteria will be charged higher premiums and business not being written. If you pay attention, the ads say “drivers that switch” but not “everyone who gets a quote” save that kind of money. This is how companies can make the claims of big savings.

This illustrates why you absolutely need to get insurance coverage quotes from several different companies. It is impossible to guess which company will have the lowest rates.

Specifics of your insurance policy

Understanding the coverages of your insurance policy can help you determine the best coverages and proper limits and deductibles. The terms used in a policy can be difficult to understand and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Listed below are typical coverage types found on the average insurance policy.

Comprehensive coverage

Comprehensive insurance coverage covers 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 can pay for things such as damage from a tornado or hurricane, theft and falling objects. The highest amount you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s not worth carrying full coverage.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage

This coverage gives you protection when other motorists do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for injuries to you and your family as well as damage to your Volkswagen Passat.

Since many drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits, it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is important protection for you and your family. Most of the time the UM/UIM limits are set the same as your liablity limits.

Collision coverage protection

Collision coverage pays for damage to your Passat caused by collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. A deductible applies and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.

Collision can pay for claims like sideswiping another vehicle, colliding with a tree, sustaining damage from a pot hole and colliding with another moving vehicle. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so you might think about dropping it from older vehicles. Drivers also have the option to increase the deductible in order to get cheaper collision rates.

Liability

This provides protection from damage that occurs to a person or their property by causing an accident. Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. Your policy might show limits of 50/100/50 which stand for a $50,000 limit per person for injuries, a per accident bodily injury limit of $100,000, and a total limit of $50,000 for damage to vehicles and property. Some companies may use 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 things such as emergency aid, loss of income and medical expenses. How much coverage you buy is up to you, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase higher limits if possible.

Medical payments coverage and PIP

Med pay and PIP coverage reimburse you for bills for things like prosthetic devices, rehabilitation expenses, dental work, EMT expenses and funeral costs. They are often used in conjunction with a health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. They cover all vehicle occupants and also covers being hit by a car walking across the street. PIP is not available in all states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Have money to burn

As you restructure your insurance plan, it’s very important that you do not skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. In many instances, an accident victim reduced liability limits or collision coverage only to regret at claim time that it was a big mistake. The aim is to purchase plenty of coverage for the lowest price but still have enough coverage for asset protection.

We’ve covered a lot of information how to compare 1996 Volkswagen Passat insurance rates online. The key thing to remember is the more price quotes you have, the better chance you’ll have of finding cheap insurance coverage. You may even discover the biggest savings come from the smaller companies. Regional companies may cover specific market segments cheaper than the large multi-state companies such as Allstate or State Farm.

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