Trying to find more affordable Driversinsurance may be hard for drivers new to shopping for insurance online. When there are so many online companies available, it can quickly become a difficult challenge to find the perfect company for you.
Shopping for lower insurance rates can be a lot of work if you don’t utilize the most efficient way to do it. You could waste time driving to agents in your area, or you can stay home and use the web to quickly compare rates.
All the larger companies belong to an insurance system where insurance shoppers submit their information once, and each company then returns a price quote. This system prevents you from having to do repetitive form submissions to each individual insurance company.
To submit your quote information now, click here to start a free quote.
The only downside to using this type of system is you can’t choose the insurers to receive prices from. So if you prefer to choose specific insurance companies to compare, we put together a list of the cheapest insurance companies in your area. View list of insurance companies.
However you get your quotes, make darn sure you compare apples-to-apples coverages for each comparison quote. If you are comparing different limits and deductibles on each one it’s not possible to determine which company has the best rates. Just a small difference in coverage limits could throw off the whole comparison. And when price shopping your coverage, making a lot of price comparisons helps increase your odds of locating more affordable rates. Some companies don’t provide rate quotes online, so you should also compare price quotes on coverage from those companies, too.
Insurance is neither fun to buy or cheap, but companies offer discounts to cut the cost considerably. A few discounts will be applied when you purchase, but a few must be manually applied before being credited.
As a footnote on discounts, some credits don’t apply to the entire cost. The majority will only reduce specific coverage prices like collision or personal injury protection. Even though it may seem like it’s possible to get free car insurance, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy.
To see a list of providers with the best insurance discounts, click here.
When buying adequate coverage, there really is no perfect coverage plan. Every insured’s situation is different.
For instance, these questions might help in determining whether or not you would benefit from professional advice.
If you don’t know the answers to these questions but you know they apply to you, you might consider talking to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, fill out this quick form.
Knowing the specifics of your policy can help you determine the right coverages for your vehicles. Insurance terms can be impossible to understand and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording.
Collision – Collision coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage caused by collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision can pay for things such as crashing into a ditch, damaging your car on a curb and colliding with a tree. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so you might think about dropping it from vehicles that are 8 years or older. It’s also possible to raise the deductible to save money on collision insurance.
UM/UIM (Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist) coverage – This coverage provides protection when the “other guys” either have no liability insurance or not enough. It can pay for medical payments for you and your occupants as well as your vehicle’s damage.
Since many drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. So UM/UIM coverage should not be overlooked. Frequently the UM/UIM limits are identical to your policy’s liability coverage.
Liability insurance – Liability insurance will cover damage or injury you incur to people or other property by causing an accident. It protects you from legal claims by others, and doesn’t cover damage to your own property or vehicle.
It consists of three limits, bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. Your policy might show limits of 25/50/25 which means $25,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, $50,000 for the entire accident, and property damage coverage for $25,000. Some companies may use one limit called combined single limit (CSL) which limits claims to one amount rather than limiting it on a per person basis.
Liability can pay for things like repair bills for other people’s vehicles, medical expenses and emergency aid. How much coverage you buy is a personal decision, but buy as high a limit as you can afford.
Medical payments and PIP coverage – Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance reimburse you for immediate expenses such as ambulance fees, chiropractic care, prosthetic devices, funeral costs and pain medications. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance policy or if you do not have health coverage. Coverage applies to all vehicle occupants and also covers any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP is not available in all states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Comprehensive auto coverage – This pays to fix your vehicle from damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. A deductible will apply then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive coverage protects against things like vandalism, hitting a deer and hitting a bird. The most a insurance company will pay at claim time is the actual cash value, so if it’s not worth much more than your deductible it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.