People who are new to comparing rates online will discover finding affordable Newport News car insurance is more work than they anticipated.
Consumers need to compare rates periodically since rates tend to go up over time. Despite the fact that you may have had the lowest rates six months ago the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. There is a lot of bad advice regarding car insurance online but by reading this article, you’re going to learn some tested techniques to buy car insurance cheaper.
Don’t overlook these 5 discounts
Insuring your fleet can be pricey, buy you may qualify for discounts to reduce the price significantly. Some trigger automatically at the time of purchase, but some may not be applied and must be asked about in order for you to get them.
- Driver’s Ed – Require your teen driver to enroll in driver’s education if it’s offered in school.
- Student in College – Kids in college who are attending college and don’t have a car can be insured at a reduced rate.
- Own a Home – Being a homeowner may earn you a small savings because owning a home requires personal responsibility.
- Seat Belts Save more than Lives – Drivers who require all occupants to wear their seat belts could cut 10% or more off the personal injury premium cost.
- Anti-lock Brake Discount – Vehicles with anti-lock braking systems are safer to drive and will save you 10% or more.
Drivers should understand that most credits do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. A few only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like comprehensive or collision. Even though it may seem like you could get a free car insurance policy, you’re out of luck. Any amount of discount will bring down your premiums.
To choose insurance companies with the best car insurance discounts in Virginia, click here.
Automobile Insurance Quotes in Newport News
Effectively comparing car insurance prices can take hours if you don’t know the most efficient way to do it. You can waste hours discussing policy coverages with insurance agencies in Newport News, or you can stay home and use the web to get rates in a matter of minutes.
Most car insurance companies participate in an industry program where insurance shoppers enter their policy data once, and each company returns a rated price based on that information. This saves time by eliminating repetitive form submissions to each individual car insurance company. To compare rates using this form now click here to start a free quote.
One minor caviat to getting quotes like this is you cannot specify which providers you will receive quotes from. If you would rather choose from a list of companies to compare rates, we have assembled a list of companies who write car insurance in Virginia. Click here to view list.
It’s up to you how you get prices quotes, just compare identical quote information on every quote. If each company quotes differing limits then you won’t be able to decipher which rate is best in Newport News. Just a small difference in coverages can result in a big premium difference. Keep in mind that quoting more helps locate the best rates.
Learn about car insurance coverages
Understanding the coverages of car insurance can be of help when determining appropriate coverage for your vehicles. The coverage terms in a policy can be confusing and nobody wants to actually read their policy.
Medical expense insurance
Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance kick in for bills for things like rehabilitation expenses, surgery and funeral costs. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance plan or if you lack health insurance entirely. Medical payments and PIP cover not only the driver but also the vehicle occupants as well as any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP coverage is only offered in select states and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay
Comprehensive (Other than Collision)
This coverage will pay to fix damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. You first must pay your deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive can pay for claims such as theft, a broken windshield, damage from getting keyed, falling objects and damage from a tornado or hurricane. The maximum payout you’ll receive from a claim is the ACV or actual cash value, so if the vehicle is not worth much it’s not worth carrying full coverage.
Liability auto insurance
This coverage provides protection from damages or injuries you inflict on people or other property in an accident. It consists of three limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. Your policy might show values of 50/100/50 that translate to $50,000 bodily injury coverage, a limit of $100,000 in injury protection per accident, and $50,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Alternatively, you may have a combined single limit or CSL which limits claims to one amount without having the split limit caps.
Liability can pay for things such as bail bonds, repair costs for stationary objects, structural damage and loss of income. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is up to you, but you should buy as much as you can afford. Virginia state minimum liability requirements are 25,000/50,000/20,000 but drivers should carry more coverage.
Protection from uninsured/underinsured drivers
This coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants from other drivers when they either have no liability insurance or not enough. Covered losses include injuries to you and your family and also any damage incurred to your vehicle.
Since many Virginia drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits (Virginia limits are 25/50/20), it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is a good idea. Normally the UM/UIM limits do not exceed the liability coverage limits.
Collision coverage
Collision insurance will pay to fix damage to your vehicle caused by collision with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You first must pay a deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.
Collision can pay for things such as crashing into a building, scraping a guard rail and driving through your garage door. This coverage can be expensive, so you might think about dropping it from vehicles that are older. It’s also possible to choose a higher deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
In the end, you save
Drivers who switch companies do it for any number of reasons including high rates after DUI convictions, lack of trust in their agent, delays in paying claims or even extreme rates for teen drivers. Whatever your reason, switching companies can be easier than you think.
Cheaper car insurance is definitely available both online as well as from independent agents in Newport News, and you need to comparison shop both to get a complete price analysis. Some insurance providers don’t offer you the ability to get quotes online and many times these small, regional companies only sell through independent insurance agents.
As you shop your coverage around, it’s a bad idea to skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. There are too many instances where someone dropped full coverage and discovered at claim time that it was a big error on their part. The proper strategy is to buy the best coverage you can find at an affordable rate, not the least amount of coverage.