Are you tired of robbing Peter to pay Paul each month for car insurance? You are in the same boat as millions of other consumers.
Because you have many insurance companies to choose from, it can be hard to choose the cheapest insurer.
Verify you’re getting all your discounts
Car insurance can cost a lot, but you can get discounts that can drop the cost substantially. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied at quote time, but lesser-known reductions have to be inquired about before you will receive the discount.
- Homeowners Discount – Being a homeowner may earn you a small savings due to the fact that maintaining a home is proof that your finances are in order.
- Driver’s Ed – Have your child complete a driver education course in school.
- Senior Discount – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you may qualify for better auto insurance rates.
- Multiple Cars – Insuring all your vehicles with the same company can get a discount on all vehicles.
- Accident Forgiveness – A handful of insurance companies permit an accident without raising rates so long as you haven’t had any claims for a certain period of time.
- Life Insurance – Some companies give lower rates if you buy a life insurance policy as well.
- College Student – Any of your kids who are attending college without a vehicle on campus can be insured at a reduced rate.
It’s important to note that most of the big mark downs will not be given to the overall cost of the policy. Most only apply to specific coverage prices like collision or personal injury protection. So even though it sounds like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, companies don’t profit that way. Any amount of discount will help reduce your premiums.
For a list of providers with the best auto insurance discounts in North Carolina, click here to view.
Car insurance is unique, just like you
When choosing coverage, there isn’t really a “perfect” insurance plan. Each situation is unique so your insurance should reflect that Here are some questions about coverages that can help discover if your insurance needs could use an agent’s help.
- Do I have coverage when using my vehicle for my home business?
- Is my vehicle covered by my employer’s policy when using it for work?
- Will I be non-renewed for getting a DUI or other conviction?
- Are all vehicle passengers covered by medical payments coverage?
- Should I put collision coverage on all my vehicles?
- Does liability extend to a camper or trailer?
- Do I have coverage for damage caused while driving under the influence?
- Does my personal auto insurance policy cover using my vehicle for business use?
- Am I covered by my spouse’s policy after a separation?
If you’re not sure about those questions but you know they apply to you, you may need to chat with a licensed agent. To find lower rates from a local agent, take a second and complete this form or you can also visit this page to select a carrier
Compare online but buy from a local Wilson agent
Certain consumers would prefer to buy from a licensed agent. One of the great benefits of getting online price quotes is you can get the lowest rates and still choose a local agent. Supporting local businesses is especially important in Wilson.
By using this quick form, your insurance coverage information is sent to insurance agents in Wilson who will compete for your insurance coverage. You don’t have to even leave your home due to the fact that quote results will go to the email address you provide. It doesn’t get any easier! It’s the lowest rates and an insurance agent to talk to.
Below is a list of auto insurance companies in Wilson that may be willing to give price quotes.
State Farm Insurance – 2512 Ward Blvd, Wilson, NC 27893 – (252) 237-9018
Timmerman Insurance Svc Inc – 3520 Airport Blvd NW # C, Wilson, NC 27896 – (252) 291-0115
Grady Agency – 107 Raleigh Rd W, Wilson, NC 27893 – (252) 243-2275
Worth H Starling Insurance – 2207 Nash St NW # C, Wilson, NC 27896 – (252) 237-5541
Allstate Insurance – 2702 Forest Hills Rd SW, Wilson, NC 27893 – (252) 237-2377
Choosing an provider should depend on more than just a cheap price. Ask your prospective agent these questions:
- What insurance companies do they recommend if they are an independent agent?
- Do they receive special compensation for putting your coverage with one company over another?
- How are claims handled?
- Which insurance companies are they affiliated with?
- What insurance company do they write the most business with?
- Are claims handled at the agent’s location?
- How long has their agency been open in Wilson?
After receiving satisfactory answers to your questions and an affordable coverage quote, you have narrowed it down to a company that meets your needs to provide auto insurance coverage.
Auto insurance ads bend the truth
Auto insurance companies such as State Farm, Geico and Progressive consistently run ads on television and other media. They all seem to make the same claim that you’ll save big if you change your coverage to them. How does each company claim to save you money? It’s all in the numbers.
Different companies are able to cherry pick for the driver that earns them a profit. For example, a driver they prefer could be between the ages of 40 and 55, a clean driving record, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. Any new insured who matches those parameters will get very good rates and as a result will probably cut their rates substantially.
Drivers who don’t measure up to this ideal profile will be quoted higher rates and ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads say “customers that switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that much. That’s the way insurance companies can confidently state the savings.
This emphasizes why it is so important to compare many company’s rates. It’s impossible to know which insurance companies will give you the biggest savings.
Additional information can be read on the website for the North Carolina Department of Insurance through this link. North Carolina consumers can view a list of available companies, learn about specific coverages, get help finding coverage, and read state legal mandates and laws.
Auto insurance coverages explained
Having a good grasp of your auto insurance policy helps when choosing the right coverages and the correct deductibles and limits. Auto insurance terms can be impossible to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring. Listed below are typical coverage types offered by auto insurance companies.
Auto liability insurance
Liability coverage provides protection from damage or injury you incur to people or other property by causing an accident. It protects YOU against claims from other people. Liability doesn’t cover your own vehicle damage or injuries.
Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. You commonly see policy limits of 25/50/25 which stand for a limit of $25,000 per injured person, a limit of $50,000 in injury protection per accident, and a limit of $25,000 paid for damaged property. Some companies may use a combined single limit or CSL that pays claims from the same limit with no separate limits for injury or property damage.
Liability can pay for claims like repair bills for other people’s vehicles, court costs, structural damage, medical services and loss of income. How much liability coverage do you need? That is a personal decision, but consider buying as large an amount as possible. North Carolina state law requires minimum liability limits of 30,000/60,000/25,000 but it’s recommended drivers buy more coverage.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage
Your UM/UIM coverage provides protection from other motorists when they either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. It can pay for injuries to you and your family as well as your vehicle’s damage.
Since a lot of drivers carry very low liability coverage limits (30/60/25), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage should not be overlooked. Most of the time these limits are identical to your policy’s liability coverage.
Comprehensive coverage
Comprehensive insurance coverage pays for damage from a wide range of events other than collision. You first must pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive insurance covers things like hail damage, fire damage, hitting a bird, vandalism and rock chips in glass. The highest amount a auto 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.
Collision protection
Collision insurance covers damage to your vehicle resulting from colliding with an object or car. You will need to pay your deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision coverage pays for claims such as sideswiping another vehicle, hitting a mailbox, rolling your car and colliding with another moving vehicle. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so consider removing coverage from vehicles that are 8 years or older. Another option is to bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.
Medical payments coverage and PIP
Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage kick in for short-term medical expenses for dental work, nursing services and doctor visits. The coverages can be utilized in addition to your health insurance policy or if you do not have health coverage. Coverage applies to you and your occupants as well as being hit by a car walking across the street. PIP coverage is not available in all states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Summing up your auto insurance search
The cheapest auto insurance can be found from both online companies in addition to many Wilson insurance agents, and you need to comparison shop both to have the best selection. There are still a few companies who do not provide the ability to get a quote online and many times these smaller companies only sell through independent insurance agents.
Throughout this article, we presented a lot of tips how to reduce auto insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more rate quotes you have, the better chance you’ll have of finding lower rates. Consumers could even find that the lowest rates come from the smaller companies. These smaller insurers may cover specific market segments cheaper than their larger competitors like Allstate or State Farm.