Are you tired of being strong-armed to pay your car insurance bill each month? You are in the same boat as most other car owners in Illinois.
Lots of insurance companies contend to insure your vehicles, so it’s not easy to compare every provider and uncover the absolute lowest rate possible.
Discounts are basically free money
Insuring your vehicles can cost a lot, but there could be available discounts that you may not even be aware of. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically when you quote, but some must be asked about before you get the savings.
- Own a Home – Owning a house in Wheaton can save you money because of the fact that having a home demonstrates responsibility.
- Sign Online – A handful of insurance companies will give a small break for buying a policy and signing up online.
- Club Memberships – Participating in a professional or civic organization could trigger savings when buying auto insurance.
- No Accidents – Good drivers with no accidents pay less when compared with accident-prone drivers.
- Auto/Life Discount – Larger companies have lower rates if you buy life insurance from them.
- Braking Control Discount – Cars that have steering control and anti-lock brakes prevent accidents and earn discounts up to 10%.
- Seat Belt Usage – Requiring all passengers to use their safety belts could cut 10% or more on the medical payments or PIP coverage costs.
- Fewer Miles Equal More Savings – Keeping the miles down can earn a substantially lower rate.
A little note about advertised discounts, most discounts do not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like liability and collision coverage. So even though it sounds like you would end up receiving a 100% discount, you’re out of luck. But all discounts will bring down your premiums.
How to Get Auto Insurance in Wheaton, IL
To find the best auto insurance prices, there are several ways to get quotes and find the best price. The best way to compare insurance prices is simply to get online rate quotes. It is quite easy and can be accomplished in several different ways.
- The single most time-saving way to find the lowest comparison rates would be an industry-wide quote request form click to view form in new window. This easy form eliminates the need for a different quote for every auto insurance company. One quote request gets you coverage quotes from multiple companies.
- A slightly less efficient method to compare prices is to manually visit the website for each individual company to complete a price quote. For example, let’s say you want to compare rates from State Farm, 21st Century and Progressive. To get each rate you have to spend time on each company’s site and enter your information, which is why the first method is quicker. For a list of links to insurance companies in Wheaton, click here.
It’s up to you how you get prices quotes, just double check that you are using exactly the same coverages with every price quote. If the quotes have different deductibles it will be next to impossible to make an equal comparison in Wheaton. Quoting even small variations in insurance coverages could mean much higher rates. And when comparing auto insurance rates, know that comparing more company’s prices helps you find a better price.
Parts of your auto insurance policy
Knowing the specifics of a auto insurance policy can help you determine the right coverages for your vehicles. Policy terminology can be difficult to understand and coverage can change by endorsement. Shown next are typical coverages offered by auto insurance companies.
Liability auto 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 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. Your policy might show values of 100/300/100 which means $100,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a limit of $300,000 in injury protection per accident, and $100,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Occasionally you may see a combined single limit or CSL that pays claims from the same limit rather than limiting it on a per person basis.
Liability coverage pays for claims like repair costs for stationary objects, pain and suffering and legal defense fees. How much liability should you purchase? That is a personal decision, but you should buy as high a limit as you can afford. Illinois requires drivers to carry at least 20,000/40,000/15,000 but you should think about purchasing higher limits.
Collision coverage
This covers damage to your vehicle caused by collision with an object or car. You first must pay a deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.
Collision insurance covers things such as scraping a guard rail, sustaining damage from a pot hole and driving through your garage door. This coverage can be expensive, so consider removing coverage from vehicles that are older. You can also choose a higher deductible to save money on collision insurance.
Medical expense coverage
Med pay and PIP coverage pay for expenses for EMT expenses, surgery and prosthetic devices. They are often used in conjunction with a health insurance program or if you lack health insurance entirely. Coverage applies to both the driver and occupants and will also cover if you are hit as a while walking down the street. Personal Injury Protection is not an option in every state and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay
Uninsured or underinsured coverage
This coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants when the “other guys” do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for hospital bills for your injuries as well as damage to your vehicle.
Because many people only carry the minimum required liability limits (Illinois limits are 20/40/15), it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage should not be overlooked. Normally the UM/UIM limits are set the same as your liablity limits.
Comprehensive protection
This coverage will pay to fix damage that is not covered by collision coverage. You first must pay your deductible and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.
Comprehensive coverage pays for claims such as hitting a deer, a tree branch falling on your vehicle and damage from a tornado or hurricane. The maximum amount you’ll receive from a claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle is not worth much consider dropping full coverage.
Final considerations
When trying to cut insurance costs, it’s a bad idea to buy less coverage just to save a little money. In too many instances, an insured dropped full coverage only to regret they didn’t have enough coverage. Your strategy should be to buy the best coverage you can find at an affordable rate.
Discount auto insurance is definitely available on the web and also from your neighborhood Wheaton agents, so you should be comparing quotes from both so you have a total pricing picture. Some insurance companies may not provide online quoting and many times these smaller companies only sell through independent insurance agents.