Nobody I know looks forward to buying car insurance, especially knowing they are paying too much.
With consumers having so many companies and agents to choose from, it can be impossible to find the cheapest insurer.
This article will familiarize you with the most effective way to quote insurance and some money-saving tips. If you have car insurance now, you should be able to save some money using these methods. Nevertheless, Maryland consumers must comprehend how companies price insurance differently and take advantage of how the system works.
Discounts are basically free money
The price of auto insurance can be rather high, but there could be available discounts that you may not know about. A few discounts will automatically apply at quote time, but a few must be specially asked for before you will receive the discount.
- Air Bag Discount – Cars that have air bags or motorized seat belts can get savings of 20% or more.
- Save with a New Car – Buying coverage on a new vehicle can be considerably cheaper since new cars are generally safer.
- Drivers Ed for Students – Cut your cost by having your teen driver complete a driver education course if offered at their school.
- Student in College – Kids in college living away from home attending college without a vehicle on campus may be able to be covered for less.
- Lower Rates for Military – Being deployed with a military unit may qualify for rate reductions.
- Defensive Driver – Taking a course in driver safety could possibly earn you a 5% discount depending on where you live.
- Payment Discounts – By paying your policy upfront instead of monthly or quarterly installments you may reduce your total bill.
- No Charge for an Accident – Some insurance companies permit an accident before hitting you with a surcharge if your claims history is clear prior to the accident.
Consumers should know that some credits don’t apply to all coverage premiums. Some only apply to individual premiums such as comp or med pay. Even though it may seem like you can get free auto insurance, it doesn’t quite work that way. But all discounts will cut the amount you have to pay.
To choose providers offering car insurance discounts in Baltimore, click here.
How to Get Car Insurance in Baltimore, MD
The are a couple different ways to compare rate quotes from car insurance companies in your area. By far the easiest way to find competitive insurance rates consists of shopping online. This can be done in several different ways.
- The easiest and least time consuming way to get the best comparison quotes would be an industry-wide quote request form click to view form in new window. This form keeps you from doing boring form submissions for every car insurance company. A single form compares rates from multiple companies.
- Another way to compare rate quotes requires a visit to each company website to complete a price quote. For examples sake, let’s assume you want to compare Liberty Mutual, State Farm and Farmers. To get each rate you have to go to every website to enter your coverage information, which is why most consumers use the first method. To view a list of companies in Baltimore, click here.
Which method you use is up to you, but compare apples-to-apples coverages and limits on every quote. If you compare different liability limits you can’t possibly determine the lowest rate in Baltimore. Quoting even small variations in coverages may cause a big price difference. It’s important to know that more quotes will improve the odds of getting better pricing.
Tips to Get Lower Baltimore Rates
Consumers need to have an understanding of some of the elements that help determine the rates you pay for car insurance. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay enables informed choices that will entitle you to better car insurance rates.
The following are some of the factors car insurance companies consider when setting prices.
- Protect your assets with liability insurance – Liability insurance provides coverage when you are found to be at fault for personal injury or accident damage. Liability insurance provides you with a defense in court which can cost thousands of dollars. Liability insurance is quite affordable compared to physical damage coverage, so do not skimp.
- Having a spouse can save you money – Being married can actually save you money when buying car insurance. It means you’re more mature and it’s statistically proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.
- Please use or commuting – The higher the mileage driven in a year’s time the higher your rates will be. Almost all companies price each vehicle’s coverage based on how the vehicle is used. Vehicles not used for work or commuting receive lower rates than vehicles that are driven to work every day. Ask your agent if your car insurance declarations sheet shows the correct usage for each vehicle, because improper ratings can cost you money.
- Bundling policies can get discounts – Most insurers provide better rates to people who have multiple policies with them, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Even though this discount sounds good, it’s in your best interest to shop around to ensure the best deal.
Slick advertising tricks that work
Companies like State Farm, Allstate and Geico constantly bombard you with ads on television and other media. All the ads say the same thing of big savings if you switch to their company. How does each company make almost identical claims? This is how they do it.
Insurance companies can use profiling for the right customer that makes them money. A good example of a preferred risk might be profiled as between 30 and 50, has no tickets, and has a high credit rating. Any new insured who matches those parameters will get very good rates and therefore will cut their rates substantially.
Drivers who are not a match for the requirements will be quoted higher premiums which usually ends up with the customer not buying. Company advertisements say “customers who switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that much. That’s the way companies can advertise the way they do.
This emphasizes why you need to compare as many rates as you can. It is impossible to predict which insurance companies will have the lowest rates.
Smart shoppers get results
We just covered quite a bit of information on how to compare car insurance prices online. The most important thing to understand is the more you quote, the higher your chance of finding lower rates. Drivers may discover the biggest savings come from the smaller companies. Some small companies often have lower prices on specific markets compared to the large companies like Allstate or State Farm.
When trying to cut insurance costs, never skimp on coverage in order to save money. Too many times, an insured dropped liability coverage limits and learned later that they should have had better coverage. Your focus should be to find the BEST coverage at the best price while not skimping on critical coverages.
The cheapest car insurance is attainable online as well as from independent agents in Baltimore, so you should be comparing quotes from both to get a complete price analysis. Some companies don’t offer online quoting and most of the time these small, regional companies sell through independent agents.
Consumer car insurance information in Maryland
Much more information about car insurance in Maryland is available on the website for the Maryland Insurance Administration found here. Consumers can file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, view agent and company licensing information, and read consumer alerts.