When searching for more affordable insurance, do you get overwhelmed by the sheer number of car insurance providers that you can choose from? You have such a large number of options that it can turn into a difficult situation to lower your premium rates. Casselberry has many things to offer, but paying high car insurance rates can make it hard to afford coverage.
Smart consumers take time to get comparison quotes at least once a year because car insurance prices change regularly. Just because you had the best rates two years ago you can probably find a lower rate today. Forget all the misinformation about car insurance because you’re about to learn the fastest and easiest way to properly buy coverages while reducing your premium.
Car insurance policy discounts
Some companies don’t always publicize all possible discounts very well, so here is a list a few of the more well known as well as the least known savings tricks you should be using when you .
- College Student Discount – Any of your kids who attend college more than 100 miles from home and do not have access to a covered vehicle can receive lower rates.
- Driver Safety – Taking a driver safety course could possibly earn you a 5% discount and make you a better driver.
- Own a Home – Owning a house in Casselberry can help you save on car insurance since owning and maintaining a home shows financial diligence.
- Low Mileage Discounts – Fewer annual miles could qualify for lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
- Active Military Service – Being on active duty in the military could trigger a small discount.
- Discount for Multiple Policies – If you can bundle your auto and homeowners insurance and insure them with the same company you could get a discount of 10% to 20% off each policy.
- Pay Upfront and Save – If you can afford to pay the entire bill rather than spreading payments over time you may reduce your total bill.
- Smart Student Discounts – Maintaining excellent grades may save as much as 25% on a . This discount can apply well after school through age 25.
- Employee of Federal Government – Being employed by or retired from a federal job can earn a discount up to 10% with certain companies.
- 55 and Retired – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you could receive reduced rates.
As is typical with insurance, most discount credits are not given to the overall cost of the policy. Some only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as medical payments or collision. If you do the math and it seems like it’s possible to get free car insurance, it’s just not the way it works.
Large car insurance companies and their possible discounts are detailed below.
- Travelers offers discounts including early quote, multi-car, continuous insurance, good student, IntelliDrive, save driver, and multi-policy.
- 21st Century offers premium reductions for homeowners, student driver, anti-lock brakes, defensive driver, and good student.
- State Farm may have discounts that include defensive driving training, passive restraint, Steer Clear safe driver discount, anti-theft, multiple policy, and multiple autos.
- Geico has savings for membership and employees, driver training, multi-policy, five-year accident-free, good student, and emergency military deployment.
- SAFECO may include discounts for safe driver, anti-lock brakes, drive less, bundle discounts, homeowner, and teen safety rewards.
- AAA includes discounts for good student, education and occupation, AAA membership discount, pay-in-full, good driver, multi-car, and anti-theft.
Check with each insurance company which credits you are entitled to. All car insurance discounts might not apply in Casselberry. To see a list of companies that offer discounts in Florida, follow this link.
How do I know if I need professional advice?
When choosing the best car insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there isn’t really a perfect coverage plan. Everyone’s situation is unique.
For example, these questions might point out if your insurance needs would benefit from professional advice.
- I have good health insurance, so how much medical payments coverage do I need?
- Is borrowed equipment or tools covered if stolen or damaged?
- What if I total my vehicle and owe more than it’s worth?
- Am I covered if I wreck a rental car?
- Do I have any recourse if my insurance company denies a claim?
- When do I need to add a new car to my policy?
- How high should my medical payments coverage be?
- Will I lose any money if I cancel my policy before it expires?
If you’re not sure about those questions but you know they apply to you, you might consider talking to an agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, complete this form. It is quick, free and can provide invaluable advice.
Can you really save $451 a year?
Consumers in Florida can’t avoid all the ads for cheaper car insurance by companies like Allstate, Geico and Progressive. All the ads say the same thing that you’ll save big if you switch your car insurance coverage to their company.
How does each company charge you a lower premium? It’s all in the words they use.
Many companies give the best rates for the type of customer that earns them the most money. A good example of a profitable customer may need to be a married female, has a low-risk occupation, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. Any customer that fits those parameters will get a cheap rate quote as well as save when they switch companies.<img class="alignright" style="padding-top:15px" src="https://www.carinsurancediy.com/wp-content/uploads/ci175-57.jpg" alt="Casselberry car insurance prices” />
Insureds who fall short of the ideal profile may receive a higher rate and this can result in the prospect going elsewhere. The wording the ads use say “drivers that switch” not “everyone that quotes” save that much when switching. That is how companies can truthfully state the savings.
This emphasizes why you absolutely need to do a price quote comparison at every renewal. It is impossible to guess the company that will fit your personal profile best.
Car insurance coverages 101
Knowing the specifics of car insurance can help you determine which coverages you need and proper limits and deductibles. Policy terminology can be impossible to understand and nobody wants to actually read their policy.
Coverage for collisions
Collision insurance covers damage to your vehicle resulting from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You first must pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the remainder.
Collision can pay for things like driving through your garage door, scraping a guard rail, hitting a mailbox and colliding with another moving vehicle. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so you might think about dropping it from vehicles that are older. Drivers also have the option to bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.
Comprehensive protection
Comprehensive insurance will pay to fix damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. You first have to pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.
Comprehensive can pay for claims like rock chips in glass, hail damage, theft, a tree branch falling on your vehicle and hitting a deer. The maximum payout a car insurance company will pay at claim time is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle is not worth much consider dropping full coverage.
Medical expense coverage
Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance provide coverage for immediate expenses such as chiropractic care, EMT expenses, X-ray expenses, dental work and nursing services. The coverages can be used to fill the gap from your health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. They cover not only the driver but also the vehicle occupants and also covers any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP coverage is only offered in select states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Uninsured or underinsured coverage
This protects you and your vehicle’s occupants when the “other guys” do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered losses include medical payments for you and your occupants as well as your vehicle’s damage.
Since many Florida drivers have only the minimum liability required by law (which is 10/20/10), it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. So UM/UIM coverage is important protection for you and your family. Usually the UM/UIM limits are similar to your liability insurance amounts.
Liability insurance
This coverage protects you from damages or injuries you inflict on other people or property that is your fault. It protects YOU from claims by other people, and does not provide coverage for damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.
It consists of three limits, bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. Your policy might show policy limits of 100/300/100 that means you have $100,000 bodily injury coverage, $300,000 for the entire accident, and $100,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Another option is a combined limit which provides one coverage limit without having the split limit caps.
Liability coverage pays for things such as legal defense fees, medical expenses, structural damage and bail bonds. How much liability should you purchase? That is up to you, but you should buy higher limits if possible. Florida state minimum liability requirements are 10,000/20,000/10,000 but it’s recommended drivers buy more liability than the minimum.
More information about car insurance
Much more information about car insurance in Florida is available on the . Click here for link. Florida drivers can read enforcement actions against agents and companies, find disaster information, and get help finding coverage.
In the end, you save
Cheaper car insurance is available online and from local insurance agents, so get from both of them to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some companies may not have online quoting and many times these regional carriers only sell through independent agents.
Insureds who switch companies do it for a number of reasons such as delays in responding to claim requests, being labeled a high risk driver, unfair underwriting practices and even extreme rates for teen drivers. It doesn’t matter what your reason, switching car insurance companies can be easy and end up saving you some money.
We just presented a lot of techniques to shop for car insurance online. The most important thing to understand is the more providers you compare, the higher the chance of saving money. You may even find the biggest savings come from the least-expected company.