Overpriced car insurance can empty your personal savings and make it impossible to make ends meet. Shopping your coverage around is a great way to slash your bill and have more diposable income.
Companies like State Farm, Geico and Farmers Insurance all claim big savings, bombarding you with advertising and it is difficult to see past the geckos and flying pigs and do the work needed to find the best deal.
Consumers need to take a look at other company’s rates once or twice a year since rates are rarely the same from one policy term to another. Even if you got the lowest rates six months ago the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. Ignore everything you know about car insurance because we’re going to demonstrate the only way to eliminate unnecessary coverages and save money.
How to Compare Car Insurance Quotes in Stevens Point
All the larger car insurance companies provide coverage prices on the web. Getting quotes is fairly straightforward as you simply type in your coverage information as requested by the quote form. Once entered, the system obtains your driving record and credit report and returns pricing information based on these and other factors. Quoting online makes it a lot easier to compare rates but the time required to go to different websites and complete many quote forms can be a bit repetitive. But it’s very important to do this if you want to find a better rate.
An easier way to find better car insurance pricing uses one form that gets price quotes from a lot of companies. It’s a real time-saver, eliminates repetitive work, and makes online quotes much more efficient. Immediately after you send the form, your coverage is rated and you can select any one of the quotes returned.
If you find a better price you simply finish the application and buy the policy. This process takes just a few minutes to complete and may save quite a bit of money.
To quickly find out how much you can save on car insurance, click here to open in a new tab and input your coverage information. If you have your current policy handy, we recommend you type in the coverages exactly as they are listed on your policy. This makes sure you will have rate comparison quotes based on similar coverages.
Informed Drivers can Cut Their Rates
It’s important that you understand some of the elements that come into play when calculating your car insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay helps enable you to make changes that may reward you with much lower annual insurance costs.
The list below includes a partial list of the pieces that factor into rates.
- Poor driving leads to higher costs – Only having one moving violation can bump up the cost by as much as thirty percent. Drivers who don’t get tickets tend to pay less for car insurance than bad drivers. Drivers with serious tickets like DUI or reckless driving are required to submit a SR-22 form with the DMV in their state in order to continue driving.
- Do you need those extra coverages? – There are many extra bells and whistles you can purchase on your policy. Things like vanishing deductibles, better glass coverage and membership fees are examples of these. They may seem like a good idea at first, but your needs may have changed so remove them from your policy.
- Protect yourself with liability coverage – Liability insurance provides coverage if ever a court rules you are at fault for causing damage or personal injury in an accident. It will provide for a legal defense which can cost thousands of dollars. This coverage is very inexpensive compared to physical damage coverage, so do not skimp.
- Safer cars cost less to insure – Vehicles with good safety scores get lower rates. Safer cars reduce injuries and fewer injuries means lower claim amounts and more competitive rates for policyholders.
- Lower rates come with age – Teen drivers in Wisconsin tend to get distracted easily when behind the wheel so they pay higher car insurance rates. Older insureds are more responsible, file fewer claims and receive fewer citations.
- Save money with special equipment – Driving a car with a theft deterrent system can help lower your rates. Theft prevention features like GM’s OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all hinder auto theft.
More discounts equal less premium
Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but you can get discounts to help bring down the price. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied when you quote, but less common discounts must be specially asked for before you get the savings.
- Defensive Driving Course – Completing a driver safety course could cut 5% off your bill if you qualify.
- Use Seat Belts – Requiring all passengers to wear their seat belts can save 10% or more off your PIP or medical payments premium.
- Multiple Vehicles – Insuring multiple vehicles on the same car insurance policy may reduce the rate for each vehicle.
- Driver’s Ed – Require your teen driver to successfully complete driver’s ed class in high school.
- Paperwork-free – Some insurance companies will discount your bill up to fifty bucks for buying your policy digitally online.
- Good Student Discount – This discount can save 20 to 25%. Earning this discount can benefit you until age 25.
- Service Members Pay Less – Being deployed with a military unit can result in better rates.
- Homeowners Discount – Being a homeowner can help you save on car insurance due to the fact that maintaining a home is proof that your finances are in order.
Drivers should understand that some of the credits will not apply to the entire policy premium. Some only reduce individual premiums such as comp or med pay. Just because you may think adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies don’t profit that way. But all discounts will bring down your overall premium however.
To see a list of providers with discount car insurance rates in Wisconsin, click here to view.
When might I need the advice of an agent?
When choosing adequate coverage, there really is not a “perfect” insurance plan. Everyone’s needs are different so your insurance should reflect that Here are some questions about coverages that might point out whether or not you would benefit from professional advice.
- Should I rate my vehicle as pleasure use or commute?
- Does my car insurance cover rental cars?
- Am I getting all the discounts available?
- Are my friends covered when driving my vehicle?
- Exactly who is provided coverage by my policy?
- Should I buy more coverage than the required Wisconsin minimum liability coverage?
- Do I need PIP coverage since I have good health insurance?
- Does my vehicle need full coverage?
If you’re not sure about those questions but you know they apply to you, you might consider talking to an insurance agent. If you don’t have a local agent, simply complete this short form or go to this page to view a list of companies.
Neighborhood insurance agents
Some people would rather visit with an insurance agent. The biggest benefit of getting online price quotes is you may find the best rates and still choose a local agent. And supporting small agencies is definitely important in Stevens Point.
By using this short form, the quote information is instantly submitted to participating agents in Stevens Point who will battle for your insurance coverage. There is no reason to leave your house due to the fact that quote results will go immediately to your email address. How’s that for easy! You can find better rates and work with a local agent.
Insurance agent types
If you’re trying to find a good Stevens Point insurance agent, you must know there are a couple types of insurance agents that differ in how they can insure your vehicles. Insurance agencies in Stevens Point can either be independent (non-captive) or captive.
Independent Agencies or Brokers
These agents are not employed by any specific company so they have the ability to put coverage amongst many companies depending on which coverage is best. If your agent finds better pricing, they simply move the coverage in-house and that require little work on your part.
When shopping rates, it’s a good idea to contact at a minimum one independent agency to have the most options to choose from.
Listed below are independent agents in Stevens Point that may be able to provide comparison quotes.
Bonnie Ciesielski Agency – 2600 Post Rd – Stevens Point, WI 54481 – (715) 341-1810
Westland Insurance Svc Inc – 904 Main St – Stevens Point, WI 54481 – (715) 344-4477
Barsness Insurance – 3233 Church St # 1 – Stevens Point, WI 54481 – (715) 344-8400
Captive Agents
This type of agents are contracted to one company such as Allstate, State Farm and Farmers Insurance. They are unable to compare other company’s rates so keep that in mind. These agents are trained well on their company’s products which can be an advantage.
The following are captive insurance agencies in Stevens Point who can help you get rate quotes.
State Farm Insurance – 5301 Us Highway 10 E – Stevens Point, WI 54481 – (715) 344-0073
Allstate Insurance – 2740 Stanley St # D – Stevens Point, WI 54481 – (715) 341-3838
American Family Insurance – 2916 Main St – Stevens Point, WI 54481 – (715) 341-9350
To view a complete directory of car insurance agents in Stevens Point, go to this page.
Picking a car insurance agent shouldn’t rely on just a low price. Any agent should be forthright in answering these questions:
- Are glass claims handled on-site or do you have to take your vehicle to a repair shop?
- Do they have adequate Errors and Ommissions coverage? This protects you if they make a mistake.
- How many years of experience in personal lines insurance coverages do they have?
- If they are an independent agency, which companies do they recommend?
- Which members of your family are coverage by the policy?
Once you have acceptable answers to these questions and locked in a price quote, you’ve probably found an insurance agency that meets your needs to properly insure your vehicles.
In the end, you save
When you buy insurance online, do not reduce coverage to reduce premium. In too many instances, consumers will sacrifice collision coverage and found out when filing a claim that it was a big mistake. The proper strategy is to buy enough coverage at an affordable rate while not skimping on critical coverages.
We just presented some good ideas how you can lower your car insurance rates. It’s most important to understand that the more price quotes you have, the better your chances of lowering your rates. Drivers may discover the lowest rates come from an unexpected company. Some small companies can often provide lower rates in certain areas than the large multi-state companies such as State Farm or Progressive.
More information can be read on the website for the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance located here. Visitors are able to file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, learn about specific coverages, and read industry bulletins.