If you’re searching for cheaper insurance online, are you intimidated by the number of car insurance companies available to you? Lot’s of other people are too. Texas drivers have so many companies available that it can be hard work to find the best premium rates. If you live there, you know that Pharr has lots to offer, but high car insurance prices can make it difficult for lots of drivers to keep a tight budget.
How to shop car insurance online
Finding low cost car insurance rates can be quick and easy. You just need to take time comparing price quotes online from several insurance companies. You can get a good selection of rate quotes in several different ways.
The easiest and least time consuming way to find low rates would be an industry-wide quote request form like this one (opens in new window). This style of form prevents you from having to do separate forms for every company. Completing one form will get you rate comparisons from many national carriers. It’s definitely the quickest method.
A less efficient way to analyze rates is going to the website for every company you want to comare and fill out their own quote form. For examples sake, let’s say you want to view quotes from Nationwide, Liberty Mutual and Allstate. You would have to spend time going to each site individually and type in your information over and over, which is why the first method is quicker. To view a list of companies in Pharr, click here.
The hardest method to comparison shop is to drive around to insurance agencies in your area. The ability to buy insurance online eliminates this option unless you’re the type of person who wants the personal advice that only a licensed agent can provide. Although you can price shop your coverage online but have your policy serviced through an agent.
It’s up to you how you get prices quotes, just do your best to enter exactly the same coverage limits and deductibles on every quote you get. If each company quotes different coverage information you will not be able to make an equal comparison in Pharr.
Do you qualify for these seven discounts?
Car insurance is not an enjoyable expense, but companies offer discounts to help offset the cost. A few discounts will automatically apply when you quote, but lesser-known reductions have to be specially asked for before you get the savings. If they aren’t giving you every credit you deserve, you are not getting the best rate possible.
- Distant College Student Discount – Any of your kids who live away from home to go to college without a vehicle on campus may be insured at a cheaper rate.
- Early Payment Discounts – By making one initial payment instead of monthly or quarterly installments you can avoid monthly service charges.
- Driver Education Discount – Cut your cost by having your teen driver participate in a local driver’s education class in school or through a local driver safety program.
- Bundled Policy Discount – When you combine your auto and homeowners insurance with the same insurance company you will save approximately 10% to 15%.
- Military Discounts – Being deployed with a military unit may qualify for rate reductions.
- Sign Early and Save – Some larger companies reward drivers for renewing your policy before your current expiration date. You may see this discount when you get .
- Senior Citizen Rates – Drivers that qualify as senior citizens could receive a small decrease in premiums.
As a sidenote, most discount credits are not given to the entire cost. Some only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as collision or personal injury protection. So when it seems like you could get a free car insurance policy, insurance companies wouldn’t stay in business.
Large car insurance companies and a selection of discounts can be read below.
- Progressive may include discounts for homeowner, online signing, multi-policy, continuous coverage, online quote discount, multi-vehicle, and good student.
- SAFECO has discounts for homeowner, drive less, anti-theft, anti-lock brakes, accident prevention training, teen safety rewards, and teen safe driver.
- American Family includes discounts for mySafetyValet, air bags, TimeAway discount, accident-free, and Steer into Savings.
- MetLife may have discounts that include defensive driver, multi-policy, good driver, accident-free, claim-free, and good student.
- Geico discounts include defensive driver, federal employee, membership and employees, anti-lock brakes, emergency military deployment, seat belt use, and driver training.
- The Hartford policyholders can earn discounts including vehicle fuel type, air bag, defensive driver, driver training, good student, and anti-theft.
When comparing rates, check with every insurance company how you can save money. Some of the discounts discussed earlier might not be offered in Pharr.
Local insurance agents
Many people would prefer to buy from a local agent and that is just fine! Licensed agents are trained risk managers and help file insurance claims. A good thing about getting free rate quotes online is the fact that you can find lower rates and still buy from a local agent. Buying insurance from local insurance agents is still important in Pharr.
After filling out this form (opens in new window), the quote information is emailed to companies in Pharr that can give you for your insurance coverage. There is no need to search for an agent because quoted prices will be sent to your email. If you want to get a price quote from a particular provider, you would need to go to their quote page and submit a quote form there.
The following are agents in Pharr that may be able to provide price quotes.
- Agency Access Insurance – 5221 S Cage Blvd # B, Pharr, TX 78577 – (956) 783-9127
- Allstate Insurance – 1603 N Cage Blvd # 2, Pharr, TX 78577 – (956) 702-4788
- Amco Auto Insurance – 516 N Cage Blvd, Pharr, TX 78577 – (956) 702-1800
- State Farm Insurance – 702 W Expressway 83 # A, Pharr, TX 78577 – (956) 702-4200
- United Insurance – 310 N Cage Blvd, Pharr, TX 78577 – (956) 782-5559
- Farm Bureau Insurance – 507 E Expressway 83, Pharr, TX 78577 – (956) 787-8844
To view a full list of licensed insurance agents in Pharr, you may want to see this complete selection of car insurance providers in Pharr.
Deciding on a insurer needs to be determined by more than just the quoted price. These are some questions your agent should answer.
- Does the quote include credit and driving reports?
- What company holds the largest book of business for them?
- Are they able to provide referrals?
- How many years have they been established?
- What discounts might you be missing?
Once you have received good answers to any questions you may have and an acceptable price quote, most likely you have located a company that is reputable and can adequately provide car insurance. Keep in mind it’s your coverage and you can cancel your coverage for any reason so don’t think that you are obligated to the car insurance policy for the full term.
Specifics of your car insurance policy
Learning about specific coverages of a car insurance policy helps when choosing the best coverages at the best deductibles and correct limits. The coverage terms in a policy can be confusing and nobody wants to actually read their policy.
Collision coverage protection
This pays for damage to your vehicle resulting from a collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. You first must pay a deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.
Collision insurance covers claims such as driving through your garage door, colliding with another moving vehicle and colliding with a tree. This coverage can be expensive, so consider removing coverage from older vehicles. It’s also possible to bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.
Comprehensive coverage
Comprehensive insurance coverage will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first must pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive can pay for claims such as vandalism, theft and hail damage. The highest amount a car insurance company will pay at claim time is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage
This gives you protection from other motorists when they are uninsured or don’t have enough coverage. Covered claims include injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants and damage to your vehicle.
Since a lot of drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits (which is 30/60/25), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is a good idea. Normally the UM/UIM limits are similar to your liability insurance amounts.
Medical payments coverage and PIP
Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance provide coverage for immediate expenses for things like nursing services, prosthetic devices, X-ray expenses, EMT expenses and rehabilitation expenses. They are often used in conjunction with a health insurance policy or if there is no health insurance coverage. It covers both the driver and occupants in addition to any family member struck as a pedestrian. Personal Injury Protection is only offered in select states and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay
Liability coverages
This provides protection from injuries or damage you cause to a person or their property in an accident. Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. As an example, you may have policy limits of 100/300/100 which stand for a limit of $100,000 per injured person, a per accident bodily injury limit of $300,000, and a total limit of $100,000 for damage to vehicles and property. Some companies may use a combined single limit or CSL that pays claims from the same limit without having the split limit caps.
Liability can pay for claims like legal defense fees, repair costs for stationary objects, medical expenses, funeral expenses and attorney fees. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is a personal decision, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as high a limit as you can afford. Texas state law requires minimum liability limits of 30,000/60,000/25,000 but it’s recommended drivers buy more coverage.
Affordable car insurance is out there
Throughout this article, we presented many ideas to reduce car insurance prices online. It’s most important to understand that the more quotes you get, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. You may even discover the most savings is with a smaller regional carrier.
While you’re price shopping online, it’s a bad idea to skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. Too many times, someone sacrificed collision coverage only to discover later that saving that couple of dollars actually costed them tens of thousands. The ultimate goal is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at an affordable rate while not skimping on critical coverages.
Drivers switch companies for a number of reasons such as questionable increases in premium, being labeled a high risk driver, an unsatisfactory settlement offer and even policy non-renewal. Whatever your reason, choosing a new company can be pretty painless.
Learn more about Texas car insurance
Additional information is available on the . Click here for link. Consumers can learn about specific coverages, read industry bulletins, and find a variety of consumer forms.