Are you a victim of an underperforming, overpriced car insurance policy? Trust us, you’re not alone. There are many auto insurance companies to insure vehicles with, and though it is a good thing to have a choice, too many choices makes it more difficult to compare rates and find the lowest cost car insurance.
It’s a good idea to compare prices occasionally due to the fact that insurance rates change frequently. Even if you think you had the best rates two years ago there may be better deals available now. There is a lot of wrong information about car insurance on the internet, so we’re going to give you a bunch of ideas how to stop overpaying for insurance.
Don’t pay full price with these discounts
Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, buy you may qualify for discounts to help bring down the price. Some discounts apply automatically when you purchase, but some must be specially asked for before being credited. If you don’t get every credit available, you’re just leaving money on the table.
- Resident Student – Any of your kids who live away from home without a vehicle on campus may qualify for this discount.
- E-sign – Some insurance companies may give you up to $50 simply for signing digitally online.
- Accident Waiver – A handful of insurance companies permit an accident before hitting you with a surcharge as long as you don’t have any claims prior to the accident.
- Use Seat Belts – Drivers who require all occupants to use a seat belt can save up to 15% off the personal injury premium cost.
- Payment Method – By paying your policy upfront instead of monthly or quarterly installments you can actually save on your bill.
- Memberships – Participating in a civic or occupational organization may earn a discount on your policy.
- No Claims – Drivers with accident-free driving histories pay much less as compared to bad drivers.
Drivers should understand that most credits do not apply to the entire policy premium. Most cut specific coverage prices like comprehensive or collision. So when the math indicates you would end up receiving a 100% discount, car insurance companies aren’t that generous. But any discount will help reduce the amount you have to pay.
To choose insurers with the best car insurance discounts in Connecticut, follow this link.
Cheap North Haven Car Insurance Comparisons
Cutting your North Haven car insurance rates can be quick and easy. Just take the time getting comparison quotes provided by online insurance companies. This can be accomplished in several different ways.
The fastest way consumers can analyze rates is to use a rate comparison form (click to open form in new window). This type of form eliminates the need for repetitive form submissions for each company. Just one form compares rates .
A slightly less efficient method to shop for car insurance online consists of visiting each individual company website and complete a new quote form. For examples sake, let’s assume you want comparison quotes from Geico, Allstate and Farmers. To get each rate you have to visit each site to input your insurance information, which is why most consumers use the first method. For a list of links to insurance companies in North Haven, click here.
The most time-consuming method to compare rates is driving around to and from local North Haven insurance agencies. Shopping for car insurance online can eliminate the need for a local agent unless you want the professional guidance only provided by licensed North Haven agents. You can, however, compare the best prices online and still use a local agent and we’ll touch on that later.
Whichever way you use, be sure to compare identical quote information on every quote you get. If your comparisons have mixed coverages it will be very difficult to determine the lowest rate in North Haven.
Understand what determines the rate you pay
Smart consumers have a good feel for the different types of things that help determine the price you pay for car insurance. Knowing what impacts premium levels empowers consumers to make smart changes that will entitle you to lower car insurance prices.
- Theft deterrents lower rates – Purchasing a vehicle with a theft deterrent system can save you a little every year. Theft prevention devices such as GM’s OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all aid in stopping car theft.
- Drive a safer car and pay less – Vehicles with good safety scores tend to have better insurance rates. Safe vehicles reduce injuries and lower injury rates means less money paid by your insurance company and thus lower rates.
- Your car insurance rates can be influenced by your job – Careers like judges, social workers and stock brokers tend to have the highest rates due to high stress and lots of time spent at work. On the other hand, occupations like actors, students and retirees receive lower rates.
- Your age impacts your rates – Older drivers are more responsible, file fewer claims and are safer drivers. Teenage drivers tend to be more careless behind the wheel and because of this, their car insurance rates are much higher.
- Better credit scores mean better rates – Credit history is a important factor in your rate calculation. So if your credit history is not that good, you could potentially save money when insuring your by spending a little time repairing your credit. People with high credit scores tend to be more responsible than those with lower credit scores.
- High numbers of claims are not good – If you file claims often, you can definitely plan on either a policy non-renewal or much higher rates. Companies in Connecticut provide lower rates to policyholders who are claim-free. Auto insurance is intended for major claims that would cause financial hardship.
- Consolidate policies to earn discounts – Most insurers give discounts to policyholders who have multiple policies with them in the form of a multi-policy discount. Even though this discount sounds good, you still need to compare rates to confirm you are receiving the best rates possible.
Your personal situation dictates your coverage
When it comes to choosing the best car insurance coverage, there isn’t really a cookie cutter policy. Each situation is unique so this has to be addressed. Here are some questions about coverages that may help highlight if your insurance needs could use an agent’s help.
- How much liability do I need to cover my assets?
- Is my babysitter covered when using my vehicle?
- Why does it cost so much to insure a teen driver in North Haven?
- What discounts do I qualify for?
- When do I need to add a new car to my policy?
- Do I really need UM/UIM coverage?
- What is the difference between comprehensive and collision coverage?
- What are the financial responsibility laws in Connecticut?
- Why am I required to get a high-risk car insurance policy?
If it’s difficult to answer those questions but one or more may apply to you then you might want to talk to an insurance agent. If you don’t have a local agent, complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It’s fast, doesn’t cost anything and may give you better protection.
Are insurance agents a thing of the past?
A small number of people would rather get advice from a local agent and there is nothing wrong with that. Professional agents can help determine the best coverages and help in the event of a claim. One of the great benefits of getting online price quotes is you can get the lowest rates and still choose a local agent. Buying from local insurance agencies is important especially in North Haven.
To find an agent, once you fill out this quick form, your insurance data is sent to local insurance agents in North Haven who will battle to get your business. You won’t need to visit any agencies since price quotes are sent directly to your email. How cool is that?!
Pick the best car insurance agent in North Haven for you
When looking for a good North Haven insurance agent, you need to know there are two types of agencies from which to choose. North Haven agents can either be independent or captive. Either one can properly insure your vehicles, but it’s worth mentioning the differences because it can impact the type of agent you choose
Independent Agents
Independent agencies are not locked into one company so they can insure your vehicles with multiple insurance companies and potentially find a lower price. If your agent finds better pricing, they simply move the coverage in-house and that require little work on your part.
When shopping rates, you should always contact multiple independent agents for maximum quote selection.
Below are independent insurance agencies in North Haven that can give you comparison quotes.
Abbatello Insurance – 23 Maiden Ln – North Haven, CT 06473 – (203) 985-9034
Long Term Care Insurance – 36 State St # 6 – North Haven, CT 06473 – (203) 234-8566
Captive Insurance Agents
Captive agencies have only one company to place business with like State Farm, AAA, Farmers Insurance or Allstate. They usually cannot place coverage with different providers so they have to upsell other benefits. Captive agencies are very knowledgeable in insurance sales which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums.
The following is a short list of captive insurance agents in North Haven willing to provide comparison quotes.
State Farm Insurance – 127 Washington Ave – North Haven, CT 06473 – (203) 234-0897
Allstate Insurance – 4 Broadway # A – North Haven, CT 06473 – (203) 234-7122
For a full directory of North Haven captive insurance agencies, please go to this site.
Selecting an auto insurance agent needs to be determined by more than just the premium amount. Any agent should be forthright in answering these questions:
- Do they assist clients in filing claims?
- Which insurance companies are they affiliated with?
- Will your rates increase after a single accident?
- What insurance company do they write the most business with?
- Will vehicle repairs be made with aftermarket parts or OEM replacement parts?
- Does the agency provide any after hours assistance?
- Does the company allow you to choose your own collision repair facility?
- How long have they worked with personal auto insurance coverage?
Once you have received positive responses to all your questions and a low price estimate, it’s possible that you found an insurance agent that meets your needs to adequately provide car insurance.
Are car insurance companies telling the truth?
Connecticut drivers can’t ignore all the ads for cheaper car insurance by Allstate, Geico and Progressive. They all seem to make an identical promise about savings if you move to their company.
How can each company say the same thing?
Different companies can use profiling for the right customer that is profitable for them. For example, a profitable customer might be profiled as over the age of 50, has no prior claims, and drives newer vehicles. A propective insured who meets those qualifications will get the preferred rates and as a result will probably save a lot of money.
Potential customers who don’t qualify for these standards will be quoted higher rates and ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. Company advertisements say “drivers who switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that much money. This is how companies can truthfully state the savings.
This emphasizes why you absolutely need to get as many comparisons as possible. It’s just too difficult to predict which car insurance company will provide you with the cheapest rates.
A tidy conclusion
When you buy insurance online, it’s very important that you do not reduce needed coverages to save money. In many cases, someone dropped uninsured motorist or liability limits only to find out that the savings was not a smart move. The aim is to get the best coverage possible at an affordable rate.
Low-cost car insurance is possible from both online companies as well as from independent agents in North Haven, and you need to price shop both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some car insurance companies don’t offer you the ability to get quotes online and most of the time these small, regional companies sell through independent agents.
Throughout this article, we presented quite a bit of information on how to lower your car insurance rates. The most important thing to understand is the more companies you get rates for, the better chance you’ll have of finding lower rates. Drivers may discover the lowest rates come from some of the smallest insurance companies. Some small companies can often insure niche markets at a lower cost than the large multi-state companies such as State Farm, Geico and Nationwide.
Informative consumer insurance sites
Additional car insurance information can be read on the website for the Connecticut Insurance Department through this link. Connecticut drivers can find a variety of consumer forms, find out which companies have the most complaints, and find out industry alerts.
Additional helpful sites include this link for Connecticut coverage information and this list of insurance agents in North Haven, CT.