Tired of not being able to afford to buy car insurance? Your situation is no different than the majority of other car owners in Washington.
Having so many insurance providers from which to choose, it is hard for the average consumer to find the most affordable insurance company.
You should take the time to check car insurance prices periodically since insurance rates go up and down regularly. Just because you found the lowest rates a few years ago you can probably find a lower rate today. There is too much inaccurate information about car insurance on the internet, so by reading this article, you’re going to learn some solid techniques on how to stop overpaying for insurance.
Compare Seatac Car Insurance Costs
Most major insurance companies such as Allstate, Geico and Progressive give prices directly from their websites. Obtaining pricing is fairly straightforward as you simply type in the amount of coverage you want into a form. After you complete the form, their system obtains reports for credit and driving violations and generates pricing information based on many factors. Online quotes simplifies rate comparisons, but having to visit many different websites and enter the same data into a form gets old quite quickly. But it is imperative to get many rate quotes if you are searching for the lowest possible prices on car insurance.
A more efficient way to locate the lowest prices utilizes a single form that gets price quotes from a bunch of companies at once. This type of form saves time, requires much less work on your part, and makes comparison shopping much easier to do. After your information is entered, it is rated with multiple companies and you can pick any of the quotes that you receive. If a lower price is quoted, you can click and sign and buy the new coverage. It can be completed in less than 10 minutes and may save quite a bit of money.
To save time and find out how much you can save on car insurance, click here to open in a new tab and fill out the form. If you have coverage now, it’s recommended you input the limits and deductibles just like they are on your policy. This ensures you are getting comparison quotes using the exact same coverages.
How can Allstate, Geico and Progressive save drivers who switch?
Car insurance companies such as Allstate, Geico and Progressive regularly use ads on television and other media. They all seem to make an identical promise that you can save if you move your policy. How do they all make the same claim? This is how they do it.
Different companies can use profiling for the type of driver that is profitable for them. A good example of a profitable customer could possibly be between the ages of 30 and 50, has no tickets, and drives newer vehicles. A customer getting a price quote who fits that profile receives the best rates and is almost guaranteed to save when they switch companies.
Potential insureds who fall outside these standards must pay a higher premium which usually ends up with the customer not buying. Company advertisements say “people who switch” not “everybody who quotes” save money. That’s why companies can claim big savings. This illustrates why you absolutely need to get a wide range of price quotes. Because you never know which company will fit your personal profile best.
Learn How to Buy Car Insurance Cheaper
Smart consumers have a good feel for some of the elements that help determine the rates you pay for car insurance. Knowing what controls the rates you pay allows you to make educated decisions that could result in better car insurance rates.
The following are a partial list of the pieces companies use to determine premiums.
- Keep rates low by being claim-free – If you are a frequent claim filer, you can expect either higher rates or even cancellation. Companies in Washington provide discounts to drivers who are claim-free. Car insurance is intended for the bigger claims that can’t be paid out-of-pocket.
- One company can mean more discounts – Many insurers will give a discount to people who carry more than one policy. It’s known as a multi-policy discount. Discounts can add up to five, ten or even twenty percent. Even with this discount, you still need to compare other company rates to verify if the discount is saving money.
- Older drivers save more – Older drivers are more responsible, file fewer claims and get fewer tickets. Young drivers tend to be less responsible behind the wheel and because of this, their car insurance rates are much higher.
- Men pay higher rates – The statistics show women are more cautious behind the wheel. However, don’t assume that women are BETTER drivers than men. Men and women cause accidents in similar numbers, but the male of the species cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also tend to have more aggressive citations such as DWI and reckless driving.
- Low deductibles can be expensive – The deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay if you file a covered claim. Coverage for physical damage, also known as collision and other-than-collision, insures against damage to your car. A few examples of covered claims are colliding with a building, collision with an animal, and rolling your vehicle. The higher the amount you have to pay, the lower your rates will be.
- More miles equals more premium – The higher the mileage driven in a year the more you’ll pay to insure your vehicle. Almost all companies rate vehicles based on their usage. Vehicles left parked in the garage qualify for better rates than those used for commuting. Make sure your car insurance declarations sheet is showing the correct usage for each vehicle.
- Your car insurance rates can be influenced by your job – Did you know your car insurance rates can be affected by your occupation? Occupations such as judges, executives and dentists tend to pay the highest average rates because of job stress and long work hours. Other jobs such as actors, historians and homemakers have the lowest average rates.
- Do you need those extra coverages? – There are quite a few additional coverages that can waste your money on your policy. Coverages for roadside assistance, accident forgiveness and additional equipment coverage are examples of these. They may seem like a good idea initially, but now you might not need them so eliminate them to save money.
Are you getting all your discounts?
Companies don’t list every available discount in a way that’s easy to find, so we researched both the well known and the harder-to-find savings tricks you should be using.
- Driver Safety – Successfully completing a driver safety course could possibly earn you a 5% discount and easily recoup the cost of the course.
- Fewer Miles Equal More Savings – Keeping the miles down could be rewarded with lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
- Good Student Discount – Getting good grades can earn a discount of 20% or more. The good student discount can last until age 25.
- Safe Driver Discount – Drivers who avoid accidents can pay as much as 50% less than less cautious drivers.
- E-sign – A handful of insurance companies will discount your bill up to fifty bucks simply for signing on their website.
- Accident Free – Good drivers with no accidents can earn big discounts as compared to drivers who are more careless.
Drivers should understand that some of the credits will not apply to all coverage premiums. Most only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like comprehensive or collision. Just because you may think adding up those discounts means a free policy, you’re out of luck.
Can’t I compare rates from local Seatac agents?
Some people prefer to buy from a local agent and that is a personal choice. The best thing about getting online price quotes is the fact that you can find the best rates and still choose a local agent.
After completing this quick form, your coverage information is submitted to local insurance agents in Seatac who will return price quotes for your business. You don’t have to visit any agencies due to the fact that quote results will go straight to your inbox. How cool is that?! Get lower rates and an insurance agent to talk to.
Deciding on an insurance company needs to be determined by more than just the price. Here are some questions to ask:
- Is assistance available after office hours?
- Are there any hidden costs in their price quote and does it include driving and credit history?
- Do they feel the quoted coverages are adequate?
- Which company do they place the most coverage with?
- Are they full-time agents?
- Which insurance companies are they affiliated with?
- Do they receive special compensation for putting your coverage with one company over another?
- Are they able to influence company decisions when a claim is filed?
Two types of Seatac car insurance agents
If you’re trying to find a good Seatac insurance agent, you need to know there are two different agency structures that differ in how they can insure your vehicles. Insurance agencies in Seatac are categorized either independent or captive.
Agency Captives
Captive insurance agents have only one company to place business with and some examples include Allstate, AAA, Liberty Mutual and State Farm. These agents are unable to place coverage with different providers so they have to upsell other benefits. Captives receive extensive training on their company’s products and that can be a competitive advantage.
Listed below are captive insurance agents in Seatac who may provide you with price quotes.
Farmers Insurance Group – 15201 Military Rd S – Seatac, WA 98188 – (206) 248-2676
Allstate Insurance – 19530 Pacific Hwy S # 102 – Seatac, WA 98188 – (206) 824-4110
Independent Insurance Agents
These agents are not employed by any specific company so they have the ability to put coverage with multiple insurance companies and possibly get better coverage at lower prices. If your agent finds better pricing, an independent agent can move your coverage and you don’t have to find a new agent. When comparing rates, it’s recommended you contact several independent insurance agents to get the best comparison.
Below is a short list of independent insurance agents in Seatac that can give you price quote information.
Dick A Whipple Insurance Inc – 2800 S 192nd St # 100 – Seatac, WA 98188 – (206) 246-6700
American National Insurance Co – 21400 Pacific Hwy S # 103 – Seatac, WA 98198 – (206) 878-5840
For a full directory of car insurance agents in Seatac, simply jump to this page.
Once you have satisfactory answers and an affordable coverage quote, it’s possible that you found an insurance agent that is a good match to properly service your car insurance policy.
In Summary
In this article, we covered many ways to save on car insurance. It’s most important to understand that the more rate quotes you have, the higher the chance of saving money. You may even find the best price on car insurance is with some of the lesser-known companies. Smaller companies often have lower prices on specific markets than their larger competitors like Allstate, Geico and Progressive.
As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, it’s very important that you do not reduce needed coverages to save money. There are many occasions where someone sacrificed collision coverage only to discover later that it was a big error on their part. Your focus should be to purchase plenty of coverage at the best price, not the least amount of coverage.
Additional detailed information can be found at the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner website. Visitors are able to report car insurance fraud, get help finding coverage, find out industry alerts, and discover disciplinary actions.
Other informative sites include BankRate.com’s Car Insurance: When not to Skimp and this page for help finding agents in Seatac, WA.