Finding cheaper rates on Wendell car insurance can be slightly frustrating for drivers who have little experience comparison shopping online. Because there are so many companies competing online, it can quickly become a chore to locate the lowest rates.
Pricing cheaper car insurance coverage in Wendell is easy if you know what you’re doing. If you have a current car insurance policy or are just looking to switch companies, you can follow these tips to shop for the lowest rates and possibly find even better coverage. Idaho vehicle owners just need to understand the tricks to compare rates on the web.
Discounts to earn lower Wendell car insurance rates
Insuring your vehicles can cost a lot, but you might already qualify for some discounts that can dramatically reduce your bill. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied at the time of purchase, but some must be specially asked for before being credited. If you don’t get every credit possible, you could be paying more than you need to.
- Senior Discount – Drivers over the age of 55 could receive a small decrease in premiums.
- Telematics Devices – Drivers that enable data collection to track vehicle usage by using a telematic data system such as Drivewise from Allstate or Snapshot from Progressive might see lower rates if they have good driving habits.
- Life Insurance Discount – Some insurance carriers give a small discount if you purchase a life insurance policy as well.
- Waiver for an Accident – but companies like Geico, Allstate and Liberty Mutual will allow you to have one accident before your rates go up as long as you don’t have any claims before the accident.
- Organization Discounts – Being in a qualifying organization may earn a discount on your bill.
- Defensive Driver Discount – Participating in a defensive driver course may get you a small discount depending on where you live.
Discounts save money, but please remember that some of the credits will not apply to your bottom line cost. Most only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like physical damage coverage or medical payments. Even though it appears adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies don’t profit that way.
The best car insurance companies and some of their more popular discounts can be found below.
- AAA has discounts for multi-car, multi-policy, education and occupation, good student, and pay-in-full.
- Progressive offers discounts for multi-vehicle, online quote discount, good student, continuous coverage, homeowner, and multi-policy.
- State Farm offers premium reductions for defensive driving training, Steer Clear safe driver discount, passive restraint, good student, good driver, accident-free, and student away at school.
- Esurance includes discounts for multi-car, good student, paid-in-full, anti-lock brakes, emergency road assistance, Switch & Save, and safety device.
- Nationwide may have discounts that include anti-theft, good student, multi-policy, easy pay, and business or organization.
If you are trying to find , ask every insurance company to apply every possible discount. Depending on the company, some discounts may not be available in your area. If you would like to see a list of insurers with discount car insurance rates in Wendell, click here to view.
Comparing car insurance rates can take hours if you don’t utilize the most efficient way. You could waste time discussing policy coverages with local insurance agents in Wendell, or you can stay home and use the internet to get the quickest rates.
Many companies enroll in a system that enables customers to enter their policy data once, and each participating company returns a rated price based on the submitted data. This prevents consumers from doing quotation requests for each company you want a rate for.
To find out what other companies charge click here to open in new window.
The only downside to using this type of system is that consumers can’t choose which carriers to get pricing from. So if you want to choose from a list of companies to compare rates, we have a listing of companies who write car insurance in Idaho. Click to view list.
It’s your choice how you get your quotes, but be sure to compare exactly the same information on every price quote you get. If the quotes have mixed coverages then you won’t be able to get a fair rate comparison in Wendell.
Why you might pay higher rates in Wendell
Many things are used when quoting car insurance. Some are pretty understandable such as your driving history, but some are more obscure like where you live or how safe your car is.
Listed below are just a few of the factors used by companies to determine rates.
- Too many claims will drive prices up – Insurance companies in Idaho give discounts to people who do not file claims often. If you frequently file small claims, you can look forward to higher rates. Auto insurance is intended to be relied upon for larger claims.
- High physical damage deductibles equal low rates – Protection for physical damage, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, is used to repair damage to your car. A few examples of covered claims are a broken windshield, vandalism, and burglary. The deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay if a covered claim is submitted. The more of the claim you are required to pay out-of-pocket, the lower your rates will be.
- Better drivers pay the best premiums – How you drive can have a huge impact on auto insurance premiums. Attentive drivers get better rates than bad drivers. Only having one speeding ticket or other violation can increase the cost of insurance by as much as twenty percent. Drivers who get severe violations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions might be required by their state to file a SR-22 with their state in order to legally drive.
- Why do you need liability insurance? – A critical coverage on your policy, liability insurance will protect you when you are determined to be liable for an accident. Liability insurance provides legal defense which can cost a lot. This coverage is very inexpensive compared to comp and collision, so do not cut corners here.
- Safety first – Cars with high safety ratings cost less to insure. Highly rated vehicles help reduce the chance of injuries in an accident and reduced instances of injuries translates directly to fewer claims and lower rates for you. If your car scored better than an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website or four stars on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website you are probably receiving a discount.
Insurance agents can help
When buying proper insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there isn’t really a single plan that fits everyone. Everyone’s needs are different.
For example, these questions might help in determining if your insurance needs might need professional guidance.
- Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
- Am I covered when using my vehicle for business?
- What are the financial responsibility laws in Idaho?
- Do I get a pro-rated refund if I cancel my policy early?
- Should I have combined single limit or split liability limits?
- Am I covered when driving a rental car?
If you’re not sure about those questions then you might want to talk to a licensed insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, take a second and complete this form. It’s fast, doesn’t cost anything and can help protect your family.
Neighborhood Wendell auto insurance agents
Certain consumers still prefer to buy from a licensed agent and that is recommended in a lot of cases Experienced insurance agents are trained risk managers and help in the event of a claim. One of the best bonuses of getting free rate quotes online is that you can find better rates and still choose a local agent. And buying from local insurance agents is important especially in Wendell.
For easy comparison, once you complete this simple form, the quote information is transmitted to local insurance agents in Wendell that give free quotes and help you find cheaper coverage. There is no need to find an agent on your own due to the fact that quote results will go straight to your inbox. If you need to get a rate quote from a specific insurance company, just find their quoting web page to submit a rate quote request.
Captive or Independent: There is a difference
If you want to use a reliable insurance agency, you must know there are a couple different types of agents that you can choose from. Agencies in Wendell can either be captive or independent (non-captive). Both types of agents can insure your vehicles, but we need to point out the difference between them since it can impact your agent selection.
Independent Car Insurance Agents
Independent agencies do not have single company limitations and that gives them the ability to insure through lots of different companies and get you the best rates possible. To move your coverage to a new company, they simply switch companies in-house and you stay with the same agent.
When comparing car insurance rates, you will definitely want to compare quotes from several independent insurance agents so that you have a good selection of quotes to compare. A lot of them also have access to smaller regional carriers which may provide better rates.
Listed below is a short list of independent agencies in Wendell that may be able to give you pricing information.
- Don Bunn Agency – 116 W Main St – Wendell, ID 83355 – (208) 536-6600
Captive Car Insurance Agencies
Agents that elect to be captive work for only one company like Farmers Insurance, State Farm, or Allstate. Captive agents cannot place coverage with different providers so they have to upsell other benefits. Captive agents are highly trained on what they offer which aids in selling service over price. Consumers frequently buy insurance from these agents mainly due to the brand and solid financial strength.
Choosing a insurance agent requires more thought than just a cheap price quote. Any good agent should know the answers to these questions.
- Do they have a Better Business Bureau rating in Wendell?
- Does the company have a solid financial rating?
- Do clients work directly with the agent or are most inquiries handled by a CSR?
- How long have they been in business?
- Are all drivers listed on the coverage quote?
- Is there a Errors and Omissions policy in force?
- Do the coverages you’re quoting properly cover your vehicle?
Advertising myths
Consumers can’t get away from all the ads for the lowest price car insurance from companies such as Geico, State Farm and Progressive. They all seem to convey the message of big savings if you get a free and switch to their company.
How do they all cost less than your current company?
Insurance providers have underwriting criteria for the type of driver that earns them the highest profit. An example of a driver they prefer might be a female over age 40, has no claims, and drives a car with an anti-theft system. Any driver that fits those parameters will get the preferred prices and as a result will probably save money with a new company.
Drivers who don’t measure up to this ideal profile must pay a higher premium which translates to business going elsewhere. Company advertisements say “customers that switch” but not “all drivers who get quotes” save that much money. That is how insurance companies can confidently claim big savings.
Because every company is different, you really need to get as many as possible. It’s not possible to predict which insurance companies will fit you best based on your risk profile.
More comparisons equals lower rates
People who switch companies do it for many reasons like extreme rates for teen drivers, delays in responding to claim requests, questionable increases in premium and even policy non-renewal. Regardless of your reason for switching companies, finding the right car insurance provider is pretty easy and you might even save some money in the process.
Throughout this article, we presented a lot of ways to compare car insurance premium rates online. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the better your chances of lowering your prices. Consumers may even find the biggest savings come from some of the lesser-known companies.
When trying to cut insurance costs, do not buy lower coverage limits just to save a few bucks. There are many occasions where someone dropped physical damage coverage only to regret that saving that couple of dollars actually costed them tens of thousands. Your focus should be to purchase plenty of coverage for the lowest cost while still protecting your assets.
Online resources for education
Additional car insurance information is available on the located here. Visitors are able to find out industry alerts, find out which companies have the most complaints, and read enforcement actions against agents and companies.
Also read more on this page for car insurance in Idaho and this page where you can research Wendell insurance agents.