Are you sick and tired of not being able to afford to insure your vehicles every month? You are in the same boat as many other Massachusetts consumers. Consumers have many insurers to insure vehicles with, and although it’s a good thing to be able to choose, so many choices can make it hard to compare rates and cut insurance costs.
You should make it a habit to do rate comparisons quite often since insurance rates change frequently. Just because you had the lowest price two years ago you can probably find a lower rate today. Starting now, block out anything you think you know about auto insurance because you’re going to learn the right way to save money, get proper coverage and the best rates.
Free Pittsfield Auto Insurance Quotes
Getting a lower price on insurance isn’t really that difficult. You just need to spend a few minutes on the computer to get quotes from different insurance companies. This is very easy and can be done in several different ways.
- The best way to compare a lot of rates at once is an all-inclusive rate comparison like this one (opens in new window). This easy form keeps you from doing separate quotes to each individual auto insurance company. Completing one form gets you price quotes direct from many companies.
- A more difficult way to obtain and compare quotes online is to take the time to go to the website for each individual company and complete a new quote form. For sake of this example, let’s assume you want comparison quotes from Auto-Owners, Allstate and Farmers. You would have to spend time on each company’s site and enter your information, and that’s why the first method is more popular.
For a list of links to insurance companies in Pittsfield, click here.
Whichever way you use, compare the exact same deductibles and coverage limits for every quote you compare. If you enter unequal deductibles or liability limits it will be next to impossible to determine the best price in Pittsfield.
Cut your premium with discounts
Auto insurance companies don’t necessarily list every discount in an easy-to-find place, so here is a list some of the best known as well as the least known discounts you could be receiving. If they aren’t giving you every credit you deserve, you are paying more than you should be.
- Resident Student – Youth drivers who are attending college and do not have access to a covered vehicle may be able to be covered for less.
- Government Employees – Employees or retirees of the government can save as much as 8% depending on your company.
- Early Switch Discount – A few companies offer discounts for signing up before your current policy expires. It’s a savings of about 10%.
- Driver’s Ed – Have your child complete a driver education course in school.
- Anti-lock Brakes – Cars that have steering control and anti-lock brakes can avoid accidents and will save you 10% or more.
- Good Student – This discount can save 20 to 25%. The discount lasts until age 25.
Consumers should know that most discounts do not apply to all coverage premiums. The majority will only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as collision or personal injury protection. So despite the fact that it appears you could get a free auto insurance policy, it just doesn’t work that way.
To see a list of companies with discount auto insurance rates in Massachusetts, click here.
Decisions you make can impact your rates
Consumers need to have an understanding of the factors that go into determining the rates you pay for auto insurance. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay allows you to make educated decisions that can help you get better auto insurance rates.
Listed below are some of the factors companies use to determine your rates.
- Careful drivers pay lower rates – Your driving record has a huge affect on how much you pay. Careful drivers have lower premiums compared to drivers with tickets. Only having one ticket can boost insurance rates forty percent or more. Drivers who get flagrant violations such as reckless driving, hit and run or driving under the influence may be required to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) to the state department of motor vehicles in order to keep their license.
- Women pay lower rates – Statistics show women are more cautious behind the wheel. However, don’t assume that men are WORSE drivers than women. Men and women cause accidents at about the same rate, but the male of the species cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also tend to receive more costly citations like reckless driving and DUI.
- More performance means more cost – The make and model of the vehicle you drive makes a substantial difference in how high your rates are. Small economy passenger cars generally have the cheapest insurance rates, but other factors influence the final cost greatly.
- Big city or small town – Residing in less populated areas can be a good thing when insuring your vehicles. Drivers in populated areas tend to have much more traffic and longer commute times. Fewer people means reduced accidents as well as less vandalism and auto theft.
- Younger drivers pay higher rates – Older insureds tend to be more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents and get fewer tickets. Teen drivers have a tendency to be careless and easily distracted when behind the wheel therefore auto insurance rates are much higher.
Do auto insurance companies bend the truth?
Massachusetts drivers can’t ignore all the ads that promise big savings by Allstate, Geico and Progressive. All the companies say the same thing about savings after switching to their company.
How does each company say the same thing?
Insurance companies can use profiling for the type of customer they prefer to insure. A good example of a profitable customer could possibly be over the age of 40, insures multiple vehicles, and chooses high deductibles. A driver that hits that “sweet spot” gets the lowest rates and therefore will cut their rates substantially.
Potential customers who don’t meet the requirements will be charged a more expensive rate and this can result in the customer not buying. The ads say “customers who switch” not “people who quote” save money. This is how companies can advertise the way they do. That is why you absolutely need to get as many quotes as possible. It’s impossible to know which company will have the lowest rates.
Cheaper insurance is a realistic goal
Discount auto insurance can be sourced from both online companies and also from your neighborhood Pittsfield agents, so compare prices from both in order to have the best chance of saving money. There are still a few companies who may not provide the ability to get a quote online and these smaller companies work with independent agents.
We just showed you a lot of techniques to compare auto insurance prices online. The key concept to understand is the more companies you get rates for, the better chance you’ll have of finding lower rates. Consumers may even find the best price on auto insurance is with an unexpected company. Smaller companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments than their larger competitors like State Farm and Allstate.
As you prepare to switch companies, do not skimp on coverage in order to save money. There are many occasions where an insured dropped liability limits or collision coverage only to discover later that they should have had better coverage. The ultimate goal is to find the BEST coverage at the best price, not the least amount of coverage.
Additional auto insurance links
Additional detailed information can be found at the Massachusetts Division of Insurance website. Massachusetts consumers can read state legal mandates and laws, file complaints about a company, read enforcement actions against agents and companies, and find disaster information.
Additional helpful sites include this page for auto insurance prices in Massachusetts and this page on QuoteClickInsure.com.