Searching for budget Alamosa auto insurance may be impossible for drivers not familiar with online price comparisons. With such a large number of agents and companies in the marketplace, how can drivers have a chance to compare every company in order to find cheaper auto insurance rates?
The purpose of this post is to teach you how car insurance quotes work and some money-saving tips. If you are paying for car insurance now, you stand a good chance to be able to lower your premiums substantially using this information. Colorado consumers only need to know the most effective way to compare price quotes on the web.
Five factors that affect insurance costs
Multiple criteria are taken into consideration when you get your auto insurance bill. A few of the factors are predictable like a motor vehicle report, although others are less apparent such as whether you are married or your vehicle rating.
- Maintain auto insurance coverage – Going without insurance is a quick way to increase your renewal premiums. Not only will you pay higher rates, being ticketed for driving with no insurance may result in a revoked license or a big fine.
- Pay more if you have a long commute – Having an address in small towns and rural areas has definite advantages when insuring your vehicles. Fewer drivers means fewer accidents in addition to lower liability claims Residents of big cities have more traffic problems and longer commute times. Longer commute distances can result in more accidents.
- Do you really need to file that policy claims? – Car insurance companies in Colorado provide cheaper rates to people who are not frequent claim filers. If you frequently file small claims, you can definitely plan on increased rates or even have your policy non-renewed. Auto insurance is intended to be relied upon for more catestrophic claims.
- Prices also based on gender – The statistics show that females take fewer risks when driving. The data does not necessarily mean that females are better drivers. They both cause auto accidents in similar percentages, but the males cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Not only that, but men also have more aggressive citations such as DWI and reckless driving.
- Lower stress equals lower premiums – Occupations such as doctors, architects and medical professionals generally pay the highest average rates due to intense work requirements and lots of time spent away from family. On the flip side, professions such as professors, students and performers have the lowest average rates.
Finding a better price on auto insurance isn’t really that difficult. You just have to take a few minutes to get quotes from some recommended companies. It’s really simple and can be done using one of these methods.
- The recommended way to get quotes for comparison would be an industry-wide quote request form click here to open form in new window. This easy form keeps you from doing boring form submissions for every prospective company. One simple form gets insurance cost estimates from several companies. Just one form and you’re done.
- A more time consuming way to analyze rates is spending the time to visit the website for every company you want to comare and request a quote. For sake of this example, we’ll pretend you want to see prices from Farmers, Progressive and GMAC. You would have to spend time on each company’s site and punch in your information repeatedly, and that explains why we recommend the first method. For a list of companies in Alamosa, click here.
- Even if you have time, the least recommended method to comparison shop rate quotes is actually driving to and from local Alamosa insurance agencies. Comparing online rate quotes makes this unnecessary unless your situation requires the guidance that only an agent can give. Although you can price shop online but buy from a local insurance agent.
Which method you use is up to you, but make sure you are using nearly identical coverage information for each comparison quote. If you are comparing differing limits you will not be able to determine which company has the best rates in Alamosa.
Discounts to earn lower Alamosa auto insurance rates
Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, but there may be some discounts that you may not know about. Some trigger automatically when you complete an application, but some may not be applied and must be specially asked for before they will apply.
- Federal Employees – Employees or retirees of the government may reduce rates when you with certain companies.
- Payment Method – By paying your entire bill at once rather than spreading payments over time you could save up to 5%.
- Multiple Vehicles – Buying a policy with all your vehicles with the same auto insurance company can get a discount on all vehicles.
- Senior Citizens – Older drivers may qualify for a small discount on rates.
- College Student Discount – Children living away from home attending college and don’t have a car can receive lower rates.
- Good Grades Discount – Excelling in school may save as much as 25% on a . Earning this discount can benefit you until age 25.
- Organization Discounts – Being a member of a qualifying organization could earn you a nice discount on your next renewal.
- Drive Safe and Save – Drivers who don’t get into accidents could pay up to 40% less than drivers with accident claims.
- Seat Belt Discounts – Drivers who always wear seat belts and also require passengers to buckle up can save up to 10 percent (depending on the company) off PIP or medical payments premium.
- Early Signing – A few larger companies offer discounts for renewing your policy before your current coverage expires. It can save you around 10%.
One thing to note about discounts is that most credits do not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only apply to individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. Even though it may seem like you could get a free auto insurance policy, that’s just not realistic. But all discounts will definitely reduce your overall bill.
Companies that may offer some of the above discounts possibly include:
Check with all companies you are considering how many discounts you can get. A few discounts might not be available to policyholders everywhere. If you would like to view providers with the best discounts in Alamosa, click here to view.
Compare rate quotes or from insurance agencies
A small number of people would rather talk to a local agent and often times that is recommended Licensed agents can help you build your policy and give you someone to call. One of the best bonuses of comparing rate quotes online is you can get the lowest rates and still choose a local agent. Putting coverage with local agencies is especially important in Alamosa.
By using this short form, your insurance data is sent to local insurance agents in Alamosa who want to provide quotes for your coverage. You never need to drive around since rate quotes are delivered instantly to you. If you wish to get a comparison quote from a specific auto insurance provider, just navigate to their website and complete a quote there.
When narrowing the list to find a local Alamosa insurance agent, you should know the different types of agencies and how they differ in how they quote coverages. Agents in Alamosa are considered either captive agents or independent agents. Either can sell and service auto insurance coverage, but it’s important to point out how they differ since it may influence buying decisions.
Independent Auto Insurance Agencies or Brokers
Agents that elect to be independent do not work for one specific company and that enables them to quote your coverage through many companies and find you cheaper rates. If premiums increase, they simply move the coverage in-house which is easy for the insured.
When comparing auto insurance prices, it’s a good idea to get several quotes from at least one independent agent for maximum quote selection. Most can insure with smaller companies that many times have cheaper rates.
Shown below are Alamosa independent agents that may be able to give cheap rate quotes.
- Cline Agency Inc – 623 4th St – Alamosa, CO 81101 – (719) 589-4711
- Valley Insurance Assoc – 1411 Main St – Alamosa, CO 81101 – (719) 589-6116
- Denton Insurance – 1322 Main St # C – Alamosa, CO 81101 – (719) 589-0747
Captive Agencies
Captive agencies generally can only insure with one company and some examples include Allstate and State Farm. They usually cannot shop your coverage around so you might not find the best rates. Captive agencies receive a lot of sales training on their company’s products which can be an advantage. Consumers sometimes buy from captive agents primarily because of the brand rather than low price.
Shown below are Alamosa captive agencies that are able to give price quote information.
- Farm Bureau Insurance – 167 Broadway Ave – Alamosa, CO 81101 – (719) 589-3614
- American Family Insurance – 817 Main St – Alamosa, CO 81101 – (719) 589-0105
To search for insurance agents near you, view this list of insurance agents in Alamosa, CO.
Selecting a auto insurance agent requires more thought than just a cheap price quote. Agents should be asked these questions:
- Do clients work directly with the agent or are most inquiries handled by a CSR?
- Will the company cover a rental car if your car is getting fixed?
- Is every driver in your family covered?
- Which companies do they recommend if they are an independent agency?
- Do they have any clout with companies to ensure a fair claim settlement?
- Does the agency have a good rating with the Better Business Bureau?
- Is there a local claims center in Alamosa?
- Does the agency support the community they serve?
More information is available on the through this link. Consumers can find a variety of consumer forms, read industry bulletins, and find disaster information.
Auto insurance savings summarized
We just presented many tips how you can shop for auto insurance online. It’s most important to understand that the more companies you get premium rates for, the higher the chance of saving money. You may be surprised to find that the lowest priced auto insurance comes from a small mutual company.
Lower-priced auto insurance can be bought from both online companies in addition to local insurance agencies, so get from both of them to have the best rate selection. Some insurance providers don’t offer internet price quotes and these small insurance companies work with local independent agents.
When trying to cut insurance costs, never skimp on coverage in order to save money. There are too many instances where an accident victim reduced comprehensive coverage or liability limits to discover at claim time that a couple dollars of savings turned into a financial nightmare. Your aim should be to purchase a proper amount of coverage for the lowest price.