Are you overwhelmed by the sheer number of car insurance providers in your area? Lot’s of other drivers are too. Vehicle owners have so many providers to choose from that it can really be a ton of work to find the perfect company for you. Everyone knows Hueytown is a great place to live, but finding the money to pay for car insurance makes it very hard to maintain proper levels of coverage.
If you have insurance now or are looking for a new policy, you will benefit by learning to get lower rates and still get good coverage. This information will teach you how to effectively get price quotes and some tricks to saving. Alabama consumers just need to understand how to get comparison quotes online.
Save a ton with these car insurance discounts
Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but you might be missing out on some discounts that may help make it more affordable. Some trigger automatically when you complete an application, but a few must be asked about before being credited.
- Student in College – Older children who are enrolled in a college that is more than 100 miles from home and leave their car at home may qualify for this discount.
- Multi-car Discount – Buying insurance for primary and secondary vehicles on one policy can reduce rates for all insured vehicles.
- Driver’s Education for Students – Require your teen driver to enroll and complete driver’s education in school or through a local driver safety program.
- Switch and Save Discount – A few companies allow discounts for signing up before your current policy expires. This can save 10% or more.
- Accident Forgiveness – but companies like Progressive, Allstate, and Liberty Mutual may permit one accident without the usual rate increase if you are claim-free before the accident.
While discounts sound great, it’s important to understand that most credits do not apply to your bottom line cost. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. Even though it may seem like you could get a free car insurance policy, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy.
Companies and their offered discounts are included below.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including anti-theft, multiple autos, Steer Clear safe driver discount, safe vehicle, and Drive Safe & Save.
- Progressive offers premium reductions for multi-policy, homeowner, good student, multi-vehicle, and online signing.
- Travelers may offer discounts for good student, hybrid/electric vehicle, payment discounts, IntelliDrive, and new car.
- American Family may include discounts for mySafetyValet, early bird, multi-vehicle, bundled insurance, TimeAway discount, and defensive driver.
- Liberty Mutual discounts include teen driver discount, preferred payment discount, good student, new graduate, multi-car, and new vehicle discount.
When getting a coverage quote, ask each company which discounts can lower your rates. A few discounts might not be offered on policies in Hueytown. If you would like to see a list of car insurance companies who offer free car insurance quotes in Hueytown, follow this link.
How to shop car insurance online
There are several ways you can shop for car insurance but one way is less labor-intensive and much quicker. You can waste a lot of time talking to local insurance agents in Hueytown, or you can stay home and use online quoting for quick rates.
All the larger companies are enrolled in a marketplace where insurance shoppers enter their coverage request one time, and each company provides a quote for coverage. This saves time by eliminating quote forms for each company you want a rate for.
To get comparison pricing now click here to start a free quote.
The only drawback to pricing coverage this way is buyers cannot specifically choose the providers to get quotes from. If you wish to select specific insurance companies to request quotes from, we have assembled a list of car insurance companies in Alabama. View list of Alabama insurance companies.
Which method you use is up to you, but do your best to use the same quote information for each quote you get. If the quotes have different values for each quote you will not be able to determine which rate is truly the best in Hueytown.
Learn how to lower your car insurance prices
An important part of buying insurance is that you know a few of the rating criteria that help calculate the level of your policy premiums. When consumers understand what impacts premium levels, this enables informed choices that could help you find better car insurance rates. Many factors are used in the calculation when you get your auto insurance bill. Some are obvious such as your driving history, but some are less obvious like where you live or your commute time.
- Keep the miles off and save – The more you drive your car in a year’s time the higher your rate. The majority of insurers price each vehicle’s coverage based upon how you use the vehicle. Cars and trucks that have low annual miles receive lower rates than cars that get driven a lot. Verify your car insurance coverage reflects how each vehicle is driven.
- Use credit responsibly and save – A driver’s credit score is a big factor in determining what you pay. People that have very high credit ratings tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records than drivers who have poor credit scores. Therefore, if your credit is low, you could potentially save money when insuring your vehicle by repairing your credit.
- Safer the car lower the rate – Vehicles with high crash test scores tend to have lower insurance rates. Safer cars protect occupants better and fewer serious injuries means less money paid by your insurance company which can result in lower premiums.
- Reserve claims for larger damages – If you frequently file small claims, you shouldn’t be surprised to get much higher rates or policy non-renewal. Insurance companies in Alabama award the best rates to policyholders who are claim-free. Auto insurance is meant to be used in the event of major claims that would cause financial hardship.
Car insurance can get complicated
When it comes to buying the best car insurance coverage, there is no best way to insure your cars. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs.
Here are some questions about coverages that might help in determining whether you may require specific advice.
- Do I benefit by insuring my home with the same company?
- When do I need to add a new car to my policy?
- Can my teen driver be rated on a liability-only vehicle?
- Is borrowed equipment or tools covered if stolen or damaged?
- Do I need medical payments coverage since I have good health insurance?
- Am I covered when driving on a suspended license?
- Should I rate my vehicle as pleasure use or commute?
- Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
- Am I getting all the discounts available?
- What vehicles should carry emergency assistance coverage?
If you don’t know the answers to these questions, you might consider talking to an insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, complete this form. It’s fast, free and you can get the answers you need.
Beware of misleading car insurance ads
Consumers in Alabama can’t escape the ads that promise big savings by 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm. They all seem to seem to make the promise that people will save if you get a free and switch your coverage to them.
How does every company claim to save you money? Here is the trick they use.
Most companies provide the lowest rates for the type of driver that earns them the highest profit. One example of this type of risk profile may need to be over the age of 45, has a clear driving record, and drives newer vehicles. A driver that matches those criteria gets the lowest auto insurance rates and most likely will cut their rates if they switch.
Insureds who fall outside the “perfect” profile will get more expensive rates and business not being written. Company advertisements say “drivers who switch” not “all people who quote” save that much when switching. That’s the way companies can truthfully lure you into getting a quote. This emphasizes why you really need to quotes from several different companies. Because without a comparison, you cannot know with any certainty which company will have the best premium rates at this point in time.
Car insurance savings summarized
We’ve covered a lot of ways to reduce car insurance auto insurance rates online. It’s most important to understand that the more quotes you get, the better your chances of lowering your premium rates. Consumers may even find the best auto insurance rates are with a lesser-known regional company.
Budget-friendly car insurance can be sourced both online as well as from insurance agents, and you should be comparing both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some insurance providers don’t offer online price quotes and usually these smaller providers only sell through independent agencies.
Drivers switch companies for any number of reasons including lack of trust in their agent, poor customer service, policy cancellation or unfair underwriting practices. Regardless of your reason for switching companies, finding the right car insurance provider can be pretty painless.
For more reading
Even more information can be found at the Alabama Department of Insurance website. Alabama consumers can view agent and company licensing information, read industry bulletins, get help finding coverage, and view a list of available companies.
Other informative sites include NAIC.org’s Understanding your Policy and this page for help finding agents in Hueytown, AL.