Scraping up a payment for overpriced auto insurance can empty your personal savings and make it impossible to make ends meet. Comparison shopping is a smart way to make sure you’re not throwing money away. Insurance companies such as State Farm, Progressive and Geico constantly bombard you with ads and it can be hard to ignore the flying pigs and cute green geckos and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.
Smart consumers take time to check auto insurance prices occasionally since insurance rates tend to go up over time. Even if you got the lowest rates six months ago you may be paying too much now. Forget anything you know (or think you know) about auto insurance because you’re about to find out the best methods to reduce your cost while improving coverage.
If you have a policy now or are looking for a new policy, you will benefit by learning to reduce the price you pay while maintaining coverages. Finding affordable coverage in Clinton is quite easy. Iowa consumers just need to understand the tricks to shop their coverage around on the web.
Comprehensive Clinton Auto Insurance Comparison
All the larger auto insurance companies like 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm provide price estimates directly from their websites. Getting quotes is quite easy as you just enter the coverages you want as requested by the quote form. Once you submit the form, the system obtains your credit score and driving record and returns a price determined by many factors. Online quotes makes comparing rates easy, but the time required to go to several different sites and complete many quote forms can be a bit repetitive. But it’s absolutely necessary to perform this step if you want to find the lowest possible prices on auto insurance.
Isn’t there an easier way to compare rates?
The preferred way to compare auto insurance pricing uses one simple form to obtain quotes from a lot of companies. It’s a real time-saver, requires less work, and makes quoting online a lot less work. Once the form is submitted, it is rated and you are able to buy any one of the quote results.
If you find a better price you can click and sign and purchase coverage. This process just takes a couple of minutes and may result in a nice savings.
If you want to find out how much you’re overpaying now, click here to open in new window and submit your coverage information. If you have a policy now, it’s recommended you enter deductibles and limits exactly as shown on your declarations page. Doing this assures you will have comparison quotes based on the exact same insurance coverage.
Discounts are great for lower rates
The price of auto insurance can be rather high, buy you may qualify for discounts that can drop the cost substantially. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically at the time you complete a quote, but a few must be manually applied before being credited. If you don’t get every credit available, you are throwing money away.
- New Car Discount – Buying coverage on a new vehicle can save up to 30% since new cars are generally safer.
- Own a Home – Owning a home in Clinton may trigger a auto insurance policy discount because maintaining a house shows financial diligence.
- Club Memberships – Being a member of a civic or occupational organization could trigger savings on your policy.
- One Accident Forgiven – A handful of insurance companies permit an accident before your rates go up so long as you haven’t had any claims for a set time period.
- Claim Free – Good drivers with no accidents pay less when compared to accident-prone drivers.
- Drive Less and Save – Fewer annual miles can qualify you for a substantially lower rate.
- Discount for Good Grades – This discount can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. The discount lasts well after school through age 25.
- Payment Discounts – By paying your policy upfront rather than paying monthly you could save up to 5%.
- Life Insurance – Select insurance companies reward you with a break if you buy life insurance from them.
- Multi-policy Discount – When you have multiple policies with the same company you will save up to 20% off your total premium.
As a disclaimer on discounts, most credits do not apply the the whole policy. Some only reduce individual premiums such as collision or personal injury protection. So despite the fact that it appears all those discounts means the company will pay you, companies wouldn’t make money that way. Any qualifying discounts will help reduce the amount you have to pay.
To see a list of providers with discount auto insurance rates in Iowa, follow this link.
Why some people pay less for insurance in Clinton
An important part of buying insurance is that you know the different types of things that go into determining the rates you pay for auto insurance. Knowing what influences your rates enables informed choices that may reward you with better auto insurance rates.
- Performance makes a difference – The performance of the car you drive makes a significant difference in determining your rates. The most favorable rates are usually for lower performance four cylinder passenger cars, but other factors influence the final cost greatly.
- Multiple policies with one company can save – Some companies will award you with lower prices to insureds who carry more than one policy, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Even though this discount sounds good, it’s in your best interest to comparison shop to ensure the best deal.
- Poor driving leads to higher costs – Only having one ticket can boost insurance rates forty percent or more. Careful drivers get better rates than their less careful counterparts. Drivers with dangerous tickets such as reckless driving, hit and run or driving under the influence are required to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) with the DMV in their state in order to prevent a license revocation.
- Protect yourself with liability coverage – Your policy’s liability coverage will protect you when you are found to be at fault for causing damage or personal injury in an accident. Liability insurance provides you with a defense in court starting from day one. Liability insurance is quite affordable as compared to coverage for physical damage, so drivers should carry high limits.
- Marriage brings a discount – Being married can actually save you money when buying auto insurance. Having a significant other means you’re more mature and responsible and it’s statistically proven that married couples file fewer claims.
- With age comes lower rates – Youthful drivers in Iowa have a tendency to be careless and easily distracted when driving so auto insurance rates are higher. Parents adding a teen driver to your policy can be very expensive. More mature drivers are more cautious drivers, statistically cause fewer accidents and are safer drivers.
What about using a local agent?
Certain consumers would prefer to talk to a local agent. Insurance agents can help determine the best coverages and help in the event of a claim. The best thing about getting online price quotes is the fact that you can find better rates but still work with a licensed agent. Buying from local businesses is definitely important in Clinton.
To make it easy to find an agent, after completing this short form, your insurance data is immediately sent to insurance agents in Clinton who will compete for your business. There is no reason to leave your house since price quotes are sent to your email. How’s that for easy!
What type of Clinton insurance agency is right for you?
When searching for a local agent, you must know there are a couple different types of agents to choose from. Clinton agents are categorized either independent or captive. Either one can write coverage properly, but it’s important to know how they differ because it can impact your selection of an agent.
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. To move your coverage to a new company, the agent simply finds a different carrier and you don’t have to find a new agent.
When comparing rates, we recommend you include at a minimum one independent agency for the best price selection.
Below are Clinton independent insurance agents who can help you get price quotes.
A C Root Agency Inc – 1127 N 2nd St # A – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 242-2454
Mutual Of Omaha Insurance Co – 1010 S 32nd St – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 243-2488
James F Voss Agency Inc – 819 N 2nd St – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 242-5233
Irwin Insurance – 408 S 2nd St # B – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 243-2422
Captive Agents
This type of agents have only one company to place business with such as American Family, State Farm and Allstate. They generally cannot give you multiple price quotes so keep that in mind. Captive agents are very knowledgeable on their company’s products and that can be a competitive advantage.
Below are captive insurance agencies in Clinton willing to provide rate quotes.
Farm Bureau Insurance – 414 S 2nd St – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 242-4675
Farmers Insurance Group – 215 6th Ave S – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 243-7777
Allstate Insurance – 1104 S 14th St – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 242-1020
State Farm Insurance – 1300 S 14th St – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 242-3400
American Family Insurance – 413 S 2nd St – Clinton, IA 52732 – (563) 243-8788
To view a complete directory of captive insurance agencies in Clinton, click here to link.
Choosing a car insurance agent should depend on more than just a low price. These questions are important to ask:
- Are they full-time agents?
- Do they regularly work with personal auto policies?
- Do they assist clients in filing claims?
- How much will you save each year by using a higher deductible?
- If you have an accident, will your rates go up?
- If your car is totalled, how to they determine the replacement cost?
- Is their price quote a firm figure or are their hidden costs?
- Do they make recommendations based only on price?
Upon getting good answers and a low price estimate, you have narrowed it down to an insurance agency that is a good match to adequately provide auto insurance.
Much more information about auto insurance in Iowa can be read on the website for the Iowa Insurance Division located here. Iowa consumers can read state legal mandates and laws, get help finding coverage, and find out industry alerts.
The articles below may also help you learn more about auto insurance in Clinton
A tidy conclusion
We covered a lot of techniques to save on auto insurance. It’s most important to understand that the more quotes you get, the better your comparison will be. You may be surprised to find that the most savings is with a company that doesn’t do a lot of advertising. These smaller insurers may often insure only within specific states and give getter rates than their larger competitors like State Farm or Progressive.
Cheap auto insurance can be sourced online and also from your neighborhood Clinton agents, and you need to price shop both to have the best chance of lowering rates. There are still a few companies who may not provide online price quotes and most of the time these small insurance companies sell through independent agents.