Are you a victim of an underperforming, overpriced car insurance policy? Trust us when we tell you you’re not the only one.
Insurance companies such as Progressive, Geico and Farmers Insurance constantly bombard you with catchy ads and it is difficult to sift through the bull and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.
If you currently have a car insurance policy, you will most likely be able to lower your premiums substantially using this information. Choosing the best insurance company for you in Peoria is easy if you know what you’re doing. But Arizona car owners must comprehend how big insurance companies price insurance differently because it can help you find the best coverage.
Cut your premium with these 5 discounts
Companies offering auto insurance don’t list all their discounts very well, so the following is a list of both the well known and the harder-to-find ways to save on car insurance.
- Driver Safety – Completing a defensive driving course can save you 5% or more and easily recoup the cost of the course.
- No Charge for an Accident – A few companies will allow you to have one accident before raising your premiums so long as you haven’t had any claims for a particular time prior to the accident.
- Bundle and Save – When you combine your home and auto insurance with one company you could get a discount of at least 10% off all policies.
- Driver’s Ed – Cut your cost by having your teen driver take driver’s ed class in school.
- Club Memberships – Affiliation with certain professional organizations could qualify you for a break on your policy.
As a disclaimer on discounts, most of the big mark downs will not be given to the overall cost of the policy. Most only cut specific coverage prices like physical damage coverage or medical payments. So when the math indicates you could get a free car insurance policy, it doesn’t quite work that way.
Consumer car insurance information in Arizona
Even more information is available at the Arizona Department of Insurance website. Consumers can find disaster information, learn about insurance regulations, and download brochures.
Car insurance coverages explained
Having a good grasp of your policy helps when choosing the right coverages and proper limits and deductibles. The terms used in a policy can be ambiguous and nobody wants to actually read their policy. These are typical coverage types found on the average car insurance policy.
Uninsured or underinsured coverage
This coverage gives you protection from other motorists when they either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. Covered losses include injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants as well as your vehicle’s damage.
Since many Arizona drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required (Arizona limits are 15/30/10), their limits can quickly be used up. For this reason, having high UM/UIM coverages is a good idea.
Liability auto insurance
Liability coverage can cover damages or injuries you inflict on other’s property or people that is your fault. Coverage consists of three different limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. As an example, you may have policy limits of 100/300/100 that means you have a $100,000 limit per person for injuries, a per accident bodily injury limit of $300,000, and a limit of $100,000 paid for damaged property.
Liability can pay for things such as emergency aid, legal defense fees, loss of income, bail bonds and funeral expenses. How much liability should you purchase? That is up to you, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase higher limits if possible. Arizona requires minimum liability limits of 15,000/30,000/10,000 but you should consider buying better liability coverage.
Coverage for collisions
Collision insurance pays to fix your vehicle from damage caused by collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. A deductible applies then your collision coverage will kick in.
Collision coverage pays for claims such as backing into a parked car, sustaining damage from a pot hole, colliding with another moving vehicle and driving through your garage door. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so you might think about dropping it from lower value vehicles. Another option is to increase the deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
Comprehensive protection
Comprehensive insurance covers damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first must pay your deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive coverage protects against things like damage from a tornado or hurricane, hitting a deer, vandalism, rock chips in glass and damage from getting keyed. The most you’ll receive from a claim is the market value of your vehicle, so if it’s not worth much more than your deductible it’s not worth carrying full coverage.
Medical expense coverage
Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage provide coverage for bills like X-ray expenses, EMT expenses and doctor visits. The coverages can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. They cover both the driver and occupants and also covers being hit by a car walking across the street. PIP is only offered in select states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Quote more, save more
When buying insurance coverage, make sure you don’t reduce needed coverages to save money. There have been many situations where someone dropped collision coverage only to regret they didn’t purchase enough coverage. Your goal should be to purchase plenty of coverage at a price you can afford.
Affordable car insurance can be bought on the web and also from your neighborhood Peoria agents, and you need to comparison shop both to have the best rate selection. Some insurance companies may not provide online quoting and these smaller companies work with independent agents.