Nobody I know likes having to buy car insurance, especially knowing their premiums are too high.
Many car insurance companies compete for your insurance dollar, and it can be difficult to compare rates and get the definite best rate
Be sure to get all your discounts
Auto insurance companies don’t always list every available discount in a way that’s easy to find, so we took the time to find both the well known as well as the least known ways to save on car insurance.
- Paperwork-free – A few companies will give a small break simply for signing digitally online.
- Resident Student – Children who live away from home and don’t have a car may qualify for this discount.
- Safe Driver Discount – Drivers who don’t get into accidents may receive a discount up to 45% less than their less cautious counterparts.
- No Accidents – Good drivers with no accidents pay much less when compared with drivers who are more careless.
- Club Memberships – Affiliation with a qualifying organization could qualify you for a break when buying car insurance.
- Passive Restraints and Air Bags – Vehicles with factory air bags or motorized seat belts can qualify for discounts up to 30%.
- Federal Employees – Being employed by or retired from a federal job could cut as much as 10% off with select insurance companies.
- Drivers Ed for Students – Require your teen driver to complete a driver education course if it’s offered in school.
- Own a Home – Being a homeowner can save you money because owning a home demonstrates responsibility.
- Multiple Vehicles – Buying insurance for multiple vehicles on one policy can get a discount on all vehicles.
A little note about advertised discounts, some credits don’t apply to the entire cost. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like comprehensive or collision. Just because it seems like adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies don’t profit that way.
For a list of providers with discount car insurance rates in Redfield, click here.
When should I use an insurance agent?
When buying coverage, there really is not a cookie cutter policy. Everyone’s needs are different so your insurance needs to address that. For instance, these questions may help highlight whether you might need professional guidance.
- Do I have any recourse if my insurance company denies a claim?
- Am I covered if I drive in a foreign country?
- What can I do if my company denied a claim?
- Can my teen driver be rated on a liability-only vehicle?
- Should I put collision coverage on all my vehicles?
- Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
- What are the financial responsibility laws in South Dakota?
- Does having multiple vehicles earn me a discount?
If it’s difficult to answer those questions but you think they might apply to your situation, then you may want to think about talking to a licensed insurance agent. To find an agent in your area, complete this form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area.
Car Insurance through a local agent
Certain consumers just want to talk to a local agent and that is OK! The best thing about price shopping on the web is you may find the lowest rates but also keep your business local.
Upon completion of this form (opens in new window), your information is instantly submitted to local insurance agents in Redfield who will compete to get your business. You won’t need to visit any agencies because quoted prices will be sent immediately to your email address. Now that’s easy! It’s the lowest rates without the usual hassles of price shopping.
Picking a company needs to be determined by more than just the premium amount. These questions are important to ask:
- Will vehicle repairs be made with aftermarket parts or OEM replacement parts?
- Who are their largest clients?
- How long have they worked with personal auto insurance coverage?
- Do they receive special compensation for putting your coverage with one company over another?
- Are they properly licensed to sell insurance in South Dakota?
To select a specific agent in Redfield, simply jump to this page.
Upon getting positive feedback in addition to an acceptable price estimate, most likely you have located a company that meets your needs to insure your vehicles.
Is there truth in advertising?
Car insurance providers like Geico, State Farm and Progressive regularly use television and radio advertisements. They all have a common claim about savings if you move your policy. How does each company make almost identical claims?
All companies can use profiling for the type of driver that makes them money. For instance, a profitable customer could possibly be between 30 and 50, has no driving citations, and has great credit. A propective insured who meets those qualifications will get very good rates and as a result will probably cut their rates substantially.
Potential insureds who don’t qualify for these standards will have to pay higher premiums which usually ends up with business not being written. The ads say “customers who switch” not “people who quote” save that kind of money. That’s why insurance companies can state the savings. Because of the profiling, drivers should compare many company’s rates. Because you never know the company that will have the lowest rates.
Additional consumer information websites
Additional detailed information is located at the South Dakota Division of Insurance website. Visitors are able to find out industry alerts, read enforcement actions against agents and companies, view agent and company licensing information, and read state legal mandates and laws.
Compare but don’t skimp
In this article, we presented a lot of tips how to get a better price on car insurance. The key thing to remember is the more price quotes you have, the better your comparison will be. Drivers may discover the lowest rates come from the smaller companies. These companies may cover specific market segments cheaper than their larger competitors like Allstate, Geico and Progressive.
As you shop your coverage around, don’t be tempted to buy poor coverage just to save money. There are a lot of situations where consumers will sacrifice comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to discover later that they should have had better coverage. Your aim should be to get the best coverage possible at a price you can afford, not the least amount of coverage.