Are you burned out from scraping nickels together to pay car insurance each month? You are in the same boat as many other drivers in Arizona. Due to the increasing number of options when it comes to car insurance, it’s nearly impossible to choose the lowest cost company.
Good decisions result in lower prices
The best way to find cheaper car insurance is to take a look at some of the elements that come into play when calculating car insurance rates. When consumers understand what controls the rates you pay, this empowers consumers to make smart changes that may result in big savings.
The itemized list below are some of the items utilized by car insurance companies to help set your prices.
- Where you live can impact prices – Having an address in a rural area can be a good thing when trying to find low car insurance rates. People in densly populated areas have to deal with much more traffic and more severe claims. Lower population means a lower chance of having an accident and also fewer theft and vandalism claims.
- Theft deterrents systems cut rates – Owning a car that has an advanced theft prevention system can help bring down rates. Anti-theft devices like vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all aid in stopping vehicle theft.
- Qualify for multi-policy discounts – The majority of car insurance companies apply discounts to clients who buy several policies from them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Even with this discount applied, you may still want to comparison shop to confirm you are receiving the best rates possible.
- Poor credit decisions can cost you – Having a bad credit score factor in determining what you pay for car insurance. Insureds that have high credit scores tend to be better risks to insure than drivers who have lower ratings. If your credit history is low, you could pay less to insure your vehicle if you clean up your credit.
- Do you save by driving less? – The higher the miles on your car annually the higher the price you pay to insure it. Almost all companies price each vehicle’s coverage determined by how the vehicle is used. Vehicles that have low annual miles receive lower rates than those used for commuting. Double check that your car insurance policy reflects how each vehicle is driven, because improper ratings can cost you money.
- If you don’t need it don’t buy it – Policies have extra add-on coverages you can purchase on your car insurance policy. Coverages for coverage for rental cars, death and dismemberment, and term life insurance are some examples. The coverages may be enticing at first, but now you might not need them so think about removing them and cutting costs.
- Safety first – Safe vehicles tend to have better insurance rates. Safe vehicles result in less severe injuries and lower rates of occupant injuries means lower claim amounts which can mean better rates for you. If your car has ratings of a minimum four stars on Safercar.gov you may qualify for a discount.
Car insurance discounts help lower rates
Some providers don’t necessarily list every discount very clearly, so we took the time to find a few of the more common as well as the least known credits available to you. If you’re not getting every credit available, you could be saving more on your car insurance.
- Driver Training Discounts – Taking a course teaching defensive driver skills is a good idea and can lower rates if you qualify.
- Good Grades Discount – Excelling in school can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. Many companies even apply the discount to college students until age 25.
- ABS and Traction Control Discounts – Vehicles that have anti-lock braking systems prevent accidents so you can save 10 percent or more.
- Telematics Data – Policyholders that allow their insurance company to look at driving patterns remotely like Allstate’s Drivewise might get better premium rates if they exhibit good driving behavior.
- Theft Deterent System – Vehicles that have factory anti-theft systems are stolen less frequently so companies will give you a small discount.
- Seat Belts Save more than Lives – Drivers who require all vehicle occupants to buckle up before driving can save 10% or more off PIP or medical payments premium.
- College Student Discount – Children who are attending college without a vehicle on campus may be insured at a cheaper rate.
We need to note that most discount credits are not given to your bottom line cost. Some only apply to individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. So when it seems like adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies wouldn’t make money that way.
To see companies that offer discounts in Arizona, click here to view.
Compare rate quotes but buy from a local Williams insurance agency
A small number of people just want to buy from a local agent and that is OK! Good agents can answer important questions and give you someone to call. A nice benefit of comparing rates online is you may find the lowest rates and also buy local.
To help locate an agent, after submitting this short form, your insurance data is transmitted to local insurance agents in Williams that can provide and help you find cheaper coverage. You won’t need to contact any insurance agencies since rate quotes are delivered instantly to you. If you want to compare rates from a particular provider, you would need to find their quoting web page and give them your coverage information.
Deciding on an company needs to be determined by more than just a cheap quote. The questions below may impact your decision as well.
- How much will you save each year by using a higher deductible?
- Are they involved in claim handling?
- Where would your vehicle be repaired?
- Is the agency involved in supporting local community causes?
- Who is covered by the car insurance policy?
- How much experience to they have in personal lines coverages?
- Do they offer claims assistance after hours?
- Is working in the agency their full-time job?
To help you find an insurance professional in your neighborhood, see this directory of insurance agents in Williams.
Once you have good responses to any questions you may have and locked in a price quote, you may have just found a company that can be relied on to adequately provide car insurance.
Read more about Arizona car insurance
More tips and info about car insurance is available at the Arizona Department of Insurance website. Arizona drivers can find out which companies have the most complaints, find out industry alerts, view a list of available companies, and read industry bulletins.
The following articles may also be useful.
Find cheaper rates by being thorough
As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, you should never buy poor coverage just to save money. There have been many cases where consumers will sacrifice liability limits or collision coverage only to regret at claim time they didn’t have enough coverage. The goal is to buy the best coverage you can find at the best possible price and still be able to protect your assets.
We’ve covered many tips how you can lower your car insurance rates. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the better your comparison will be. You may even discover the lowest rates come from a lesser-known regional company. Smaller companies may have significantly lower auto insurance rates on certain market segments compared to the large companies like State Farm, Geico and Nationwide.