Having to pay for overpriced insurance coverage can empty your personal savings and make it hard to pay other bills. Doing a price comparison is a great way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket. Popular companies such as Geico, Progressive and Allstate promote their brand names with catchy ads and it is difficult to not get sucked in by the cute commercials and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.
Shopping for lower auto insurance rates can be exhausting if you don’t know the easiest way. You can waste hours driving to agents in your area, or you could use online quotes to get rates in a matter of minutes.
Most major companies take part in a program that allows shoppers to complete one form, and every company can give them a price based on the submitted data. This system prevents you from having to do form submissions for every auto insurance company.
To fill out one form to compare multiple rates now click to open in new window.
The only drawback to doing it this way is you can’t choose which companies you will receive quotes from. So if you prefer to choose specific insurance companies to compare rates, we have assembled a list of companies who write auto insurance in your area. Click here to view list.
It doesn’t matter which method you choose, just make absolute certain that you use the exact same coverage information for each comparison quote. If your comparisons have different deductibles you will not be able to make an equal comparison.
The cost of insuring your cars can be expensive, but you may find discounts to help offset the cost. A few discounts will automatically apply at the time of purchase, but less common discounts must be asked about prior to receiving the credit. If you don’t get every credit you qualify for, you’re paying more than you need to.
As a disclaimer on discounts, many deductions do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. A few only apply to individual premiums such as medical payments or collision. So even though they make it sound like all those discounts means the company will pay you, it just doesn’t work that way. Any amount of discount will help reduce the amount you have to pay.
For a list of providers with the best car insurance discounts, click here.
When it comes to choosing proper insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there is no single plan that fits everyone. Every situation is different so this has to be addressed. For example, these questions can aid in determining whether your personal situation could use an agent’s help.
If you can’t answer these questions but a few of them apply then you might want to talk to an insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It’s fast, free and can provide invaluable advice.
It’s important that you understand some of the elements that come into play when calculating the price you pay for car insurance. When you know what positively or negatively influences your rates enables informed choices that can help you get lower car insurance prices.
Consumers get pounded daily by advertisements that promise big savings from companies such as Progressive, Allstate and Geico. They all seem to have a common claim that you’ll save big if you change your policy.
How do they all claim to save you money? It’s all in the numbers.
All companies have a certain “appetite” for the right customer that is profitable for them. An example of a desirable insured could be between the ages of 30 and 50, owns a home, and drives newer vehicles. A propective insured who matches those parameters will get very good rates and as a result will probably save when they switch companies.
Consumers who do not match this ideal profile will be charged higher rates which usually ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ad wording is “customers who switch” not “people who quote” save that much. That is how insurance companies can advertise the way they do.
That is why you need to compare many company’s rates. Because you never know which insurance companies will have the lowest Volkswagen GTI insurance rates.
Knowing the specifics of your insurance policy helps when choosing the best coverages for your vehicles. The coverage terms in a policy can be ambiguous and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Shown next are typical coverages found on the average insurance policy.
Protection from uninsured/underinsured drivers – Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants from other drivers when they do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered losses include hospital bills for your injuries as well as damage to your Volkswagen GTI.
Since a lot of drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Usually the UM/UIM limits are set the same as your liablity limits.
Medical expense insurance – Med pay and PIP coverage pay for expenses like ambulance fees, nursing services and doctor visits. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance program or if you do not have health coverage. They cover you and your occupants and will also cover if you are hit as a while walking down the street. Personal Injury Protection is not an option in every state and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay
Comprehensive (Other than Collision) – Comprehensive insurance pays to fix your vehicle from damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first must pay your deductible then your comprehensive coverage will pay.
Comprehensive coverage protects against claims like damage from a tornado or hurricane, damage from getting keyed, damage from flooding and vandalism. The maximum amount your insurance company will pay is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle’s value is low consider removing comprehensive coverage.
Liability – Liability insurance will cover injuries or damage you cause to other people or property. This insurance protects YOU against claims from other people, and does not provide coverage for your own vehicle damage or injuries.
Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. Your policy might show limits of 25/50/25 that means you have a $25,000 limit per person for injuries, a total of $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and property damage coverage for $25,000. Another option is one number which is a combined single limit which combines the three limits into one amount with no separate limits for injury or property damage.
Liability can pay for claims such as bail bonds, funeral expenses and emergency aid. How much coverage you buy is a personal decision, but you should buy higher limits if possible.
Collision – Collision insurance pays for damage to your GTI resulting from colliding with another car or object. You have to pay a deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.
Collision coverage protects against claims like sustaining damage from a pot hole, colliding with another moving vehicle and hitting a mailbox. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so consider dropping it from older vehicles. Drivers also have the option to raise the deductible to bring the cost down.
We covered a lot of techniques to lower your 1995 Volkswagen GTI insurance rates. The key concept to understand is the more providers you compare, the better your chances of lowering your rates. You may be surprised to find that the lowest rates come from a lesser-known regional company. Regional companies may cover specific market segments cheaper than the large multi-state companies such as Progressive or Geico.
Cheap insurance can be bought both online and with local insurance agents, and you need to price shop both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some insurance companies do not offer online price quotes and many times these regional insurance providers only sell through independent insurance agents.
As you shop your coverage around, it’s a bad idea to sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. There are a lot of situations where someone sacrificed uninsured motorist or liability limits and learned later that it was a big error on their part. The ultimate goal is to get the best coverage possible for the lowest price while not skimping on critical coverages.
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