Cheaper 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac Insurance Rates

Want the cheapest insurance rates? Drivers have many options when trying to find low-cost Ford Explorer Sport Trac insurance. They can either spend hours struggling with agents getting price quotes or utilize the internet to make rate comparisons.

There is a better way to find insurance online and you need to know the best way to price shop coverage for a new or used Ford and obtain the lowest price from local insurance agents and online providers.

It’s a great practice to take a look at other company’s rates before your policy renews since rates are rarely the same from one policy term to another. Despite the fact that you may have had the best deal on Explorer Sport Trac insurance last year a different company probably has better rates today. Block out anything you think you know about insurance because you’re about to learn the best methods to lower your rates without sacrificing coverage.

Cheap Insurance Comparisons

Reducing your 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac insurance rates is not rocket science. All you need to do is invest a little time to compare rate quotes from different insurance companies. It is quite easy and can be accomplished using a couple different methods.

  1. The easiest and least time consuming way to compare a lot of rates at once is to use a rate comparison form like this one (opens in new window). This form keeps you from doing separate quotation requests for each company. A single form gets you price quotes from insurance companies with the best prices. This is by far the quickest method.
  2. A different way to get comparison quotes is spending the time to visit the website for every company you want to comare to complete a price quote. For example, we’ll pretend you want to compare rates from Nationwide, Esurance and Allstate. To find out each rate you need to spend time on each company’s site to enter your coverage information, which is why the first method is quicker. For a handy list of car insurance company links in your area, click here.
  3. The least efficient method to compare rates is driving around to different agent offices. Shopping for insurance online can eliminate the need for a local agent unless you want the professional guidance only provided by licensed agents. However, consumers can find lower rates online but buy from a local insurance agent and we’ll cover that in a bit.

Which method you use is up to you, but make absolute certain that you use exactly the same information on every quote. If you compare different values for each quote it will be next to impossible to determine the lowest rate for your Ford Explorer Sport Trac.

Don’t overlook these discounts

The cost of insuring your cars can be expensive, but there are discounts available that you may not know about. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied at the time of purchase, but less common discounts must be specifically requested before you will receive the discount. If you don’t get every credit you qualify for, you are throwing money away.

  • Auto/Home Discount – When you combine your home and auto insurance with the same insurance company you may save at least 10% off all policies.
  • Multiple Cars – Having all your vehicles on one policy can get a discount on all vehicles.
  • 55 and Retired – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you may qualify for a discount up to 10% on Explorer Sport Trac insurance.
  • Government Employees – Being employed by or retired from a federal job can save as much as 8% on Explorer Sport Trac insurance depending on your company.
  • Homeowners Discount – Owning a house may trigger a insurance policy discount because of the fact that having a home demonstrates responsibility.
  • Low Mileage Discounts – Driving fewer miles can qualify you for discounted rates on garaged vehicles.
  • Good Students Pay Less – A discount for being a good student can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. Earning this discount can benefit you well after school through age 25.
  • Theft Prevention Discount – Vehicles with anti-theft systems prevent vehicle theft and will save you 10% or more.
  • Early Signing – Select companies give a discount for switching to them before your current policy expires. This can save 10% or more.
  • Anti-lock Brakes – Cars that have steering control and anti-lock brakes are safer to drive and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.

Keep in mind that some credits don’t apply to all coverage premiums. Most only cut the cost of specific coverages such as physical damage coverage or medical payments. Just because it seems like all the discounts add up to a free policy, it just doesn’t work that way. Any amount of discount will bring down your premiums.

A partial list of companies that possibly offer some of the above discounts include:

Double check with each insurance company how you can save money. All car insurance discounts might not be offered in every state.

Is my situation unique?

When choosing the right insurance coverage for your vehicles, there isn’t really a single plan that fits everyone. Every insured’s situation is different.

These are some specific questions can help discover if your situation will benefit from professional help.

  • Am I better off with higher deductibles on my 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac?
  • Do I need replacement cost coverage?
  • Exactly who is provided coverage by my policy?
  • What discounts do I qualify for?
  • Am I covered if I drive in a foreign country?
  • How much can I save by bundling my policies?
  • What is the minimum liability in my state?
  • Does my 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac qualify for pleasure use?

If you’re not sure about those questions but a few of them apply, you might consider talking to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, take a second and complete this form. It’s fast, doesn’t cost anything and may give you better protection.

Ford Explorer Sport Trac insurance rates consist of many parts

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the rating factors that go into determining the rates you pay for auto insurance. Understanding what controls the rates you pay helps enable you to make changes that could result in big savings.

Listed below are some of the factors that factor into premiums.

  • Allowing your policy to lapse raises rates – Allowing your auto insurance policy to lapse will be a guaranteed way to increase your auto insurance rates. And not only will insurance be more expensive, failure to provide proof of insurance will get you a license revocation or jail time.
  • Special features that cut premiums – Purchasing a vehicle with anti-theft technology or alarm system can help lower your rates. Theft prevention features like tamper alarm systems, vehicle immobilizer technology and General Motors OnStar all aid in stopping your vehicle from being stolen.
  • Higher deductibles cost less – Physical damage deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay before a claim is paid by your company. Coverage for physical damage, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, is used to repair damage to your car. A few examples of covered claims would be colliding with a building, collision with an animal, or theft. The higher the amount you have to pay, the bigger discount you will receive on Explorer Sport Trac insurance.
  • Discounts for multiple policies – Many insurance companies provide better rates to insureds who have multiple policies with them in the form of a multi-policy discount. If you currently are using one company, it’s in your best interest to shop around to make sure you are getting the best deal.
  • Do you have enough liability coverage? – Your policy’s liability coverage will protect you if ever a jury decides you are liable for personal injury or accident damage. Liability insurance provides you with a defense in court starting from day one. This coverage is very inexpensive as compared to coverage for physical damage, so do not cut corners here.
  • Pay less after the wedding – Being married can get you a discount on your auto insurance policy. Having a significant other is viewed as being more responsible and it’s statistically proven that being married results in fewer claims.

Misconceptions in auto insurance advertisements

Consumers get pounded daily by advertisements for the lowest price auto insurance from the likes of Progressive, Geico, Allstate and State Farm. All the ads make the same claim about savings if you change your coverage to them.

How can each company make almost identical claims? This is how they do it.

All companies have a certain “appetite” for the type of driver that earns them a profit. An example of a profitable customer might be over the age of 40, a clean driving record, and chooses high deductibles. A customer getting a price quote who meets those qualifications will get very good rates and is almost guaranteed to pay quite a bit less when switching companies.

Consumers who don’t meet the “perfect” profile must pay higher rates which leads to the customer not buying. The ads say “customers who switch” not “everyone that quotes” save that kind of money. That is how companies can state the savings.

This illustrates why drivers should get as many quotes as possible. It’s impossible to know the company that will have the lowest Ford Explorer Sport Trac insurance rates.

Auto insurance 101

Knowing the specifics of a car insurance policy can be of help when determining the best coverages for your vehicles. Policy terminology can be ambiguous and coverage can change by endorsement.

Medical payments coverage and PIP – Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage provide coverage for short-term medical expenses like EMT expenses, doctor visits and rehabilitation expenses. The coverages can be used in conjunction with a health insurance program or if you lack health insurance entirely. They cover you and your occupants as well as being hit by a car walking across the street. PIP is not available in all states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Comprehensive coverage – Comprehensive insurance coverage will pay to fix damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. A deductible will apply and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.

Comprehensive insurance covers claims like hitting a deer, theft, hail damage and fire damage. The maximum amount your car insurance company will pay is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle’s value is low consider dropping full coverage.

Auto liability – This can cover damage or injury you incur to other people or property that is your fault. It protects YOU against other people’s claims. Liability doesn’t cover damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.

Coverage consists of three different limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. You commonly see liability limits of 50/100/50 which stand for a limit of $50,000 per injured person, a per accident bodily injury limit of $100,000, and a total limit of $50,000 for damage to vehicles and property. Some companies may use a combined limit that pays claims from the same limit and claims can be made without the split limit restrictions.

Liability insurance covers claims like structural damage, pain and suffering and funeral expenses. How much liability coverage do you need? That is up to you, but consider buying as large an amount as possible.

Collision – This coverage pays for damage to your Explorer Sport Trac resulting from colliding with another car or object. A deductible applies and then insurance will cover the remainder.

Collision coverage pays for claims such as crashing into a ditch, sideswiping another vehicle and colliding with a tree. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from lower value vehicles. Another option is to increase the deductible in order to get cheaper collision rates.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage – Your UM/UIM coverage protects you and your vehicle from other drivers when they either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. Covered claims include medical payments for you and your occupants as well as your vehicle’s damage.

Because many people have only the minimum liability required by law, their limits can quickly be used up. So UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Most of the time your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverages are identical to your policy’s liability coverage.

In any little way, save everyday

Cost effective 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac insurance can be found online and also from your neighborhood agents, and you should compare price quotes from both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance companies may not provide online quoting and most of the time these smaller companies sell through independent agents.

Consumers change insurance companies for a variety of reasons including being labeled a high risk driver, delays in responding to claim requests, denial of a claim and high rates after DUI convictions. Regardless of your reason, switching companies is not as hard as you think.

In this article, we presented a lot of ways to save on insurance. It’s most important to understand that the more times you quote, the better your chances of lowering your rates. Consumers could even find that the lowest premiums are with some of the lesser-known companies.

Much more information about insurance is available at the links below