Have you spoken to your auto insurance agent at Insurance Innovations, Inc to learn more about what’s influencing what your auto insurance rates are? Make that your first step. When you speak to your agent, you may learn that you have more control over what you pay in auto insurance than you thought was possible. In many ways, our clients often learn about ways they can make simple changes in their lives to see a lower rate without having to drop your coverage.
When You Get Quotes
One of the best ways to see what your rates are is to get an auto insurance quote. Here’s the mistake many people make. They believe that one company to the next is offering the same product at a different price. It’s not like buying the same soda from one provider to the next. Instead, you need to look at the details of your insurance coverage to make sure you are comparing like policies.
So, what makes your rates different from one provider to the next? There are numerous factors. Previously, we discussed some of those factors impacting the rates that you cannot control. However, there are many others you can control.
Be a Good Driver
What is a good driver? To qualify for a safe driver discount, for example, you need to be a responsible driver that’s not one know for speeding or reckless driving. If you have points on your driver’s record or you have had numerous moving violations in the past, this will raise what you pay for auto insurance overall. That’s because you are a higher risk, and more likely to cause an accident or file a claim in the future if you have points on your license.
In fact, being a good driver reduces the risk you’ll need to file a claim. That’s another key component of keeping your auto insurance low. Some types of risks are harder to avoid. Nevertheless, there are options. For example, to reduce theft and vandalism risks, install a security system in your car. To reduce claims related to storm damage, store your vehicle in a garage.
Set Your Deductible Properly
Coverage is something that is less flexible overall. However, if you have not done so, be sure to update your auto insurance policy with your insurer to make sure it matches the current value of your car. You don’t want to spend money on coverage if your vehicle isn’t worth it. The factor you have more control over is your deductible. This is the amount you pay on any claim filed. When you increase your deductible, you pay more at the time of filing a claim. If you don’t file claims often, that’s not a big problem. If you can afford to make the deductible a bit higher, do so. It will significantly reduce what you pay.
Get the Discounts You Qualify For
Work with your agent on this. There are many discounts out there that can significantly reduce your costs. Here are a few of them:
- Get a discount if you bundle your vehicle with your home insurance.
- Take a defensive driving course if you have speeding tickets to reduce your costs.
- Choose to make your monthly payment through auto-pay, or even better, make one payment each policy.
- Ask for an early renewal discount if you plan to stick with the same policy.
- Get a good driver discount if you haven’t filed a claim in the last few years.
These are all factors you can control with auto insurance rates. Which ones are influencing what you are paying?
