Car Insurance Tips
If you’ve just got your drivers license or first automobile, you might not know how to buy auto insurance. This article gives you tips for buying car insurance at an affordable rate by researching your pertinent public records and learning about the various policy options.
Having liability insurance is required in the United States, so we’ll help you learn what you need so you can comply with the law, secure in the knowledge you’re paying the right price.
Learn the State Insurance Laws
Learn what the mandatory coverage policies for your state are. Different U.S. states have different legal requirements for auto insurance coverage, so learn what your local statutes require. When it comes time to buy policies, you’ll better understand which options you need and which options are superfluous.
Budget Your Auto Insurance
Next, do some budgeting and figure out how much you can afford for auto insurance. For particular individuals, car insurance can be expensive, so you need to know from the start whether you can afford the insurance expenses of your car. Hopefully, you factored this in before you made a car purchase. You need to budget this like a car payment or monthly rent.
Remember that men under 25 have the highest rates, while anyone with a number of wrecks or moving violations are going to have higher insurance rates, since you are considered a bigger accident risk. A bad credit history might even put you in a higher insurance bracket in certain jurisdictions.
Obtain Your Driving Records
For those drivers who have a driving record, contact the Deparment of Motor Vehicles in your community to get a copy of your driving records. This lets you know whether you have pending violations or warrants that could hurt your ability to buy insurance. New drivers don’t have to worry about this step.
Online Auto Insurance Research
You can use the Internet to do most of your research on who are the best automobile insurance carriers for your situation. You’ll be able to browse through the auto insurance companies, along with their specific policies. You might find the big companies that run all the commercials, like Progressive or Geico, might be able to help you, while you might find lesser known companies that are as good or better. Remember to read customer reviews before signing on with an auto insurance company, to see whether an insurance firm has a history of horror stories.
Learn the Deductible Plans
Finding the right deductible is key to finding the right insurance. A high deductible on a low-priced car might make an insurance policy next to useless, since the deductible might cost half as much as the total price of the car itself. So if you bought a car for a couple of thousand dollars, you don’t want a deductible which climbs to a thousand.
At the same time, paying a higher deductible can take significant amount of money off your monthly price, perhaps as much as thirty or forty percent of your premium. The deductible is effectively a bet your won’t get in a wreck, because you’ll have to pay the amount of the deductible before the insurance company pays one red cent on repairs or compensation. If you have trouble paying a monthly premium and you choose to have a high deductible, this can be a disaster, when it comes time to pay the first $500 of the repair costs. So decide whether you want a deductible which gives you maximum savings month-to-month, or a tiny deductible that means you don’t have to worry about paying lump sums in an emergency.
Talk to Your Elders
Discuss with more experienced family, friends and neighbors about buying auto insurance. Every driver has a lifetime of experience buying car insurance, so you should be able to learn good insurance advice for your region or state from old-timer who live nearby.
Questions and answers with your circle of acquaintances are likely to give your insurance company names and policy suggestions you might never have known about. Once you talk with your friends, go back online to research any company name they throw out there.
Call the Local Insurers
Look in the phone book and call the local car insurance specialists, especially if you live in a rural or small town. These people are going to have fewer customers and fewer wrecks to consider, so you might be quoted a surprisingly low insurance policy price. This is especially true, if you happen to know the insurer and they happen to know you. Even if you live in a larger city, it might pay to see what the local insurance companies are offering in the way of premiums. If you have to deal with an accident claim, it’s more convenient to be able to walk into the office and get the personal treatment, if there are issues.
Discuss Discount Options with Representatives
When it comes time to talk to auto insurance reps, use the information you’ve uncovered to discuss with them car insurance discounts. Anyone who has taken a driving safety course recently, or who has platinum level credit card membership may be eligible for insurance discounts. You don’t want to leave money sitting on the table.
Buying Car Insurance
Once you know how to buy auto insurance through live and online research, you’ll be able to make the smart choice for you. Most of the time, once you begin comparing and contrasting the insurance premiums, deductibles and other factors, the right car insurance premium becomes obvious.