Free Guide to Cutting Costs on Bay Shore Auto Insurance Online

Scraping up a payment for overpriced auto insurance can drain your savings account, especially in this economy. Doing a price comparison is a great way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket. With consumers having so many options when it comes to auto insurance, it can be impossible to find the right insurance company.

Buying the cheapest coverage in Bay Shore is simple if you know the tricks. If you have insurance now or need new coverage, you will benefit by learning to shop for the lowest rates while maximizing coverage. New York vehicle owners just need to know the proper methods to buy auto insurance online.

Understand what determines the rate you pay

Consumers need to have an understanding of the factors that go into determining auto insurance rates. When you know what positively or negatively controls the rates you pay helps enable you to make changes that could result in much lower annual insurance costs.

Policy add-ons can waste money - There are many add-on coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren't careful. Things like rental car reimbursement, accidental death and membership fees are some examples. They may seem like a good idea at first, but your needs may have changed so remove them from your policy.
Teen drivers pay high rates - Teenage drivers in New York are statistically proven to get distracted easily when driving so auto insurance rates are higher. Having to add a young driver onto your auto insurance can be very expensive. More mature drivers are more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents and get fewer tickets.
What type of vehicle do you drive? - The performance of the car you are insuring makes a significant difference in how high your rates are. The most favorable rates tend to be for lower performance four cylinder passenger cars, but the final cost of insurance is determined by many other factors.
Clean credit earns discounts - A driver's credit score is a large factor in determining what you pay for auto insurance. If your credit is lower than you'd like, you could save money insuring your by improving your rating. Consumers who have excellent credit tend to be less risk to insure as compared to drivers with poor credit.
A lapse in coverage is a bad thing - Allowing your auto insurance policy to lapse is a quick way to trigger a rate increase. And not only will your rates increase, getting caught without coverage may earn you a license revocation or jail time.You may then be required to file a SR-22 with the New York department of motor vehicles.

How to Buy Bay Shore Auto Insurance Online

All major auto insurance companies give insurance quotes on their websites. Getting online quotes doesn't take much effort as you just enter your coverage information as detailed in the form. After the form is submitted, their system will obtain your credit score and driving record and provides a quote based on many factors. This makes it a lot easier to compare rates but the work required to visit each company's website and repetitively complete many quote forms gets old quite quickly. But it's very important to get many rate quotes in order to get the best price on auto insurance.

The easy way to compare rates

The preferred way to locate the lowest prices requires only one form that gets prices from multiple companies. The form is fast, reduces the work, and makes online price comparison much easier. Immediately after submitting the form, your coverage is rated and you can choose any or none of the resulting price quotes.

If the quotes result in lower rates, you can simply submit the application and buy the policy. This process takes just a few minutes to complete and you will know how your current rates stack up.

To quickly find out if lower rates are available, click here to open in new window and enter your information. If you have a policy now, it's recommended you input the coverages just like they are on your policy. This makes sure you're receiving comparison quotes for the exact same coverage.

Are you getting all your discounts?

Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but companies offer discounts that you may not even be aware of. A few discounts will automatically apply at the time of purchase, but lesser-known reductions have to be asked for prior to receiving the credit. If you don't get every credit you deserve, you are paying more than you should be.

Defensive Driver - Successfully completing a course teaching defensive driving skills could cut 5% off your bill if your company offers it.
New Vehicle Savings - Adding a new car to your policy can cost up to 25% less because new vehicles have to meet stringent safety requirements.
Early Signing - A few companies offer discounts for signing up prior to your current policy expiration. This can save 10% or more.
Air Bag Discount - Vehicles equipped with air bags or automatic seat belts can receive discounts of more than 20%.
Seat Belt Usage - Drivers who require all occupants to buckle their seat belts can save 10% or more on the medical payments or PIP coverage costs.
Government Employees - Employees or retirees of the government could cut as much as 10% off depending on your company.
No Claims - Drivers who don't have accidents can earn big discounts when compared with accident-prone drivers.
Military Discounts - Being deployed with a military unit could mean lower rates.
Good Student Discount - This discount can earn a discount of 20% or more. The discount lasts until age 25.
Auto/Home Discount - If you insure your home and vehicles with one insurance company you could get a discount of at least 10% off all policies.

Drivers should understand that some credits don't apply to the overall cost of the policy. The majority will only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as liability and collision coverage. So when it seems like all the discounts add up to a free policy, companies wouldn't make money that way. But all discounts will help reduce the cost of coverage.

To choose insurers offering auto insurance discounts in New York, click here.

How can 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm save drivers who switch?

New York drivers can't ignore all the ads for car insurance savings from companies such as 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm. All the companies have a common claim that you'll save big if you switch your policy.

But how can every company say the same thing?

Insurance companies have a preferred profile for the right customer that makes them money. An example of a profitable customer might be profiled as between 30 and 50, insures multiple vehicles, and drives newer vehicles. A propective insured that hits that "sweet spot" gets the lowest rates and as a result will probably save a lot of money.

Potential customers who are not a match for this ideal profile must pay higher prices and this can result in business not being written. Company advertisements say "people who switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that kind of money. This is how companies can claim big savings.

This illustrates why you need to quote coverage with many companies. It's not possible to predict which insurance companies will give you the biggest savings.

Tailor your coverage to you

When buying proper insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is no single plan that fits everyone. Each situation is unique and your policy should reflect that. For instance, these questions may help you determine whether you might need professional guidance.

Should I rate my vehicle as pleasure use or commute?
Should I file a claim if it's only slightly more than my deductible?
Does my car insurance cover rental cars?
Should I drop comprehensive coverage on older vehicles?
Why am I be forced to buy a membership to get insurance from some companies?
Do I have coverage for damage caused while driving under the influence?
Can I still get insurance after a DUI?
Will I be non-renewed for getting a DUI or other conviction?

If you can't answer these questions then you might want to talk to a licensed agent. To find an agent in your area, take a second and complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It is quick, free and can provide invaluable advice.

Much more information about auto insurance in New York is available on the website for the New York Department of Financial Services through this link. New York drivers can discover disciplinary actions, read enforcement actions against agents and companies, learn about specific coverages, and find out industry alerts.

Other informative sites include this resource for New York auto insurance prices and this link which helps you find a Bay Shore agent.

And the best car insurance company is...

Budget-conscious auto insurance is available on the web in addition to many Bay Shore insurance agents, so compare prices from both so you have a total pricing picture. A few companies do not provide online price quotes and usually these smaller companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

When trying to cut insurance costs, don't be tempted to reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are a lot of situations where drivers have reduced comprehensive coverage or liability limits to discover at claim time that it was a big mistake. The proper strategy is to buy the best coverage you can find at an affordable rate while not skimping on critical coverages.

Throughout this article, we presented a lot of ways to compare auto insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more companies you get rates for, the higher your chance of finding lower rates. Drivers may discover the best prices are with a company that doesn't do a lot of advertising. These smaller insurers may only write in your state and offer lower rates than the large multi-state companies such as .