Tightwads Guide for Saving on Blackduck Auto Insurance

Have you had enough of robbing Peter to pay Paul each month for car insurance? You are in the same boat as the majority of other car owners in Minnesota. Insurance companies such as State Farm, Allstate, GEICO and Progressive constantly blast consumers with fancy advertisements and it is challenging if not impossible to sift through the bull and do the work needed to find the best deal.

It's important to price shop coverage before your policy renews because prices are constantly changing. Just because you had the lowest price six months ago the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. There is a lot of bad advice regarding auto insurance on the internet, so we're going to give you some great ways to save money.

Are you getting all your discounts?

Car insurance is not cheap, buy you may qualify for discounts that you may not even be aware of. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied when you quote, but a few must be requested specifically prior to getting the savings. If you aren't receiving every discount available, you're paying more than you need to.

Multi-policy Discount - When you combine your home and auto insurance with one insurance company you will save at least 10% off all policies.
Employee of Federal Government - Being employed by or retired from a federal job could cut as much as 10% off with certain companies.
Passive Restraint Discount - Vehicles with factory air bags can qualify for discounts of 20% or more.
Payment Discounts - By paying your policy upfront instead of paying each month you could save 5% or more.
Homeowners Pay Less - Being a homeowner can save you money because owning a home shows financial diligence.
Military Discounts - Being deployed with a military unit could mean lower rates.

A little note about advertised discounts, some of the credits will not apply to the entire cost. Most only cut individual premiums such as comprehensive or collision. So when the math indicates adding up those discounts means a free policy, you won't be that lucky. Any amount of discount will reduce the cost of coverage.

To see a list of providers offering auto insurance discounts in Blackduck, click here.

Comparison of Auto Insurance in Blackduck

Most companies provide coverage price quotes on their websites. This process doesn't take a lot of time as you simply enter as detailed in the form. Once you submit the form, the system will obtain credit information and your driving record and generates pricing information based on these factors. Online quotes makes it a lot easier to compare rates but the time it takes to visit a lot of sites and fill out multiple forms can be a bit repetitive. But it's very important to perform this step if you want to find the best price on auto insurance.

The preferred way to lower your auto insurance bill uses one form to return rates from several different companies. The form is fast, eliminates form submissions, and makes online quotes much more enjoyable and efficient. Once the form is submitted, it gets priced and you can choose your choice of the price quotes you receive.

If a lower price is quoted, you simply finish the application and purchase the new policy. The whole process can be completed in a matter of minutes and you will find out if you're overpaying now.

To find out if lower rates are available, click here to open in new window and submit your coverage information. If you have coverage now, it's recommended you type in your coverages as close as possible to your current policy. This makes sure you will have a fair comparison based on the exact same insurance coverage.

Learn How to Buy Auto Insurance Cheaper

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the factors that go into determining the rates you pay for auto insurance. Having a good understanding of what impacts premium levels helps enable you to make changes that can help you get much lower annual insurance costs.

Listed below are a partial list of the pieces that factor into your rates.

Do you qualify for a multi-policy discount? - Most insurance companies give discounts to insureds who consolidate policies with them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Discounts can amount to 10 percent or more. Even if you're getting this discount you still need to compare rates to confirm you are receiving the best rates possible. You may still be able to find better rates by insuring with multiple companies.
Claim-free discounts can add up - If you tend to file frequent claims, you can definitely plan on either policy cancellation or increased premiums. Insurance companies in Minnesota generally give cheaper rates to insureds who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. Your insurance policy is intended for major claims that would cause financial hardship.
Better credit scores mean better rates - Your credit score is a important factor in your rate calculation. If your credit score is lower than you'd like, you could pay less to insure your by improving your credit score. Consumers who have high credit scores tend to be less risk to insure than drivers who have poor credit.
Special features that cut premiums - Driving a car with an alarm system can help bring down rates. Anti-theft features like vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all hinder auto theft.
Being married is a good thing - Having a wife or husband can actually save you money on auto insurance. Marriage usually means you are more responsible and it's proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
Extra add-on coverages are wasting money - There are many extra bells and whistles you can purchase when buying auto insurance. Insurance for rental car reimbursement, better glass coverage and membership fees are some examples. These may sound like a good investment when you first buy your policy, but your needs may have changed so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
Mature drivers pay less - Mature drivers tend to be more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents and get fewer tickets. Youthful drivers are statistically proven to be more careless in a vehicle and because of this, their auto insurance rates are much higher.
Safe vehicles cost less to insure - Vehicles with high crash test scores get lower rates. Safer cars have better occupant injury protection and any reduction in injury severity translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims and more competitive rates for policyholders.

How can Allstate and Progressive save drivers who switch?

Consumers in Minnesota can't get away from ads for the lowest price auto insurance from companies such as Allstate and Progressive. All the ads have a common claim about savings if you switch your policy.

How can each company claim to save you money?

Insurance companies can use profiling for the right customer that is profitable for them. For instance, a preferred risk might be a mature driver, is a homeowner, and has a high credit rating. A customer getting a price quote that hits that "sweet spot" will qualify for the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when they switch companies.

Potential customers who are not a match for the requirements will be charged a higher premium and this can result in the customer not buying. The ad wording is "customers that switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that kind of money. That's why companies can truthfully state the savings.

That is why drivers must get a wide range of price quotes. It's impossible to know the company that will have the lowest rates.

Best coverage at the best price

As you restructure your insurance plan, it's not a good idea to reduce coverage to reduce premium. Too many times, an accident victim reduced collision coverage and learned later that they should have had better coverage. The aim is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at a price you can afford, not the least amount of coverage.

We covered a lot of techniques to compare auto insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more quotes you get, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. You may even discover the best price on auto insurance is with the least-expected company. These smaller insurers may cover specific market segments cheaper than the large multi-state companies such as .

Learn more today

Additional information is located on the website for the Minnesota Department of Commerce located here. Visitors are able to read consumer alerts, download brochures, find out industry alerts, and view a list of available companies.