Proven Ways to Save on Dahlgren Auto Insurance

Did you fall for a flashy sales pitch and buy an overpriced auto insurance policy? Trust us when we tell you you're not the only one.

Multiple compete for your insurance dollar, so it can be very hard to choose a to find the lowest rate

It's important to compare prices every six months since insurance rates are constantly changing. Just because you had the best rates a year ago a different company probably has better rates today. You can find a lot of wrong information about auto insurance online but we're going to give you some great ways to find cheap auto insurance.

If you have car insurance now, you will be able to reduce your rates substantially using these techniques. Choosing the best insurance company for you in Dahlgren is quite easy. Nevertheless, Virginia vehicle owners do need to know the methods companies use to sell insurance online.

Don't pay full price with these discounts

Companies offering auto insurance don't always publicize every available discount in an easy-to-find place, so the following is a list of some of the best known and also the lesser-known discounts you could be receiving.

Anti-theft Discount - Vehicles with anti-theft systems can help prevent theft and earn discounts up to 10%.
Homeowners Discount - Being a homeowner can save you money because owning a home demonstrates responsibility.
Passive Restraints - Vehicles with factory air bags and/or automatic seat belt systems can get savings of up to 25% or more.
Lower Rates for Military - Being deployed with a military unit could mean lower rates.
Claim Free - Drivers with accident-free driving histories pay less compared to drivers who are more careless.
Clubs and Organizations - Affiliation with certain professional organizations may earn a discount on your policy.
Low Mileage - Driving fewer miles could qualify for a substantially lower rate.

It's important to understand that some credits don't apply to all coverage premiums. Most only cut specific coverage prices like comprehensive or collision. Just because you may think all the discounts add up to a free policy, it doesn't quite work that way.

How to Lower your Auto Insurance Rates

Smart consumers have a good feel for the factors that go into determining auto insurance rates. Understanding what determines base rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that can help you get lower auto insurance prices.

Listed below are some of the items used by your company to calculate your rates.

How many coverages with the same company - Most insurance companies give discounts to people who buy several policies from them. It's known as a multi-policy discount. Discounts can add up to 10 percent or more. If you currently are using one company, it's still a good idea to compare other company rates to verify if the discount is saving money. You may still be able to find a better deal by buying auto insurance from a different company.
Do you know your deductibles? - Physical damage insurance, otherwise known as comp (or other than collision) and collision, protects your car from damage. A few examples of covered claims are collision with another vehicle, damage caused by hail, and burglary. The deductibles are the amount of money you are willing to pay before a claim is paid by your company. The more expense you have to pay, the less your auto insurance will be.
A clean driving record saves money - Your driving record impacts your car insurance rates tremendously. Even a single ticket can bump up the cost twenty percent or more. Drivers who don't get tickets get better rates than bad drivers. Drivers who get serious violations such as DUI or reckless driving may be required to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) with the DMV in their state in order to continue driving.
Safe vehicles cost less to insure - Cars with high safety ratings get lower rates. Safer cars protect occupants better and better occupant protection means lower claim amounts and lower rates for you.
Your occupation can affect rates - Did you know your auto insurance rates can be affected by your occupation? Occupations like real estate brokers, social workers and accountants have higher rates than average due to job stress and lengthy work days. On the flip side, jobs such as actors, athletes and homemakers get better rates.
Protect yourself with liability coverage - Liability insurance provides coverage in the event that 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. Liability is cheap compared to physical damage coverage, so do not skimp.

The auto insurance bait and switch

Companies like Allstate and Progressive constantly bombard you with ads in print and on television. All the ads have a common claim of big savings if you switch your coverage to them. How do they all say the same thing? It's all in the numbers.

All companies are able to cherry pick for the type of customer that earns them a profit. A good example of a preferred risk might be profiled as over the age of 40, has no driving citations, and has excellent credit. A propective insured that hits that "sweet spot" will qualify for the lowest rates and therefore will cut their rates substantially.

Potential customers who don't measure up to the "perfect" profile will be charged a higher premium and this can result in business not being written. The ad wording is "customers who switch" not "everyone that quotes" save that much money. That's the way insurance companies can confidently make those claims. That is why drivers should get as many quotes as possible. It's not possible to predict which auto insurance company will have the lowest rates.

Learn more about Virginia auto insurance

More tips and info about auto insurance can be read at the Virginia Bureau of Insurance website. Virginia drivers can read consumer alerts, report car insurance fraud, file complaints about a company, and find disaster information.

Do the work, save more money

While you're price shopping online, you should never skimp on coverage in order to save money. Too many times, someone sacrificed full coverage and found out when filing a claim they didn't purchase enough coverage. The aim is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at the best price, not the least amount of coverage.

Low-cost auto insurance is available on the web as well as from independent agents in Dahlgren, and you need to comparison shop both to have the best rate selection. Some companies don't offer you the ability to get quotes online and many times these small insurance companies only sell through independent insurance agents.

Throughout this article, we presented a lot of ways to reduce auto insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more quotes you get, the higher the chance of saving money. You may be surprised to find that the lowest premiums are with some of the smallest insurance companies. Regional companies can often provide lower rates in certain areas as compared to the big name companies such as .