Free Guide to Cutting Costs on Dover Auto Insurance Online

Have you had enough of scraping the payment together each month for car insurance? You are in the same boat as many other drivers in Tennessee.

Big companies like GEICO and Progressive all claim big savings with fancy advertisements and consumers find it hard to sift through the bull and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

It's important to do rate comparisons once or twice a year since insurance rates are constantly changing. Just because you found the lowest rates two years ago a different company probably has better rates today. So forget all the misinformation about auto insurance because it's time to teach you the tricks you need to know to remove unneeded coverages and save money.

If you have car insurance now, you stand a good chance to be able to lower your premiums substantially using this strategy. Finding the best rates in Dover is not that difficult. Although Tennessee vehicle owners do need to know how companies sell online and use this information to your advantage.

Are you getting all your discounts?

Companies do not list all their discounts in a way that's easy to find, so we break down some of the best known as well as the least known auto insurance savings.

Homeowners Pay Less - Owning a house in Dover may trigger a auto insurance policy discount due to the fact that maintaining a home is proof that your finances are in order.
Payment Method - If you pay your bill all at once instead of monthly or quarterly installments you can actually save on your bill.
Accident Free - Claim-free drivers can save substantially as compared to drivers who are more careless.
Anti-theft Discount - Anti-theft and alarm systems help deter theft and will save you 10% or more.
Use Seat Belts - Using a seat belt and requiring all passengers to buckle their seat belts could save 15% off your PIP or medical payments premium.
Sign Online - Certain companies give back up to $50 for buying your policy digitally online.
College Student - Children who attend school more than 100 miles from home and do not have access to a covered vehicle can be insured at a reduced rate.

A little note about advertised discounts, most credits do not apply to the entire cost. Most only cut individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. So even though they make it sound like you can get free auto insurance, you won't be that lucky.

Why some people pay less for insurance in Dover

Smart consumers have a good feel for some of the elements that help determine auto insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what impacts premium levels allows you to make educated decisions that may reward you with lower auto insurance prices.

The following are a few of the "ingredients" companies use to determine rates.

Your spouse saves you money - Having a spouse can get you a discount when buying auto insurance. It is viewed as being more responsible and it's proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
Theft deterrents lower rates - Driving a car with an alarm system can help bring down rates. Theft prevention features like GM's OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all hinder your car from being stolen.
Low deductibles can be expensive - Insurance for physical damage to your car, termed comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, is used to repair damage to your car. Examples of covered claims are a windshield shattered by a rock, damage caused by hail, and rolling your vehicle. Your deductibles are how much you are required to spend before your auto insurance pays a claim. The higher the amount you're willing to pay, the less your company will charge you for insurance.
Occupation reflects on rates - Did you know your auto insurance rates can be affected by your occupation? Jobs such as lawyers, architects and dentists tend to pay the highest average rates because of high stress levels and lengthy work days. Other occupations such as farmers, historians and performers have the lowest average rates.
Multi-policy discounts can save money - Many companies will give a discount to people who consolidate policies with them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. This can amount to anywhere from five to ten percent in most cases. Even if you're getting this discount you still need to compare other company rates to make sure you are getting the best deal. You may still find better rates by insuring with multiple companies.
Allowing your policy to lapse raises rates - Allowing your coverage to lapse will be a guaranteed way to increase your auto insurance rates. And not only will your rates increase, but being ticketed for driving with no insurance will get you a steep fine or even jail time.
Older drivers pay less - Mature drivers are viewed as being more responsible, tend to file fewer claims and get fewer tickets. Teenage drivers are known to be more careless in a vehicle and because of this, their auto insurance rates are much higher.

How can State Farm, GEICO and Progressive save drivers who switch?

Auto insurance companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Progressive continually stream ads on television and other media. They all seem to say the same thing about savings after switching to them. How can each company say the same thing?

All companies can use profiling for the type of driver that earns them a profit. For example, a desirable insured might be profiled as between 25 and 40, has no tickets, and chooses high deductibles. A propective insured who fits that profile will qualify for the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when they switch companies.

Drivers who are not a match for the requirements will have to pay higher premiums which usually ends up with business not being written. The ad wording is "customers that switch" not "everybody who quotes" save money. That's why companies can truthfully state the savings. Because of the profiling, drivers should compare many company's rates. It's not possible to predict the company that will give you the biggest savings.

Even more information can be found at the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance website. Tennessee drivers can get help finding coverage, view a list of available companies, report car insurance fraud, and read industry bulletins.

Final considerations

The cheapest auto insurance can be sourced on the web and with local Dover insurance agents, so you should compare both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance companies do not offer you the ability to get quotes online and most of the time these regional insurance providers sell through independent agents.

When buying insurance coverage, it's a bad idea to skimp on coverage in order to save money. In many cases, an insured dropped uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your aim should be to purchase a proper amount of coverage at a price you can afford.