Tightwads Guide to Saving on Grand Island Car Insurance

Are you tired of not being able to afford each month for car insurance? You're in the same situation as many other New York consumers. Because you have many car insurance companies to choose from, it can be hard to choose the most affordable insurance company.

Compare the Market for Car Insurance in Grand Island

Effectively comparing car insurance prices can be a lot of work if you don't know the most efficient way to do it. You could spend your day driving to insurance agencies in Grand Island, or you could save time and use the web to get the quickest rates.

All the larger companies are enrolled in a marketplace that allows shoppers to submit one quote, and at least one company returns a competitive quote based on the submitted data. This prevents consumers from doing repetitive form submissions to each individual car insurance company.

To submit your quote information now, click here (opens in new window).

The only downside to using this type of system is you are unable to specify which companies to get quotes from. So if you want to select specific insurance companies to compare, we have assembled a list of car insurance companies in New York. Click to view list.

Whichever method you choose, double check that you are using apples-to-apples information on every quote. If you enter higher or lower deductibles it's not possible to make a fair comparison in Grand Island.

Tips to Get Lower Grand Island Rates

It's important that you understand the factors that help determine the rates you pay for car insurance. When you know what positively or negatively influences your rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that will entitle you to big savings.

Do you have a high stress job? - Did you know your occupation can influence how much you pay for car insurance? Careers like doctors, social workers and stock brokers have the highest rates because of high stress and lots of time spent at work. On the other hand, occupations like farmers, students and performers get better rates.
Car features impact rates - Driving a car with an alarm system can help lower your rates. Theft prevention features such as LoJack tracking devices, vehicle tamper alarm systems or GM's OnStar system all hinder auto theft.
Where you live - Being located in less populated areas can save you money when talking about car insurance. Urban drivers have to deal with traffic congestion and much longer commute distances. Less people living in that area means a lower chance of having an accident and also fewer theft and vandalism claims.
Multiple policies with one company can save - Many insurance companies provide better rates to insureds who have multiple policies with them, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Even with this discount, you still need to shop around to verify if the discount is saving money. You may still find better rates by splitting coverages up.
Do men or women drive better? - The statistics show women tend to be less risk to insure than men. However, this does not mean women are BETTER drivers than men. They both have accidents at about the same rate, but the men have costlier accidents. Men also statistically get more serious tickets like DUI and reckless driving. Young males are most likely to cause an accident and thus pay the highest rates.
Do you need those extra coverages? - There are a ton of extra bells and whistles that can waste your money when buying car insurance. Things like vanishing deductibles, accident forgiveness and additional equipment coverage are some examples. These coverages may sound good when you first buy your policy, but now you might not need them so remove them from your policy.
Bad driving skills means higher rates - A bad driving record has a big impact on rates. Drivers who don't get tickets have lower premiums compared to drivers with tickets. Even a single speeding ticket can bump up the cost by twenty percent. If you have flagrant violations such as DUI or reckless driving may find they need to submit a SR-22 or proof of financial responsibility to the state department of motor vehicles in order to keep their license.

Be sure to get all your discounts

Car insurance companies don't always advertise every discount very well, so here is a list both the well known as well as the least known discounts you could be receiving. If you don't get every credit available, you're just leaving money on the table.

Claim Free - Claim-free drivers can earn big discounts when compared to frequent claim filers.
Payment Method - By paying your policy upfront rather than paying monthly you could save up to 5%.
Multiple Policy Discount - When you have multiple policies with one company you will save approximately 10% to 15%.
Anti-lock Brakes - Vehicles with anti-lock braking systems can reduce accidents and will save you 10% or more.
Senior Citizens - Older drivers may be able to get a small decrease in premiums.

Keep in mind that some credits don't apply to the entire cost. Most only cut individual premiums such as comp or med pay. So even though it sounds like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, it just doesn't work that way.

For a list of insurance companies who offer car insurance discounts in New York, click here.

Additional detailed information is available at the New York Department of Financial Services website. Visitors are able to read industry bulletins, view a list of available companies, view agent and company licensing information, and read consumer alerts.

Other useful links include this online resource for car insurance quotes in New York and this list of insurance agents in Grand Island.

In the end, you save

When trying to cut insurance costs, do not reduce needed coverages to save money. There are too many instances where an insured dropped liability limits or collision coverage only to find out that it was a big mistake. Your strategy should be to purchase a proper amount of coverage at a price you can afford while still protecting your assets.

Affordable car insurance can be purchased both online as well as from independent agents in Grand Island, and you need to price shop both to get a complete price analysis. A few companies don't offer online quoting and these smaller companies work with independent agents.