Tightwads Tips for Saving on Saluda Car Insurance

Expensive car insurance can overdraw your bank account and force you to prioritize other expenses. Shopping your coverage around is a smart way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket.

There are many to buy insurance from, and although it's nice to be able to choose, it makes it harder to compare rates.

What determines how much you pay?

Consumers need to have an understanding of some of the elements that come into play when calculating your car insurance rates. Knowing what influences your rates allows you to make educated decisions that will entitle you to big savings.

The list below includes a few of the "ingredients" companies use to determine prices.

Rates may be higher depending on your occupation - Careers like lawyers, architects and financial analysts tend to pay higher average rates attributed to high stress and lots of time spent at work. Conversely, jobs such as pilots, engineers and the unemployed have the lowest average rates.
High deductibles save money - Your deductibles define the amount you are required to spend out-of-pocket if you file a covered claim. Coverage for physical damage, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, protects your car from damage. Examples of covered claims are running into the backend of another car, vandalism, and windstorm damage. The higher the amount you're willing to pay, the bigger discount you will receive.
Men fork out a little more - Statistics have proven that women are safer drivers than men. However, don't assume that women are better drivers. They both cause accidents in similar percentages, but the men cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also statistically get cited for more serious violations such as reckless driving.
Better credit means lower rates - Having a bad credit rating is a large factor in determining what you pay for car insurance. Drivers with high credit scores tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records as compared to drivers with lower credit scores. Therefore, if your credit rating can use some improvement, you could save money insuring your by spending a little time repairing your credit.
Safer cars cost less to insure - Vehicles with good safety scores are cheaper to insure. The safest vehicles result in less severe injuries and fewer injuries translates into savings for insurance companies and thus lower rates.
Do you need those extra coverages? - There are a lot of add-on coverages that can waste your money on your policy. Coverages for personal injury protection, accident forgiveness and motor club memberships are examples of these. These coverages may sound good at first, but if you don't need them eliminate them to save money.

More discounts equal less premium

Properly insuring your vehicles can get expensive, but there are discounts available that can drop the cost substantially. Some trigger automatically when you get a quote, but less common discounts must be asked for before you will receive the discount.

Accident Free - Drivers who don't have accidents can save substantially when compared to accident-prone drivers.
Own a Home - Simply owning a home may trigger a car insurance policy discount because of the fact that having a home is proof that your finances are in order.
Accident Waiver - Certain companies permit an accident before hitting you with a surcharge if your claims history is clear for a particular time prior to the accident.
Air Bag Discount - Cars that have air bags or automatic seat belts may earn rate discounts up to 30%.
Low Mileage Discounts - Keeping the miles down can earn lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.

It's important to note that most credits do not apply to all coverage premiums. Most only apply to the cost of specific coverages such as comp or med pay. So even though it sounds like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you're out of luck. But any discount will bring down your premiums.

To choose insurance companies with the best car insurance discounts in Virginia, follow this link.

Switch companies and save? Really?

Car insurance providers like Progressive, Allstate and GEICO regularly use ads in print and on television. They all say the same thing that you can save if you move to them. How does each company make the same claim?

All the different companies have a preferred profile for the type of driver that makes them money. For example, a driver they prefer could be between 25 and 40, insures multiple vehicles, and drives newer vehicles. A customer who fits that profile is entitled to the best price and therefore will save when switching.

Drivers who do not match these standards will be quoted higher premiums which usually ends up with business going elsewhere. Company advertisements say "people who switch" not "everyone that quotes" save money. This is how insurance companies can claim big savings.

This emphasizes why you should get as many comparisons as possible. Because you never know which insurance companies will give you the biggest savings.

For more Virginia car insurance information

More information can be found on the website for the Virginia Bureau of Insurance through this link. Consumers can read industry bulletins, report car insurance fraud, learn about insurance regulations, and find out industry alerts.

Shop smart and save

Lower-priced car insurance is definitely available from both online companies and with local Saluda insurance agents, so you should compare both to have the best chance of lowering rates. A few companies do not offer online price quotes and these regional insurance providers work with independent agents.

We just showed you a lot of information how to save on car insurance. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the better your comparison will be. You may even find the most savings is with a company that doesn't do a lot of advertising. Some small companies often have lower prices on specific markets as compared to the big name companies such as .