How to Know You're Throwing Money Away for Car Insurance in St Charles

Tired of paying out the nose each month for car insurance? Your situation is no different than millions of other consumers.

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

It's important to check car insurance prices once or twice a year due to the fact that insurance rates are constantly changing. Even if you got the lowest rates six months ago there is a good chance you can find better rates now. So forget all the misinformation about car insurance because I'm going to teach you the tricks you need to know to save money, get proper coverage and the best rates.

Finding the best rates in St Charles is not that difficult. If you currently have a car insurance policy, you will be able to lower your premiums substantially using this strategy. Although Minnesota consumers do need to know how companies price online insurance and use this information to your advantage.

What determines how much you pay?

Consumers need to have an understanding of the factors that go into determining the rates you pay for car insurance. Knowing what impacts premium levels allows you to make educated decisions that can help you get much lower annual insurance costs.

Listed below are a few of the "ingredients" companies use to determine your rates.

Better credit means lower rates - Your credit score is a large factor in your rate calculation. If your credit score is lower than you'd like, you could save money insuring your by spending a little time repairing your credit. Drivers with excellent credit tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records than drivers who have poor credit.
Special features that cut premiums - Driving a car that has an advanced theft prevention system can get you a discount on your car insurance. Anti-theft features like GM's OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all hinder auto theft.
Do you qualify for a multi-policy discount? - Most insurance companies give discounts to insureds who consolidate policies with them in the form of a multi-policy discount. Even if you're getting this discount you may still want to comparison shop to make sure you are getting the best deal. You may still be able to find better rates by insuring with multiple companies.
Having a spouse can save you money - Having a spouse can actually save you money on car insurance. Marriage is viewed as being more responsible and it's statistically proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
Teen drivers pay high rates - Youthful drivers in Minnesota are statistically proven to be less responsible in a vehicle so they pay higher car insurance rates. Mature drivers tend to be more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents and get fewer tickets.
Bad driving skills means higher rates - Your driving record has a lot to do with how much you pay for insurance. Good drivers receive lower rates than bad drivers. Even a single moving violation can increase rates by twenty percent. Drivers who get serious violations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions may be required to submit a SR-22 form to the state department of motor vehicles in order to continue driving.
High crash test scores lower rates - Vehicles with high crash test scores get lower rates. Safer cars result in less severe injuries and any reduction in injury severity translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims and thus lower rates.

How to Compare Car Insurance Costs in St Charles

All major car insurance companies like State Farm and Allstate provide prices for coverage on their websites. Obtaining pricing is fairly straightforward as you simply enter the amount of coverage you want as detailed in the form. After the form is submitted, the system will obtain credit information and your driving record and quotes a price based on these factors. Quoting online makes comparing rates easy, but having to visit many different websites and fill out multiple forms is not the best way to spend an afternoon. But it's very important to perform this step if you want to find the best price on car insurance.

The preferred way to find cheaper rates makes use of a single form that analyzes rates from several different companies. The form is fast, eliminates form submissions, and makes online shopping a lot less work. Once the form is submitted, it gets priced and you can choose any one of the resulting price quotes. If the quotes result in lower rates, it's easy to complete the application and purchase the new policy. The whole process takes less than 15 minutes and you will find out if you're overpaying now.

In order to find out if lower rates are available, click here to open in new window and complete the simple form. To compare your current rates, we recommend you input the coverages as close as possible to your current policy. This makes sure you will be getting rate quotes for the exact same coverage.

Are you getting all your discounts?

Companies offering auto insurance don't always advertise every available discount very clearly, so we break down both the well known and the more hidden discounts you could be receiving.

Air Bag Discount - Vehicles with factory air bags may earn rate discounts of 20% or more.
Military Rewards - Being deployed with a military unit could mean lower rates.
Theft Prevention Discount - Vehicles with anti-theft systems prevent vehicle theft and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
E-sign - A few companies may give you up to $50 for buying your policy over the internet.
Save with a New Car - Buying coverage on a new vehicle can cost up to 25% less because new vehicles have to meet stringent safety requirements.
Low Mileage - Driving fewer miles can earn a substantially lower rate.
Organization Discounts - Being a member of a qualifying organization may earn a discount on your policy.

A little note about advertised discounts, some credits don't apply to the entire cost. Most cut the cost of specific coverages such as medical payments or collision. Even though it may seem like all the discounts add up to a free policy, you won't be that lucky.

To choose providers offering car insurance discounts in Minnesota, click here.

How can State Farm and Allstate save drivers who switch?

Companies like State Farm and Allstate constantly bombard you with ads on television and other media. All the ads have a common claim about savings if you switch to them. How does each company claim to save you money?

Insurance companies can use profiling for the type of driver that makes them money. For example, a preferred risk might be between 25 and 40, has no tickets, and has a high credit rating. Any driver that hits that "sweet spot" gets the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when switching.

Potential customers who are not a match for these standards will be charged a higher premium and this can result in the customer not buying. The ads say "people who switch" not "everybody who quotes" save money. That's why companies can truthfully state the savings. That is why you need to get a wide range of price quotes. You cannot predict the company that will have the lowest rates.

Even more information can be found at the Minnesota Department of Commerce website. Visitors are able to find out industry alerts, view a list of available companies, read consumer alerts, and get help finding coverage.

Do the work, save more money

We just presented a lot of ways to compare car insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more you quote, the better your chances of lowering your rates. You may even discover the most savings is with an unexpected company. These smaller insurers may cover specific market segments cheaper than the large multi-state companies such as .

As you restructure your insurance plan, never reduce coverage to reduce premium. There have been many cases where an insured dropped uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret that they should have had better coverage. Your goal should be to purchase plenty of coverage at an affordable rate, not the least amount of coverage.