How to Know You're Spending Too Much for Car Insurance in University Place

Having to pay for overpriced car insurance can empty your personal savings and make it hard to pay other bills. Comparing price quotes is free and is an excellent way to help make ends meet.

Popular companies such as State Farm, Allstate, GEICO and Progressive continually bombard you with catchy ads and consumers find it hard to sift through the bull and find the best price available.

It's important to shop coverage around on a regular basis due to the fact that insurance rates are constantly changing. Even if you got the best deal on your last policy you can probably find a better price now. So just ignore everything you know about car insurance because I'm going to teach you the proper way to find better rates and still maintain coverage.

If you currently have car insurance, you should be able to save some money using this strategy. Finding the best rates in University Place is quite easy. Nevertheless, Washington consumers do need to know the way companies price online insurance and take advantage of how the system works.

Tips to Get Lower University Place Rates

Consumers need to have an understanding of the rating factors that go into determining the rates you pay for car insurance. Having a good understanding of what determines base rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that may reward you with better car insurance rates.

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

Being married can save on car insurance - Being married can actually save you money on your car insurance policy. It translates into being more mature and responsible and it's proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.
Battle of the sexes - Statistics have proven women are more cautious behind the wheel. That doesn't necessarily mean that women are BETTER drivers than men. Men and women are in accidents at about the same rate, but the males cause more damage. They also have more aggressive citations like DUI and reckless driving. Male drivers age 16 to 19 are most likely to cause an accident and are penalized with high car insurance rates.
More than one policy can earn a discount - Most car insurance companies will give a discount to insureds who consolidate policies with them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Discounts can be ten or even up to twenty percent in some cases. If you currently are using one company, you still need to comparison shop to verify if the discount is saving money.
Equipment add-ons that lower car insurance rates - Purchasing a vehicle with an alarm system can help bring down rates. Anti-theft features like LoJack tracking devices, vehicle tamper alarm systems or GM's OnStar system all aid in stopping your vehicle from being stolen.
Drive a safer car and pay less - Safer cars tend to have better insurance rates. These vehicles protect occupants better and any reduction in injury severity translates into savings for insurance companies and more competitive rates for policyholders.
Little extras can really add up - There are many add-on coverages that you can buy when buying car insurance. Insurance for rental car reimbursement, towing coverage and additional equipment coverage may be wasting your money. They may seem good when you first buy your policy, but now you might not need them so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.

These discounts can lower your rates

Insuring your vehicles can cost a lot, buy you may qualify for discounts that many people don't even know exist. Certain discounts will be applied at the time you complete a quote, but some must be inquired about prior to getting the savings.

Sign Online - Some insurance companies may give you up to $50 simply for signing digitally online.
Accident Waiver - A handful of insurance companies will forgive one accident before hitting you with a surcharge as long as you don't have any claims for a certain period of time.
Anti-theft System - Vehicles equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems help deter theft and will save you 10% or more.
Payment Discounts - If paying your policy premium upfront instead of making monthly payments you could save up to 5%.
Senior Citizens - If you're over the age of 55, you may qualify for a small decrease in premiums.
Lower Rates for Military - Having a family member in the military could mean lower rates.
Claim Free - Drivers who don't have accidents can earn big discounts as compared to accident-prone drivers.
Drivers Ed for Students - Cut your cost by having your teen driver complete a driver education course in school.

Consumers should know that many deductions do not apply to all coverage premiums. Most only reduce individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. Just because it seems like you would end up receiving a 100% discount, companies don't profit that way. Any qualifying discounts will reduce the cost of coverage.

To choose companies offering car insurance discounts in University Place, click this link.

Are you falling for claims of savings?

Car insurance companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Progressive constantly bombard you with ads on television and other media. They all seem to make the same claim of big savings if you switch your coverage to them. How can each company claim to save you money?

Different companies have a preferred profile for the type of customer that makes them money. An example of a desirable insured might be between the ages of 30 and 50, insures multiple vehicles, and has great credit. Any driver who matches those parameters will get the preferred rates and as a result will probably save when they switch companies.

Potential customers who are not a match for the requirements will have to pay a more expensive rate which leads to the customer not buying. The ads state "customers that switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that much money. This is how insurance companies can confidently advertise the savings.

Because of the profiling, you should compare many company's rates. You cannot predict which insurance companies will fit your personal profile best.

Additional car insurance information is available on the website for the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner located here. Visitors are able to get help finding coverage, learn about insurance regulations, read consumer alerts, and view a list of available companies.

Shop smart and save

Cost effective car insurance can be found both online as well as from independent agents in University Place, and you should compare price quotes from both to have the best rate selection. There are still a few companies who don't offer online price quotes and most of the time these smaller companies sell through independent agents.

When you buy insurance online, it's not a good idea to buy poor coverage just to save money. In many cases, drivers have reduced liability limits or collision coverage only to find out that the few dollars in savings costed them thousands. Your aim should be to get the best coverage possible at a price you can afford.