How to Know You're Wasting Money for Auto Insurance in Walton

Did you fall for a flashy sales pitch and buy high-priced auto insurance? Believe me when I say you're not the only one.

Numerous battle for your hard-earned dollar, so it can be very hard to choose a to get the lowest price

It's important to price shop coverage every six months since insurance rates are constantly changing. Even if you think you had the lowest price a few years ago the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. There is a lot of bad information regarding auto insurance online but I'm going to show you some great ways to save money.

Are you getting all your discounts?

The cost of insuring your cars can be expensive, buy you may qualify for discounts to help bring down the price. Certain discounts will be applied when you quote, but a few must be manually applied before you get the savings.

  • Senior Discount - Mature drivers may receive a discount up to 10%.
  • Memberships - Affiliation with certain professional organizations may earn a discount on auto insurance.
  • Drive Less and Save - Low mileage vehicles could be rewarded with a substantially lower rate.
  • Student Driver Training - Have your child complete a driver education course if offered at their school.
  • Pay Now and Pay Less - By paying your policy upfront instead of paying each month you could save 5% or more.
  • Discount for Good Grades - A discount for being a good student can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. Earning this discount can benefit you up until you turn 25.

A little note about advertised discounts, some credits don't apply to all coverage premiums. Most only apply to specific coverage prices like liability, collision or medical payments. Just because you may think having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you won't be that lucky. Any amount of discount will cut the cost of coverage.

To see a list of companies with discount auto insurance rates in Walton, click here.

Walton auto insurance comparison

Compare Quotes for Walton Auto Insurance

Most companies such as Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm provide coverage price quotes on the web. Getting online quotes doesn't take a lot of time as you just type in the coverages you want as detailed in the form. Once you submit the form, their system will obtain credit information and your driving record and returns a price quote based on these and other factors. Quoting online makes it a lot easier to compare rates but the process of having to visit multiple sites and type in the same information is repetitive and time-consuming. But it's very important to have as many quotes as possible if you want to find the best price on auto insurance.

The preferred way to lower your rates requires only one form that gets price quotes from a lot of companies. The form is fast, eliminates form submissions, and makes quoting online much more enjoyable. As soon as you send your information, it gets priced with multiple companies and you can pick any of the price quotes you receive.

If you find a better price you can click and sign and buy the new coverage. The whole process can be completed in a matter of minutes and you will find out if you're overpaying now.

To quickly find out if lower rates are available, click here to open in new window and complete the simple form. If you have coverage now, it's recommended you copy the coverages as close as possible to your current policy. This makes sure you will receive a rate comparison based on the exact same insurance coverage.

Learn How to Buy Auto Insurance Cheaper

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the factors that play a part in calculating auto insurance rates. Understanding what impacts premium levels helps enable you to make changes that may reward you with big savings.

Shown below are a partial list of the pieces that factor into rates.

  • Mature drivers pay less - Older insureds are viewed as being more responsible, file fewer claims and get fewer tickets. Teenage drivers have a tendency to be more careless when behind the wheel therefore auto insurance rates are much higher.
  • Liability coverage is cheap - Your policy's liability coverage provides coverage if ever a jury decides you are liable for damages caused by your negligence. Liability provides legal defense which can cost thousands of dollars. This coverage is very inexpensive as compared to coverage for physical damage, so do not skimp.
  • Higher safety ratings means cheaper insurance - Vehicles with good safety scores get lower rates. These vehicles have better occupant injury protection and better occupant protection means lower claim amounts and lower rates for you.
  • More claims means more premium - Car insurance companies in New York generally give better rates to insureds who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you are a frequent claim filer, you can pretty much guarantee either policy cancellation or increased premiums. Insurance coverage is intended to be relied upon for the large, substantial claims.
  • Lower rates with optional equipment - Choosing a vehicle with a theft deterrent system can save you a little every year. Theft prevention devices like vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems can thwart auto theft.
  • Traffic citations inflate rates - Your driving citation history impacts your car insurance rates tremendously. Just one citation may increase your cost twenty percent or more. Drivers with clean records get better rates than their less careful counterparts. Drivers who have dangerous citations like hit and run, DWI or reckless driving convictions may need to submit a SR-22 form with the DMV in their state in order to prevent a license revocation.

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

Auto insurance companies such as Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm consistently run ads on television and other media. They all seem to have a common claim about savings if you change your policy. How do they all say the same thing? It's all in the numbers.

All the different companies are able to cherry pick for the right customer that is profitable for them. For instance, a desirable insured might be profiled as between the ages of 30 and 50, has no driving citations, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. A propective insured that hits that "sweet spot" is entitled to the best price and as a result will probably cut their rates substantially.

Drivers who are not a match for the "perfect" profile will have to pay a higher premium and this can result in business not being written. The ads state "customers who switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that kind of money. That's the way companies can truthfully advertise the way they do.

Because of the profiling, drivers must get a wide range of price quotes. It's not possible to predict which auto insurance company will provide you with the cheapest rates.

The best insurance company isn't always the cheapest

When shopping online for auto insurance, never reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are many occasions where someone sacrificed collision coverage and learned later that a couple dollars of savings turned into a financial nightmare. Your aim should be to buy a smart amount of coverage at the best price.

Cheaper auto insurance is attainable on the web in addition to many Walton insurance agents, and you should compare price quotes from both to have the best selection. Some auto insurance companies do not provide the ability to get a quote online and most of the time these small, regional companies sell through independent agents.

Learn more about New York auto insurance

Additional information is located on the website for the New York Department of Financial Services found here. New York drivers can read enforcement actions against agents and companies, find out which companies have the most complaints, find disaster information, and download brochures.