Consumer Tested Strategies to Save on Watkinsville Auto Insurance

Scraping up a payment for overpriced auto insurance can overdraw your personal savings and put the squeeze on your family's finances. Doing a price comparison is free, only takes a few minutes, and is a good way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket. Big-name insurance companies like State Farm, Allstate, GEICO and Progressive promote their brand names with advertising and consumers find it hard to sift through the bull and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

If you have a policy now or need a new policy, you will benefit by learning to shop for the lowest rates and possibly find even better coverage. Finding affordable coverage in Watkinsville is easy if you know what you're doing. Georgia vehicle owners just need to know the most effective way to compare rates on the web.

Learn How to Buy Auto Insurance Cheaper

Consumers need to have an understanding of the different types of things that play a part in calculating the price you pay for auto insurance. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay helps enable you to make changes that could result in lower auto insurance prices.

Higher deductibles cost less - Deductibles for physical damage represent how much money you are willing to pay out-of-pocket before your auto insurance pays a claim. Physical damage coverage, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, insures against damage to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered could be colliding with a building, damage from fire, and burglary. The more money the insured has to pay upfront, the bigger discount you will receive.
Lower miles equals lower premium - The higher the mileage driven in a year's time the more you'll pay to insure your vehicle. The majority of insurers apply a rate based on how the vehicle is used. Cars and trucks left parked in the garage can get a lower rate compared to those used for work or business. Make sure your auto insurance declarations sheet is rated on the correct usage for each vehicle, because it can save money.
Liability coverage is peace of mind - Your policy's liability coverage is the protection if a court rules you are at fault for damages caused by your negligence. It provides legal defense coverage starting from day one. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap as compared to coverage for physical damage, so do not cut corners here.
Theft deterrents lower rates - Purchasing a vehicle with anti-theft technology or alarm system can help bring down rates. Theft prevention devices such as vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all aid in stopping car theft.
High crash test scores lower rates - Cars with high safety ratings can get you lower premiums. Safe vehicles have better occupant injury protection and lower injury rates translates into savings for insurance companies and more competitive rates for policyholders.

Compare Auto Insurance Today

Reducing your insurance rates can be surprisingly simple. Consumers just need to spend a few minutes on the computer to get quotes online with multiple companies. It is quite easy and can be accomplished in several different ways.

The fastest way consumers can make multiple comparisons is a comparison rater form (click to open form in new window). This easy form prevents you from having to do boring form submissions for every auto insurance company. A single, simple form gets you price quotes from all major companies.
A less efficient way to shop for auto insurance online requires a trip to each individual company website to request a price quote. For example, we'll assume you want comparison quotes from , and . To get rate quotes you would need to visit each site to input your insurance information, and that's why the first method is more popular.

For a list of links to companies insuring cars in Watkinsville, click here.
The least recommended way of getting rate comparisons is driving to local Watkinsville insurance agencies. The ability to buy insurance online eliminates the need for an insurance agent unless you have a need for the personal advice of a local Watkinsville agent. However, consumers can find lower rates online but buy from a local insurance agent.

It's your choice how you get your quotes, but make sure you use exactly the same quote information for each price quote. If you compare mixed coverages it will be very difficult to truly determine the lowest rate in Watkinsville.

Policy discounts you shouldn't miss

Companies don't list all available discounts in a way that's easy to find, so here is a list both well-publicized and the harder-to-find savings tricks you should be using. If you aren't receiving every discount you deserve, you are paying more than you should be.

Multiple Cars - Buying insurance for all your vehicles with the same company qualifies for this discount.
Life Insurance - Select insurance companies reward you with better rates if you take out a life insurance policy as well.
Organization Discounts - Participating in a civic or occupational organization is a good way to get lower rates when buying auto insurance.
Drivers Ed for Students - Cut your cost by having your teen driver enroll in driver's education if offered at their school.
Fewer Miles Equal More Savings - Low mileage vehicles can qualify you for discounted rates on garaged vehicles.
Military Discounts - Being on active duty in the military could be rewarded with lower premiums.
Good Student Discount - This discount can get you a discount of up to 25%. The discount lasts up until you turn 25.
Paperless Signup - Certain companies will discount your bill up to fifty bucks for buying a policy and signing up digitally online.
No Claims - Drivers who don't have accidents can earn big discounts when compared with accident-prone drivers.

Consumers should know that most discounts do not apply to your bottom line cost. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like physical damage coverage or medical payments. So even though they make it sound like all the discounts add up to a free policy, companies don't profit that way.

To choose insurers with discount auto insurance rates in Watkinsville, click here to view.

Save $429 a year? Really?

Georgia consumers can't ignore all the ads for car insurance savings from companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. All the companies make an identical promise that you'll save big if you change your policy.

How can each company make almost identical claims? This is how they do it.

All companies have a preferred profile for the right customer that makes them money. An example of a profitable customer could possibly be a mature driver, has no prior claims, and has a high credit rating. A driver who meets those qualifications gets the lowest rates and is almost guaranteed to save when they switch companies.

Drivers who don't qualify for the requirements must pay higher premiums and ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads say "drivers who switch" but not "drivers who get quotes" save that kind of money. This is how companies can state the savings. This illustrates why you need to get a wide range of price quotes. It is impossible to predict which insurance companies will have the lowest rates.

Insurance agents can help

When buying proper insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a one size fits all plan. Everyone's situation is unique so your insurance should reflect that For example, these questions can help discover whether your personal situation would benefit from professional advice.

Am I covered when driving on a suspended license?
What happens if I owe more than my vehicle is worth?
Am I getting all the discounts available?
Is rental equipment covered for theft or damage?
Is my dog or cat covered if injured in an accident?
Do I have coverage when using my vehicle for my home business?
Do I need to file an SR-22 for a DUI in Georgia?

If you're not sure about those questions, then you may want to think about talking to a licensed agent. If you don't have a local agent, take a second and complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It is quick, free and may give you better protection.

More detailed Georgia auto insurance information is available at the Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner website. Georgia consumers can report car insurance fraud, file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, find out which companies have the most complaints, and view a list of available companies.

In the end, you save

Discount auto insurance can be sourced online in addition to many Watkinsville insurance agents, and you need to price shop both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance companies do not provide online price quotes and usually these smaller companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

As you restructure your insurance plan, it's not a good idea to reduce coverage to reduce premium. In too many instances, consumers will sacrifice liability limits or collision coverage only to find out that they should have had better coverage. Your focus should be to purchase plenty of coverage for the lowest price while not skimping on critical coverages.