I’m told that I should only hire a car insurance broker if I really want to get cheap car insurance. Is there any truth to this?

Francois

Layton, UT

Brokers or agents are no longer your sole option when it comes to getting cheap car insurance these days. With the help of car insurance comparison websites (like this one) you can run a free quote check and be able to compare the best offers coming from a lot of different insurers quickly and easily. This saves you substantial amount of time and effort. Here are five more mistakes that you should avoid when it comes to car insurance:

Allowing Your Credit to Slide

A number of insurers (both major and local players) are using your credit standing as an indicator of how safe and responsible you are as a driver. Letting your credit fall can cause you to pay higher car insurance rates.

Not Knowing about Discounts

Discounts are one of the easiest ways to lower your car insurance costs. So it’s a sin not to ask your insurer about discount options. Some of the many include: defensive driver, good student, good driver history, low-mileage, and safe vehicle discounts.

Buying Too Much/Too Little Insurance

Too much car insurance and you’re throwing good money away, too little and you’re still throwing good money away! (if you cause a car accident, that is). Find the right balance by factoring in the current price of your vehicle (check out the Kelly Blue Book website), the minimum state liability requirements, and if how much Personal Injury Protection you can afford.

Not Looking at Deals “Every Once in a While”

While it’s great to be loyal to one company, excellent car insurance deals are offered everyday. Use car insurance comparison websites (like this one) to get quick and easy car insurance free quotes and determine if better offers are available.

How can I lower my car insurance rate other than getting discounts?

Penny

Billings, MT

Discounts mean savings from the usual purchases, which people can use to buy other necessities or services. In a difficult time, no one is likely to discard a chance to buy something for less. In insurance vehicle coverage, an insured need to do something to a policy that is making him pay for a lot of money. He should forget about grumbling but doing nothing about it. Instead, he has to find an alternative among the various choices in the market.

Re-evaluating the terms of your current vehicle policy is recommended before deciding to renew an old coverage. Doing this is a good exercise on your part. There might be something there that you are not happy about that needs to be changed. Or, you may find your old premium rate too high for your current budget. What you can do is to compare auto insurance rates to be certain how your insurance coverage compares to others in the market. When you compare prices, you will get to know other insurers and the discount schemes they have in store for their clients. This will make you gain a better insight of which insurers are providing for low cost insurances, and which are quite expensive in their rates.

A person who is looking to compare auto insurance rates should not only focus the search on the lowest prices. The best thing to do is to find at least five companies offering the least cost for a particular type of coverage. Among the five, the insured should find out how these companies are rated in terms of customer satisfaction in claims processing and in conducting business in general. It’s best if you get a low-cost insurance from a company that knows how to take care of its customers.

How do I compare insurance provider’s effectively so that I know I’m getting the right one to cover my car here in South Dakota?

Spencer

Sioux Falls, SD

Very good question and ever so important, considering that there are hundreds of auto insurance companies out there, and we couldn’t expect all of them to be the right one for your insurance needs there in South Dakota. So, how do you pick the right one? Here are some effective tips to help you get the best insurance company for your car;

Financial Strength
With the kind of economy we have these days, its essential that we choose a company that can weather the financial storms, and not fold up when we need them. So financial capacity is one effective, albeit obvious, way of judging any company you do business with.

Competitive Pricing
Since most of us are on a budget, its essential that we know how to compare insurance rates from many different companies to identify the most competitively-priced ones. This is best done by running free insurance quotes on this website that allows you to get timely information and be able to compare insurance quotes across many carriers immediately.

Customer Service
This can make or break a company, no matter how cheap their policies are. 24/7 customer service is a must. There are many rating agencies online that can easily give you this information.

Ease Of Filing A Claim
Another important aspect when choosing a carrier. Look for a provider that has a proven track record of handling insurance claims in a fair and efficient manner. Again, rating agencies like J.D Powers and Moody’s can help you compare companies based on this criteria.

My teenager will be buying her first car very soon. What’s the best way to compare car insurance quotes?

Diane

Jacksonville, FL

The best way to compare car insurance quotes when shopping for coverage is by visiting websites that carry major providers. These sites act as mediators between the several car insurance companies and the client. So, you get to have several quotes just by checking out one website.

Take into consideration, though, that teenagers get the highest car insurance rates. This is because they lack experience in driving, and thus get into more accidents than older and more seasoned drivers. So, it would be smart to have your teenager attend a state-approved advanced driving class first before getting those quotes. All beginner drivers are also required by the state to take a first-time-driver traffic law and substance abuse course. Taking these courses will instantly qualify your teenager to rate cuts from five to ten percent, depending on the company’s rating system. Moreover, buying a car that has been loaded with safety and security features will be a very good move as this will significantly lower the rates on Collision and Comprehensive Insurance. If your teenager still goes to school, then he is not allowed to have any unexcused absences for thirty days or his permit or license will be revoked by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

I want to know how to compare insurance policies carriers effectively, I’m not very happy with my current one here in New Jersey. Can you give me advise on this? thanks!

Allen

Newark, NJ

Good question, it is essential for someone interested in purchasing car insurance coverage to know how to effectively compare car insurance quotes and offers. Just because something sounds very cheap doesn’t mean it is the best insurance policy for you there in New Jersey (or anywhere you may be). You always have the option to go to a broker or agent and hope that they would get you the best possible car insurance policy available, but how good a policy they can get is still limited by their resources and, sometimes, by their self-interest.

Today, however, technology has made it much easier for the everyday consumer to get access to a wealth of information that helps make for better buying decisions. The Internet is, undoubtedly, one of the most valuable sources of information about virtually anything, including car insurance rates and quotes. There are many auto insurance portals, just liked this website, that offers free insurance quote checks, allowing you to compare many rate offers and quotes from numerous insurance carriers instantly, helping you narrow down your choices and ultimately get the most competitive policy available.

Aside from shopping and comparing insurance quotes online, another effective way of getting a more affordable policy is to ask for discount options. Car insurance companies offer a lot of discounts based on your eligibility, among the most common are:

• Good Driver Discounts
• Good Student Discounts
• Discounts For Completing Defensive Driving Courses
• Military Discounts
• Professional / Employee Discounts
• Discount for adding extra air bags and other safety mechanisms on your car
• Discounts for after-market anti-theft devices
• Low-Annual Mileage Discounts

I will be buying a used car. What do I need to know before I compare insurance companies?

Will

Milwaukee, WI

The good thing about Wisconsin is that premiums are quite low in this state that residents do not have a hard time obtaining that much-needed and very wise investment in the form of car insurance. According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), Wisconsinites only paid an average of $590 for their cars to be adequately insured in this state in the year 2006. Thanks to the low population of this state, the incidence of traffic accidents is very minimal. And since there are not much drivers on the public roads, car insurance companies need not worry about numerous benefit claims. Wisconsin has a very low rate of theft and vandalism, as well.

And due to these factors, car insurance companies in the state of Wisconsin are able to provide its consumers with very competitive rates. Since you are still shopping for a car, it would be good to obtain the vehicle’s history and mileage as these will be greatly considered in the calculation of your premiums. Buy a car that is not older than three years if your budget allows it. And be sure to get one that has a mileage of not more than 25,000. This way, you will not have a hard time finding the cheapest rates when doing your research. To effectively compare insurance companies, obtain quotes for the 25/50/10 coverage that is required in this state. You may also want to do some reading on the profiles of carriers as this will also help you compare insurance companies in your area.

I live in North Carolina and I am applying for a job in New Mexico, is there a way where I can get car insurance quotes? I need to know the prices so just in case I relocate.

Denver

Cary, NC

You we’re asking about comparing prices of car insurance quotes between North Carolina and New Mexico? I believe the easiest way would be by getting a quote for car insurance in New Mexico and compare it to what you have right now in North Carolina, and you can do that online, over the internet. All you have to do is start up your computer, open your internet browser, pull up a search engine and try typing in “compare insurance quotes in North Carolina and New Mexico”, you should get a number of results that you can click on which should help you make a comparison, look at different companies because the prices may differ as well. Try calling the car insurance companies as well so to be sure that what you see on the web site is what you are going to get.

The NC state laws require a minimum coverage of $30,000 for Bodily Injury Liability, that is per injured person, NM shows $25,000, to a total of $60,000 per accident for NC, $50,000 for NM, and also the minimum coverage for Damage liability has a limit of $25,000 for NC, and $10,000 for NM. The basic coverage in NC is referred to as the 30/60/25 coverage, while in NM, it is referred to as the 25/50/10 coverage.