It’s a fact that car insurance companies don’t want customers comparing rates. Insureds who shop around annually are very likely to buy a different policy because the odds are good of finding discount prices. A recent study showed that consumers who compared rates once a year saved approximately $860 a year as compared to drivers who never compared rates.
If finding the best price on car insurance is your ultimate target, then having an understanding of how to get rate quotes and compare insurance premiums can save time and make the process easier.
If your goal is the lowest price, then the best way to get cheaper Ford Freestyle insurance is to do an annual price comparison from different companies in Oakland. You can compare rates by following these guidelines.
- First, get a basic knowledge of the coverage provided by your policy and the steps you can take to keep rates down. Many rating factors that result in higher prices such as speeding and an unfavorable credit rating can be eliminated by making minor changes to your lifestyle.
- Second, obtain price quotes from independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct companies. Exclusive agents and direct companies can give quotes from a single company like GEICO and State Farm, while independent agents can quote rates from multiple insurance companies. Compare rates
- Third, compare the new rate quotes to your existing rates to determine if switching companies saves money. If you find a lower rate and change companies, make sure there is no lapse between the expiration of your current policy and the new one.
The critical component of shopping around is to make sure you’re comparing similar coverage information on every quote request and and to get rate quotes from as many auto insurance providers as possible. This enables an apples-to-apples comparison and many rates to choose from.
Lower Your Oakland Insurance Costs
Many things are taken into consideration when pricing auto insurance. Some are obvious such as traffic violations, but other criteria are not as apparent such as whether you are married or how safe your car is. One of the most helpful ways to save on car insurance is to to have a grasp of some of the factors that are used to determine car insurance rates. If you know what controls the rates you pay, this allows you to make educated decisions that could result in better car insurance rates.
The list below includes a partial list of the pieces used by companies to determine premiums.
Incidental coverages can waste money – Insurance policies have a lot of additional extra coverages you can purchase if you don’t pay attention. Coverages for personal injury protection, accidental death, and term life insurance may be costing you every month. The coverages may be enticing at first, but now you might not need them so consider taking them off your policy.
Responsible credit saves on car insurance – Having a good credit score factor in your rate calculation. People with excellent credit scores tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records as compared to drivers with lower credit scores. Therefore, if your credit score can use some improvement, you could pay less to insure your Ford Freestyle by taking the time to improve your credit score.
Always keep your car insurance in force – Driving your car without having proper coverage is against the law and car insurance companies will penalize you for letting your coverage lapse. In addition to paying higher premiums, getting caught without coverage may earn you a license revocation or jail time.
Lower prices with theft deterrents – Buying a car that has an advanced theft prevention system can help lower your premiums. Systems that thwart thieves such as GM’s OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers help track and prevent car theft.
Insure car and home with the same company – Most major car insurance companies provide a discount to insureds that have more than one policy, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. The amount of the discounts can be ten percent or more. Even if you qualify for this discount already, you still need to check prices from other companies to help ensure you have the lowest rates. Drivers may still save more without the discount by buying car insurance from a different company.
Performance makes a difference – The performance of the car you are buying insurance for makes a huge difference in your auto insurance rates. The lowest performance passenger vehicles usually have the lowest premiums, but there are many factors that impact the final cost.
High policy claims frequency drives up car insurance rates – Companies in California give most affordable rates to insureds who are claim-free. If you file a lot of claims you can definitely plan on higher premiums or even policy non-renewal. Your car insurance is meant to be used in the event of claims that you cannot pay yourself.
Oakland car insurance discounts
Companies that sell car insurance don’t always advertise the complete list of policy discounts in a way that’s easy to find, so the list below details a few of the more well known in addition to some of the lesser obvious discounts that you may qualify for.
- 55 and Retired – Mature drivers can possibly qualify for a discount up to 10%.
- Club Memberships – Joining specific professional or occupational memberships or organizations could qualify you for a break on your next car insurance statement.
- Discount for Low Mileage – Low mileage vehicles can earn substantially lower premium rates.
- Claim-Free Discount – Good drivers with no accidents can earn big discounts when compared with policyholders that have many claims.
- Lower Rates for Military – Having an actively deployed family member may qualify for rate reductions.
Keep in mind that some of the credits will not apply to the entire policy premium. The majority will only reduce specific coverage prices like liability, collision or medical payments. If you do the math and it seems like all the discounts add up to a free policy, insurance companies wouldn’t stay in business.
Larger car insurance companies and the discounts they provide can be found below.
- Farmers Insurance includes discounts for teen driver, homeowner, switch companies, pay in full, bundle discounts, and multi-car.
- State Farm offers premium reductions for multiple policy, safe vehicle, passive restraint, driver’s education, Drive Safe & Save, and multiple autos.
- Liberty Mutual has savings for new move discount, exclusive group savings, hybrid vehicle, multi-car, preferred payment discount, good student, and teen driver discount.
- MetLife may offer discounts for defensive driver, good driver, claim-free, good student, accident-free, and multi-policy.
- Progressive policyholders can earn discounts including online quote discount, multi-vehicle, online signing, multi-policy, and homeowner.
If you are trying to find affordable Ford Freestyle insurance quotes, ask every insurance company to give you their best rates. Some discounts listed above might not be available to policyholders in your area.
Don’t give up on cheaper coverage
Some insurance companies may not provide rate quotes online and most of the time these smaller providers prefer to sell through independent insurance agents. Cheaper Ford Freestyle insurance in Oakland can be bought online in addition to many Oakland insurance agents, and you should compare price quotes from both to get a complete price analysis.
While you’re price shopping online, make sure you don’t buy less coverage just to save a little money. There are a lot of situations where consumers will sacrifice comprehensive coverage or liability limits to discover at claim time that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your objective should be to buy a smart amount of coverage at the best cost, but do not skimp to save money.
Other learning opportunities
- Safety Belts FAQ (iihs.org)
- Who Has Affordable Oakland Car Insurance for a Toyota Corolla? (FAQ)
- What Insurance is Cheapest for a 20 Year Old Female in Oakland? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance for Immigrants in Oakland? (FAQ)
- How Much are Oakland Car Insurance Rates for a Jeep Grand Cherokee? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable Car Insurance Quotes for a Subaru Impreza in Oakland? (FAQ)
- Determining Auto Insurance Rates (GEICO)
- Teen Driving and Texting (State Farm)