7 Simple Tricks to Cut Car Insurance Costs in Alameda, CA

Have you had enough of paying out the nose each month for car insurance? You are in the same boat as many other California drivers.

Insurance companies such as State Farm, Allstate, GEICO and Progressive persitently shower you with fancy advertisements and it can be hard to sift through the bull and take the time to shop coverage around.

It's important to compare prices before your policy renews since rates are constantly changing. Just because you found the lowest price a year ago a different company probably has better rates today. There is a lot of bad advice regarding car insurance on the internet, so we're going to give you some great ways to find cheap car insurance.

Are you getting all your discounts?

Car insurance companies don't necessarily list every available discount in a way that's easy to find, so we researched some of the more common and the harder-to-find ways to save on car insurance.

  • Passive Restraints and Air Bags - Vehicles with factory air bags can qualify for discounts up to 30%.
  • No Accidents - Claim-free drivers pay much less compared to drivers who are more careless.
  • Clubs and Organizations - Belonging to a civic or occupational organization could trigger savings on your policy.
  • Service Members Pay Less - Having a family member in the military could be rewarded with lower premiums.
  • Theft Prevention System - Vehicles equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems help deter theft and therefore earn up to a 10% discount.
  • Homeowners Pay Less - Being a homeowner may earn you a small savings because maintaining a house shows financial diligence.
  • Seat Belts Save more than Lives - Requiring all passengers to use a seat belt can save up to 15% off your PIP or medical payments premium.

It's important to note that many deductions do not apply to the entire cost. Most only cut the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. So even though they make it sound like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you're out of luck.

California car insurance

How can State Farm and Allstate save drivers who switch?

Companies like State Farm and Allstate consistently run ads on television and other media. All the ads make the same claim that you can save if you change to their company. How can each company make the same claim? This is how they do it.

All the different companies can use profiling for the driver that earns them a profit. For instance, a preferred risk could be over the age of 50, is a homeowner, and has excellent credit. Any new insured who matches those parameters will qualify for the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when they switch companies.

Drivers who are not a match for the requirements will be charged higher premiums which leads to business going elsewhere. The ad wording is "drivers who switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that much. That's why insurance companies can make those claims. That is why drivers should compare as many rates as you can. It's just too difficult to predict the company that will have the lowest rates.

Learn more today

Additional detailed information is located at the California Department of Insurance website. Consumers can find out industry alerts, read industry bulletins, find out which companies have the most complaints, and view a list of available companies.

Shop smart and save

You just learned many ideas to reduce car insurance prices online. It's most important to understand that the more you quote, the better chance you'll have of finding lower rates. Drivers may discover the biggest savings come from a lesser-known regional company. Regional companies often have lower prices on specific markets than the large multi-state companies such as .

Lower-priced car insurance can be sourced from both online companies and also from your neighborhood Alameda agents, and you should be comparing both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some companies may not provide you the ability to get quotes online and many times these small, regional companies only sell through independent insurance agents.