Tightwads Guide for Saving on Butte Auto Insurance

No one in their right mind looks forward to paying for auto insurance, especially knowing the cost is way too high. Insurance companies such as GEICO and Progressive all promote huge savings with advertising and it is difficult to sift through the bull and do the work needed to find the best deal.

Vehicle Insurance Comparison

Most major insurance companies allow you to get insurance quotes on their websites. Getting online quotes doesn't take much effort as you just enter your personal and coverage information as detailed in the form. Behind the scenes, their system will obtain your driving and credit reports and quotes a price based on many factors. Online quotes makes it a lot easier to compare rates but having to visit different websites and complete many quote forms is monotonous and tiresome. But it's very important to get many rate quotes in order to find better auto insurance pricing.

A less time-consuming method to compare rates requires only one form that gets prices from several different companies. The form is fast, eliminates repetitive work, and makes rate comparisons a lot less work. As soon as the form is sent, it is rated and you can choose your choice of the returned quotes. If a lower price is quoted, it's easy to complete the application and purchase coverage. The entire process takes 15 minutes at the most and could lower your rates considerably.

To quickly find out what other companies charge, click here to open in new window and submit the form. If you currently have coverage, we recommend you type in the coverage information exactly as shown on your declarations page. This way, you will have an apples-to-apples comparison based on similar coverages.

Understand what determines the rate you pay

It's important that you understand the rating factors that go into determining auto insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what influences your rates helps enable you to make changes that could result in much lower annual insurance costs.

Listed below are a few of the "ingredients" that factor into premiums.

Do you need the policy add-ons? - There are many additional coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren't careful. Insurance for rental car reimbursement, accidental death and membership fees may be wasting your money. These coverages may sound good when you first buy your policy, but your needs may have changed so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
A clean driving record saves money - Only having one moving violation may increase your cost forty percent or more. Drivers with clean records have lower premiums than bad drivers. Drivers with serious tickets like hit and run, DWI or reckless driving convictions are required to submit a SR-22 form with the DMV in their state in order to continue driving.
Multi-policy discounts can save money - Most auto insurance companies will award you with lower prices to people who consolidate policies with them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. This can amount to ten or even up to twenty percent in some cases. Even with this discount, you still need to shop around to confirm you are receiving the best rates possible.
A lapse in coverage is a bad thing - Allowing your auto insurance policy to lapse is a sure-fire way to trigger a rate increase. And not only will your rates increase, but being ticketed for driving with no insurance may earn you a hefty fine and possibly a revoked license.

These discounts can lower your rates

Auto insurance companies don't always advertise all available discounts in a way that's easy to find, so we took the time to find some of the best known as well as the least known ways to save on auto insurance. If you aren't receiving every discount you qualify for, you're just leaving money on the table.

Defensive Driver - Successfully completing a course teaching defensive driving skills can save you 5% or more depending on where you live.
Early Signing - Some insurance companies reward drivers for signing up before your current policy expires. This can save 10% or more.
Auto/Home Discount - When you have multiple policies with one insurance company you may earn at least 10% off all policies.
Seat Belts Save more than Lives - Drivers who require all occupants to buckle their seat belts can save 10% or more off your medical payments premium.
Federal Employees - Simply working for the federal government could cut as much as 10% off depending on your company.

It's important to note that most discount credits are not given to the entire policy premium. Most cut individual premiums such as liability and collision coverage. So despite the fact that it appears adding up those discounts means a free policy, you're out of luck.

For a list of insurers offering auto insurance discounts in Butte, click this link.

Different people need different coverages

When it comes to choosing the right insurance coverage for your vehicles, there really is not a single plan that fits everyone. Everyone's situation is a little different so this has to be addressed. For instance, these questions may help highlight whether you could use an agent's help.

Should I have combined single limit or split liability limits?
Does my car insurance cover rental cars?
Am I covered when driving in Canada or Mexico?
Why am I be forced to buy a membership to get insurance from some companies?
Why am I required to get a high-risk car insurance policy?
Should I buy only the required North Dakota minimum liability coverage?

If it's difficult to answer those questions, then you may want to think about talking to a licensed agent. If you don't have a local agent, complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It's fast, free and can help protect your family.

Additional detailed information can be found at the North Dakota Insurance Department website. North Dakota drivers can discover disciplinary actions, file complaints about a company, read consumer alerts, and find a variety of consumer forms.

A tidy conclusion

Lower-priced auto insurance can be found on the web in addition to many Butte insurance agents, and you need to comparison shop both to have the best rate selection. Some insurance companies do not provide online quoting and usually these regional insurance providers provide coverage only through local independent agents.

Throughout this article, we presented some good ideas how to lower your auto insurance rates. The key thing to remember is the more companies you get rates for, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. Drivers may discover the lowest premiums are with some of the lesser-known companies. Smaller companies often have lower prices on specific markets than the large multi-state companies such as .

When buying insurance coverage, it's a bad idea to reduce needed coverages to save money. There are a lot of situations where someone dropped physical damage coverage only to discover later that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. The proper strategy is to purchase plenty of coverage at a price you can afford while not skimping on critical coverages.