Finding Cheaper San Bruno Auto Insurance

No one cherishes buying auto insurance, especially knowing the cost is way too high. Lots of contend for your hard-earned dollar, and it can be difficult to compare rates and get the best coverage at the lowest price

Policy discounts you shouldn't miss

Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, but companies offer discounts that you may not know about. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied at the time of purchase, but less common discounts must be manually applied prior to receiving the credit. If they aren't giving you every credit you qualify for, you are throwing money away.

  • Homeowners Savings - Owning a home in San Bruno may trigger a auto insurance policy discount because maintaining a house is proof that your finances are in order.
  • Good Student - Performing well in school can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. This discount can apply up until you turn 25.
  • Clubs and Organizations - Affiliation with certain professional organizations could qualify you for a break when buying auto insurance.
  • Student Driver Training - Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to enroll in driver's education if offered at their school.
  • No Claims - Good drivers with no accidents can save substantially when compared with drivers who are more careless.
  • Discount for Life Insurance - Companies who offer life insurance give lower rates if you buy auto and life insurance together.

As a disclaimer on discounts, most credits do not apply to the entire policy premium. Some only apply to the cost of specific coverages such as physical damage coverage or medical payments. So despite the fact that it appears having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, auto insurance companies aren't that generous. Any amount of discount will cut the amount you have to pay.

Understand what determines the rate you pay

Smart consumers have a good feel for some of the elements that play a part in calculating auto insurance rates. Understanding what impacts premium levels helps enable you to make changes that could result in big savings.

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

  • What are your deductibles? - Your deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay out-of-pocket before a claim is paid by your company. Coverage for physical damage, also known as collision and other-than-collision, is used to repair damage to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered are colliding with a building, damage from fire, and rolling your vehicle. The higher the amount the insured has to pay upfront, the lower your rates will be.
  • Traffic citations inflate rates - Only having one moving violation may increase your cost by as much as thirty percent. Drivers with clean records receive lower rates than their less careful counterparts. Drivers with dangerous tickets like hit and run, DWI or reckless driving convictions are required to submit a SR-22 or proof of financial responsibility with the DMV in their state in order to prevent a license revocation.
  • Liability coverage protects you - Your policy's liability coverage is the coverage that protects you if a jury decides you are liable for damages caused by your negligence. It provides for a legal defense which can cost thousands of dollars. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap as compared to coverage for physical damage, so buy as much as you can afford.
  • More claims means more premium - Auto insurance companies in California provide better rates to insureds who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you file claims often, you can expect either policy cancellation or increased premiums. Insurance coverage is intended to be relied upon for larger claims.

Insurance agents can help

When it comes to buying the right insurance coverage for your vehicles, there is no one size fits all plan. Everyone's needs are different and a cookie cutter policy won't apply. For example, these questions may help highlight whether your personal situation would benefit from professional advice.

  • When do I need to add a new car to my policy?
  • Why am I required to buy high-risk coverage?
  • Are rental cars covered under my policy?
  • Am I getting all the discounts available?
  • Is my cargo covered for damage or theft?
  • Am I covered if I drive in a foreign country?

If you don't know the answers to these questions, you might consider talking to a licensed agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, fill out this quick form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It's fast, doesn't cost anything and can provide invaluable advice.

Save $429 a year? Really?

California drivers get pounded daily by advertisements for cheaper car insurance from companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. All the companies say the same thing about savings if you change your policy.

How do they all say the same thing?

All the different companies have a certain "appetite" for the right customer that earns them a profit. For example, a profitable customer might be profiled as a mature driver, a clean driving record, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. A propective insured who fits that profile will qualify for the lowest rates and is almost guaranteed to cut their rates substantially.

Potential customers who don't qualify for the "perfect" profile must pay higher prices which usually ends up with business not being written. The ad wording is "people who switch" but not "drivers who get quotes" save that kind of money. That is how companies can truthfully advertise the way they do.

This illustrates why drivers should get quotes from several different companies. It's not possible to predict which company will provide you with the cheapest rates.

Additional California consumer information

Additional information can be found on the website for the California Department of Insurance through this link. California drivers can report car insurance fraud, file complaints about a company, find out which companies have the most complaints, and download brochures.

California auto insurance

In the end, you save

Cheap auto insurance can be sourced on the web in addition to many San Bruno insurance agents, and you need to price shop both so you have a total pricing picture. Some auto insurance companies do not provide you the ability to get quotes online and usually these regional insurance providers provide coverage only through local independent agents.

In this article, we covered a lot of information how to reduce auto insurance prices online. It's most important to understand that the more rate comparisons you have, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. Consumers could even find that the best price on auto insurance is with an unexpected company. Regional companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments compared to the large companies like .