How to Know You're Spending Too Much for Auto Insurance in Woodstock

Having to pay for overpriced auto insurance can dwindle your savings account and put the squeeze on your family's finances. Comparing price quotes is free and is an excellent way to make sure you're not throwing money away.

Popular companies such as GEICO and Progressive all promote huge savings with ads and it is difficult to sift through the bull and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

If you have car insurance now, you should be able to reduce your rates substantially using this information. Finding affordable coverage in Woodstock is quite easy. Nevertheless, Maryland vehicle owners do need to know the way companies sell online.

How much can you save with discounts?

Auto insurance companies don't always advertise all available discounts in a way that's easy to find, so the following is a list of some of the best known and the more hidden ways to save on auto insurance.

  • Fewer Miles Equal More Savings - Low mileage vehicles could qualify for better rates on cars that stay parked.
  • Paperless Signup - Certain companies give back up to $50 simply for signing digitally online.
  • Clubs and Organizations - Affiliation with a civic or occupational organization could trigger savings when buying auto insurance.
  • Seat Belts Save more than Lives - Requiring all passengers to buckle their seat belts can save 10% or more off your PIP or medical payments premium.
  • Claim Free - Drivers who don't have accidents pay less when compared with drivers who are more careless.
  • Lower Rates for Military - Having a family member in the military could be rewarded with lower premiums.
  • Drivers Ed for Students - Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to enroll in driver's education if offered at their school.
  • Safety Course Discount - Completing a course teaching defensive driving skills could cut 5% off your bill if you qualify.

Consumers should know that most discount credits are not given to all coverage premiums. A few only apply to the cost of specific coverages such as liability and collision coverage. Just because you may think it's possible to get free car insurance, companies don't profit that way.

auto insurance in Woodstock

Tips to Get Lower Woodstock Rates

Smart consumers have a good feel for the rating factors that play a part in calculating auto insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what determines base rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that could result in lower auto insurance prices.

Shown below are some of the items used by your company to calculate premiums.

  • Don't get talked into coverage you don't need - There are quite a few add-on coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren't careful. Insurance for vanishing deductibles, accidental death and additional equipment coverage may be wasting your money. They may seem good at first, but now you might not need them so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
  • Discounts for married couples - Getting married helps lower the price on your auto insurance policy. Having a spouse translates into being more mature and responsible and it's statistically proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.
  • Protect your assets with liability insurance - Your policy's liability coverage is the protection if a jury decides you are liable for personal injury or accident damage. It provides you with a defense in court starting from day one. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap as compared to coverage for physical damage, so drivers should carry high limits.
  • A lapse in coverage is a bad thing - Driving your car without having proper coverage can get your license suspended and you will pay a penalty because you let your coverage lapse. Not only will rates go up, failure to provide proof of insurance will get you a hefty fine and possibly a revoked license.
  • Do you work long hours in a high stress job? - Occupations such as real estate brokers, executives and dentists have the highest average rates attributed to job stress and lengthy work days. Other occupations like pilots, historians and retirees get better rates.
  • Safer occupants lowers premiums - Cars with high safety ratings tend to have better insurance rates. Safe vehicles protect occupants better and better occupant protection translates into savings for insurance companies and more competitive rates for policyholders.

Save 15 percent in 15 minutes? Is it for real?

21st Century, Allstate and State Farm consistently run television and radio advertisements. All the companies make the same claim of big savings if you change your coverage to them. How can each company say the same thing?

All companies have a preferred profile for the type of customer that earns them a profit. A good example of a profitable customer might be profiled as between the ages of 30 and 50, insures multiple vehicles, and drives less than 10,000 miles a year. A propective insured who matches those parameters receives the best rates and is almost guaranteed to save when they switch companies.

Potential insureds who don't meet the requirements must pay more money which leads to business not being written. Company advertisements say "people who switch" but not "drivers who get quotes" save that much money. This is how insurance companies can confidently advertise the way they do. This illustrates why drivers should quote coverage with many companies. It's not possible to predict which insurance companies will provide you with the cheapest rates.

More tips and info about auto insurance can be read at the Maryland Insurance Administration website. Maryland drivers can discover disciplinary actions, get help finding coverage, find out which companies have the most complaints, and find a variety of consumer forms.

Shop smart and save

Cost effective auto insurance can be sourced on the web as well as from independent agents in Woodstock, and you should compare price quotes from both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some auto insurance companies don't offer you the ability to get quotes online and usually these small insurance companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, it's a bad idea to skimp on coverage in order to save money. There are a lot of situations where drivers have reduced full coverage and found out when filing a claim that the savings was not a smart move. The proper strategy is to buy enough coverage at an affordable rate while not skimping on critical coverages.