10 Simple Ways to Reduce Auto Insurance Costs in Pembroke Pines, FL

Feel like you’re a prisoner to an underperforming, overpriced auto insurance policy? Trust us, many consumers are feeling buyer’s remorse and feel like there’s no way out.

Drivers have so many insurance companies to purchase coverage from, and though it is a good thing to be able to choose, lots of choices makes it harder to get the best deal.

The purpose of this article is to familiarize you with how to effectively get price quotes and some tricks to saving. If you currently have car insurance, you will most likely be able to reduce your rates substantially using these tips. Nevertheless, Florida vehicle owners must understand the way insurance companies price insurance differently because it can help you find the best coverage.

Companies offer discounts so take them!

Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, but there could be available discounts to help offset the cost. A few discounts will automatically apply when you complete an application, but lesser-known reductions have to be asked for in order for you to get them.

• Driver’s Ed – Require your teen driver to take driver’s ed class if it’s offered in school.
• Theft Prevention Discount – Anti-theft and alarm systems prevent vehicle theft and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
• Payment Method – If paying your policy premium upfront instead of monthly or quarterly installments you can actually save on your bill.
• Discount for Life Insurance – Some companies give lower rates if you buy a life insurance policy as well.
• Driver Safety – Successfully completing a course in driver safety could save 5% or more if your company offers it.
• Anti-lock Brake System – Anti-lock brake equipped vehicles can reduce accidents and will save you 10% or more.
• Good Student – Performing well in school can get you a discount of up to 25%. Earning this discount can benefit you up until you turn 25.
• Government Employees – Being employed by or retired from a federal job could cut as much as 10% off with certain companies.
• Club Memberships – Belonging to a professional or civic organization could trigger savings when buying auto insurance.
• Seat Belts Save – Drivers who require all occupants to buckle their seat belts can save 10% or more off your medical payments premium.

It’s important to understand that some credits don’t apply the the whole policy. Most only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. Even though it may seem like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, it doesn’t quite work that way. Any amount of discount will cut your overall premium however.

To choose insurance companies with the best auto insurance discounts in Pembroke Pines, click here to view.

Beware of misleading auto insurance ads

Companies like Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm consistently run television and radio advertisements. All the ads make an identical promise that you’ll save big if you change your coverage to them. How does each company say the same thing? It’s all in the numbers.

All companies have a preferred profile for the type of customer they prefer to insure. A good example of a desirable insured might be profiled as over the age of 50, has no tickets, and drives newer vehicles. Any new insured that hits that “sweet spot” gets the lowest rates and as a result will probably pay quite a bit less when switching companies.

Potential customers who don’t meet the “perfect” profile must pay higher rates which usually ends up with business not being written. The ad wording is “customers who switch” not “everyone that quotes” save that much. This is how insurance companies can make the claims of big savings.

This illustrates why it is so important to get quotes from several different companies. It is impossible to predict which insurance companies will have the lowest rates.

Auto insurance coverage options

Knowing the specifics of your auto insurance policy helps when choosing the best coverages at the best deductibles and correct limits. The coverage terms in a policy can be impossible to understand and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Below you’ll find typical coverages available from auto insurance companies.

Comprehensive coverages

This coverage pays for damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You need to pay your deductible first then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive insurance covers claims such as rock chips in glass, a broken windshield, theft and falling objects. The maximum amount your auto insurance company will pay is the ACV or actual cash value, so if the vehicle is not worth much it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.

Coverage for medical payments

Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance reimburse you for immediate expenses for ambulance fees, doctor visits and nursing services. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance program or if there is no health insurance coverage. Coverage applies to both the driver and occupants and will also cover any family member struck as a pedestrian. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay

Collision insurance

This coverage will pay to fix damage to your vehicle resulting from colliding with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You have to pay a deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.

Collision coverage protects against claims like backing into a parked car, scraping a guard rail, driving through your garage door and colliding with a tree. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so consider removing coverage from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to raise the deductible to save money on collision insurance.

Uninsured and underinsured coverage

This protects you and your vehicle from other drivers when they either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. Covered losses include hospital bills for your injuries as well as your vehicle’s damage.

Since many Florida drivers have only the minimum liability required by law (10/20/10 in Florida), their limits can quickly be used up. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Frequently your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverages are identical to your policy’s liability coverage.

Liability car insurance

This coverage can cover damage that occurs to other people or property. It protects you from legal claims by others. Liability doesn’t cover damage to your own property or vehicle.

Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You commonly see values of 50/100/50 that translate to a limit of $50,000 per injured person, a per accident bodily injury limit of $100,000, and $50,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Alternatively, you may have a combined limit which provides one coverage limit without having the split limit caps.

Liability coverage pays for things like pain and suffering, bail bonds, emergency aid and legal defense fees. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is a decision to put some thought into, but consider buying as large an amount as possible. Florida state minimum liability requirements are 10,000/20,000/10,000 but drivers should carry higher limits.

Additional information can be found on the website for the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation located here. Consumers can discover disciplinary actions, report car insurance fraud, find a variety of consumer forms, and find disaster information.

Other useful links include QuoteClickInsure.com and this page for help finding agents in Pembroke Pines, FL.

A little work can save a LOT of money

We covered quite a bit of information on how to get a better price on auto insurance. The most important thing to understand is the more times you quote, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. Consumers could even find that the lowest premiums are with some of the smallest insurance companies. Smaller companies often have lower prices on specific markets as compared to the big name companies such as Allstate or State Farm.

As you restructure your insurance plan, do not sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. There have been many situations where an insured cut full coverage to discover at claim time they didn’t purchase enough coverage. The aim is to get the best coverage possible for the lowest price, not the least amount of coverage.