Mercedes-Benz CLK430 Insurance – 6 Discounts You May be Forgetting

Trying to find the cheapest insurance for a Mercedes-Benz CLK430 can be a painful process, but you can follow a few tricks and make it easy. There is a right way and a wrong way to shop for auto insurance and you need to know the proper way to price shop coverage for a new or used Mercedes-Benz and obtain the best price possible.

It’s a good habit to compare rates yearly because rates are usually higher with each renewal. Despite the fact that you may have had the best deal for CLK430 insurance a couple years back other companies may now be cheaper. Forget all the misinformation about auto insurance because you’re about to find out one of the easiest ways to eliminate unnecessary coverages and save money.

Finding the best rates is not rocket science. If you are insured now or need a new policy, you will benefit by learning to find the best rates while maximizing coverage. Vehicle owners just need to learn the most efficient way to shop their coverage around online.

Which Auto Insurance is Cheapest?

Getting a lower price on insurance is a fairly straight forward process. You just need to take a few minutes comparing rate quotes online with multiple companies. This is very easy and can be done using a couple different methods.

The recommended way consumers can make multiple comparisons is to use a rate comparison form click here to open form in new window. This method eliminates the need for separate forms for every auto insurance company. One quote request will return price quotes from auto insurance companies with the best prices. It’s the fastest way to compare.
A more time consuming way to compare rate quotes requires you to visit each individual company website and fill out their own quote form. For examples sake, we’ll assume you want rates from USAA, Farmers and Allstate. To find out each rate you need to visit each site and enter your policy data, which is why most consumers use the first method.
To view a list of companies in your area, click here.
The least efficient way to compare rates is driving around to different agent offices. The ability to buy insurance online can eliminate the need for a local agent unless you prefer the personal advice only provided by licensed agents. You can, however, get prices online but buy from a local insurance agent. We’ll cover that shortly.

Which method you use is up to you, but make darn sure you compare identical coverage information on every quote. If each company quotes mixed coverages you can’t possibly truly determine the lowest rate.

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

Drivers get pounded daily by advertisements for the lowest price auto insurance from companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. All the companies say the same thing about savings if you change your policy.

How does each company say the same thing?

Insurance companies can use profiling for the right customer that is profitable for them. For instance, a profitable customer might be profiled as between 25 and 40, has no driving citations, and has a short commute. A customer who meets those qualifications receives the best rates and as a result will probably cut their rates substantially.

Potential insureds who do not match the requirements must pay higher rates and this can result in the customer not buying. The ads say “drivers who switch” not “everyone that quotes” save money. That’s why companies can advertise the savings. This illustrates why you should compare as many rates as you can. It’s impossible to know which company will provide you with the cheapest rates.

Discounts can save BIG

Companies that sell car insurance do not advertise every discount very well, so we researched some of the more common and the harder-to-find discounts you could be receiving. If you don’t get every credit you qualify for, you’re paying more than you need to.

Employee of Federal Government – Simply working for the federal government could cut as much as 10% off for CLK430 insurance with certain companies.
Discounts for Safe Drivers – Insureds without accidents may save up to 50% more for CLK430 insurance than drivers with accident claims.
Military Discounts – Having a deployed family member could mean lower rates.
Early Switch Discount – Select companies give a discount for switching to them before your current expiration date. It’s a savings of about 10%.
Seat Belts Save – Requiring all passengers to use a seat belt can save 10% or more off your PIP or medical payments premium.
Senior Discount – Older drivers may receive a small decrease in premiums for CLK430 insurance.

It’s important to understand that some of the credits will not apply to all coverage premiums. Most only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as liability, collision or medical payments. So despite the fact that it appears adding up those discounts means a free policy, it doesn’t quite work that way.

To see a list of insurance companies offering auto insurance discounts, follow this link.

But buying car insurance online seems impersonal

Some people would prefer to sit down with an agent and that is just fine! Professional agents can point out coverage gaps and help submit paperwork. One of the best bonuses of comparing insurance prices online is you may find better rates and still have an agent to talk to. car insurance

To help locate an agent, after submitting this simple form, your information is instantly submitted to participating agents who will give you bids for your business. There is no reason to leave your computer since price quotes are sent straight to your inbox.

Picking an insurance company should depend on more than just a low price. Agents should be asked these questions:

Does the agent have professional designations like CIC, CPCU or AIC?
Who are their largest clients?
Are claims handled at the agent’s location?
Do you have coverage for a rental car if your vehicle is in the repair shop?
Do they regularly work with personal auto policies?
Do they assist clients in filing claims?
Is assistance available after office hours?
Do they review policy coverages at every renewal?

Choose the right auto insurance agent

When finding an insurance agent, you must know there are a couple types of agencies from which to choose. Insurance agencies can either be independent (non-captive) or captive. While both can properly insure your vehicles, but it’s worth mentioning the differences because it can impact your selection of an agent.

Agency Captives

Captive agents write business for a single company and some examples include State Farm, AAA and Liberty Mutual. Captives cannot shop your coverage around so always compare other rates. Captives are trained well on their products and sales techniques which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums. Consumers often buy from captive agents primarily because of the brand legacy and the convenience of having a single billing for all their coverages.

Independent Agents

Independent insurance agents are not employed by any specific company so they have the ability to put coverage amongst many companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. To transfer your coverage to a different company, they simply move the coverage in-house without you having to go to a different agency. When shopping rates, we recommend you get quotes from at a minimum one independent agency for maximum quote selection. Most have the option of insuring with lesser-known insurance companies which can save you money.

For a full directory of insurance agencies, visit this site.

Once you have satisfactory answers and an affordable coverage quote, you have narrowed it down to an insurance agency that can adequately provide auto insurance. Just keep in mind policyholders can terminate your policy at any time so don’t feel that you’re stuck with any specific agency for any length of time.

Auto insurance coverage breakdown

Learning about specific coverages of your auto insurance policy can be of help when determining appropriate coverage and proper limits and deductibles. The coverage terms in a policy can be difficult to understand and coverage can change by endorsement.

Coverage for collisions

This will pay to fix damage to your CLK430 resulting from colliding with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. A deductible applies then your collision coverage will kick in.

Collision can pay for claims like sideswiping another vehicle, backing into a parked car and crashing into a ditch. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so consider dropping it from older vehicles. It’s also possible to increase the deductible to bring the cost down.

Medical expense coverage

Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance pay for short-term medical expenses for things like EMT expenses, hospital visits, chiropractic care and doctor visits. They are used in conjunction with a health insurance plan or if you are not covered by health insurance. Medical payments and PIP cover both the driver and occupants and will also cover any family member struck as a pedestrian. Personal Injury Protection is not available in all states but it provides additional coverages not offered by medical payments coverage

Liability coverages

This coverage protects you from damages or injuries you inflict on other people or property in an accident. It consists of three limits, bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. As an example, you may have values of 25/50/25 that means you have a limit of $25,000 per injured person, $50,000 for the entire accident, and $25,000 of coverage for damaged propery.

Liability coverage protects against things such as legal defense fees, emergency aid, court costs, loss of income and repair costs for stationary objects. How much liability should you purchase? That is a personal decision, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as large an amount as possible.

Uninsured or underinsured coverage

Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage gives you protection from other drivers when they either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. This coverage pays for injuries to you and your family as well as your vehicle’s damage.

Because many people only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is important protection for you and your family.

Comprehensive protection

This will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first must pay your deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive can pay for claims like damage from a tornado or hurricane, fire damage, falling objects and damage from flooding. The maximum amount a auto insurance company will pay at claim time is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s not worth carrying full coverage.

In Summary

We just presented quite a bit of information on how to lower your Mercedes-Benz CLK430 insurance rates. It’s most important to understand that the more price quotes you have, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. You may even find the best price on auto insurance is with a small local company.

Cost effective Mercedes-Benz CLK430 insurance can be found on the web and also from your neighborhood agents, and you should be comparing both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some auto insurance companies may not provide online price quotes and these smaller companies work with independent agents.

While you’re price shopping online, it’s not a good idea to skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. In many instances, someone sacrificed liability coverage limits and discovered at claim time that saving that couple of dollars actually costed them tens of thousands. The proper strategy is to buy enough coverage at the best price while not skimping on critical coverages.