How to Know You're Paying Too Much for Auto Insurance in Chrisman

I can't think of anyone who looks forward to buying auto insurance, especially knowing they are paying too much.

Drivers have so many to buy insurance from, and although it's a good thing to have a selection, too many choices makes it more difficult to compare rates.

It's important to compare prices periodically since insurance rates are constantly changing. Even if you think you had the lowest price a few years ago the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. There is too much inaccurate information about auto insurance on the internet, so I'm going to show you some great ways to save money.

Policy discounts you shouldn't miss

Car insurance companies do not list all their discounts very clearly, so we researched some of the best known and the harder-to-find ways to save on auto insurance.

  • New Vehicle Savings - Insuring a new car can be considerably cheaper due to better safety requirements for new cars.
  • Passive Restraints and Air Bags - Factory air bags or motorized seat belts may earn rate discounts up to 30%.
  • Safety Course Discount - Taking part in a course teaching defensive driving skills can save you 5% or more and easily recoup the cost of the course.
  • Senior Discount - Mature drivers may receive a small decrease in premiums.
  • Pay Now and Pay Less - If paying your policy premium upfront instead of paying each month you could save up to 5%.

Keep in mind that many deductions do not apply to the entire policy premium. Most only cut the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. So even though they make it sound like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, it just doesn't work that way.

To see a list of companies with discount auto insurance rates in Illinois, click this link.

Chrisman auto insurance comparison

Chrisman Auto Insurance Comparisons

The are a couple different ways of comparing rate quotes from different Chrisman insurance companies. The best method to find competitive insurance rates is to get quotes online. This can be done in just a few minutes using one of these methods.

  • The best way to compare a lot of rates at once is a comparison rater form like this one (opens in new window). This form prevents you from having to do repetitive form entry to each individual auto insurance company. Just one form will get you price quotes direct from many companies.
  • A less efficient way to shop for auto insurance online requires a visit to each company's website to request a price quote. For sake of this example, let's say you want to compare , and . To find out each rate you need to spend time on each company's site to input your insurance information, and that's why the first method is more popular.

    For a list of links to companies insuring cars in Chrisman, click here.

It doesn't matter which method you choose, just be sure to compare identical coverage limits for each price quote. If you enter differing limits you will not be able to truly determine the lowest rate in Chrisman. Having just a slight variation in limits can result in a big premium difference. Keep in mind that comparing a large number of companies helps locate better pricing.

How to Lower your Auto Insurance Rates

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the rating factors that play a part in calculating auto insurance rates. Knowing what influences your rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that may reward you with big savings.

Shown below are a partial list of the pieces used by your company to calculate rates.

  • Mature drivers pay less - Teenage drivers in Illinois have a tendency to be more careless behind the wheel so they pay higher auto insurance rates. Adding a teen driver onto a policy can be quite pricey. Older drivers are viewed as being more responsible, file fewer claims and are safer drivers.
  • Traffic citations inflate rates - Just one citation can bump up the cost forty percent or more. Drivers who don't get tickets tend to pay less for car insurance than their less careful counterparts. Drivers who have dangerous citations like DUI or reckless driving may need to submit a SR-22 or proof of financial responsibility with the DMV in their state in order to prevent a license revocation.
  • Don't buy coverages you don't need - There are quite a few additional coverages that you can buy if you aren't careful. Coverages for vanishing deductibles, towing coverage and additional equipment coverage may be wasting your money. These coverages may sound good when talking to your agent, but now you might not need them so eliminate them to save money.
  • Men are more aggressive - Statistics show that women are safer drivers than men. Now that doesn't mean women are BETTER drivers than men. They both have accidents in similar numbers, but the males tend to have more serious accidents. They also have more aggressive citations like reckless driving and DUI.

Insurance agents can help

When choosing the best auto insurance coverage for your vehicles, there isn't really a one size fits all plan. Every insured's situation is different so this has to be addressed. For example, these questions may help highlight whether your personal situation might need an agent's assistance.

  • Should I file a claim if it's only slightly more than my deductible?
  • Can I rate high risk drivers on liability-only vehicles?
  • Should I rate my vehicle as pleasure use or commute?
  • Should I buy additional glass protection?
  • Do I have any recourse if my insurance company denies a claim?
  • Am I getting all the discounts available?

If it's difficult to answer those questions, you may need to chat with an insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, complete this form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area.

Save $429 a year? Really?

Auto insurance companies such as Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm consistently run television and radio advertisements. They all seem to make the same claim that you can save if you change your coverage to them. How does each company say the same thing? This is how they do it.

All the different companies have a certain "appetite" for the type of customer that is profitable for them. For instance, a desirable insured might be profiled as between the ages of 30 and 50, a clean driving record, and has a short commute. A propective insured who matches those parameters will qualify for the lowest rates and is almost guaranteed to save when switching.

Drivers who don't qualify for these standards will have to pay higher premiums which leads to business not being written. The ad wording is "drivers who switch" but not "drivers who get quotes" save that much money. That is how insurance companies can make the claims of big savings. Because of the profiling, drivers must get as many comparisons as possible. It's not possible to predict which company will fit your personal profile best.

Affordable insurance is out there

As you shop your coverage around, it's very important that you do not reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are many occasions where someone dropped collision coverage and learned later that saving that couple of dollars actually costed them tens of thousands. Your aim should be to purchase a proper amount of coverage for the lowest price.

In this article, we covered many ideas to compare auto insurance prices online. It's most important to understand that the more times you quote, the better chance you'll have of finding lower rates. You may even find the lowest rates come from a lesser-known regional company. These smaller insurers can often insure niche markets at a lower cost compared to the large companies like .

Affordable auto insurance is attainable on the web as well as from independent agents in Chrisman, and you should compare price quotes from both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance providers don't offer the ability to get a quote online and most of the time these small, regional companies sell through independent agents.

Illinois auto insurance

Additional Illinois consumer information

Additional detailed information is located at the Illinois Department of Insurance website. Illinois drivers can read enforcement actions against agents and companies, file complaints about a company, discover disciplinary actions, and learn about insurance regulations.