Free Guide to Spending Less for Christopher Auto Insurance Online

Are you tired of paying out the nose each month for car insurance? You are in the same boat as the majority of other car owners in Illinois. Insurance companies such as State Farm, Allstate, GEICO and Progressive all claim big savings with fancy advertisements and it is challenging if not impossible to sift through the bull and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

It's important to price shop coverage once or twice a year since insurance rates are constantly changing. Just because you found the lowest price two years ago a different company probably has better rates today. There is a lot of bad advice regarding auto insurance online, so we're going to give you some great ways to find cheap auto insurance.

Don't pay full price with these discounts

Companies offering auto insurance do not list every available discount in a way that's easy to find, so we researched some of the best known and also the lesser-known ways to save on auto insurance. If you aren't receiving every discount available, you are throwing money away.

Passive Restraints - Vehicles with factory air bags can qualify for discounts of 20% or more.
Payment Method - If paying your policy premium upfront instead of monthly or quarterly installments you could save 5% or more.
Homeowners Pay Less - Being a homeowner may earn you a small savings due to the fact that maintaining a home shows financial diligence.
Drivers Ed for Students - Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to take driver's ed class if it's offered in school.
Military Discounts - Having a family member in the military may qualify for rate reductions.
Seat Belts Save more than Lives - Using a seat belt and requiring all passengers to buckle their seat belts can save up to 15% off your PIP or medical payments premium.

A little note about advertised discounts, many deductions do not apply to the entire cost. Most only cut specific coverage prices like medical payments or collision. So even though it sounds like you can get free auto insurance, you won't be that lucky.

Learn How to Buy Auto Insurance Cheaper

Smart consumers have a good feel for the rating factors that help determine auto insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what impacts premium levels helps enable you to make changes that can help you get lower auto insurance prices.

Better credit scores mean better rates - Your credit history is a big factor in your rate calculation. Therefore, if your credit is not that good, you could potentially save money when insuring your by improving your credit score. Consumers who have good credit tend to be less risk to insure than drivers who have lower credit scores.
Theft deterrents lower rates - Driving a car with a theft deterrent system can help bring down rates. Theft prevention features like vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all hinder your vehicle from being stolen.
Being married can save on auto insurance - Having a wife or husband can get you a discount on your auto insurance policy. Marriage usually means you are more responsible and statistics show drivers who are married are more cautious.
Too many auto insurance claims drive up costs - Insurance companies in Illinois give cheaper rates to insureds who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you frequently file small claims, you can pretty much guarantee either a policy non-renewal or much higher rates. Auto insurance is intended to be relied upon for major claims that would cause financial hardship.
Safe vehicles cost less to insure - Cars with high safety ratings tend to have better insurance rates. Safer cars have better occupant injury protection and better occupant protection translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims and more competitive rates for policyholders.
Don't let your coverage lapse - Allowing your auto insurance policy to lapse will be a guaranteed way to pay more for auto insurance. And not only will insurance be more expensive, but not being able to provide proof of insurance will get you a hefty fine and possibly a revoked license.
Multi-policy discounts can save money - Many auto insurance companies give discounts to people who buy several policies from them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Discounts can amount to ten or even up to twenty percent in some cases. Even if you're getting this discount it's still a good idea to compare other company rates to confirm you are receiving the best rates possible. You may still find better rates by insuring with multiple companies.

The auto insurance bait and switch

Illinois drivers get pounded daily by advertisements for the lowest price auto insurance from companies such as State Farm and Allstate. All the ads make the same claim about savings after switching your policy.

How can each company say the same thing? It's all in the numbers.

All companies can use profiling for the right customer that earns them a profit. For instance, a preferred risk might be profiled as over the age of 50, has no tickets, and chooses high deductibles. A propective insured who matches those parameters will qualify for the lowest rates and therefore will save when they switch companies.

Drivers who don't measure up to the requirements will be charged higher premiums which leads to business not being written. The ad wording is "customers who switch" not "everyone that quotes" save that kind of money. That's why companies can truthfully state the savings. That is why drivers should get as many quotes as possible. It's not possible to predict the company that will give you the biggest savings.

Even more information is located at the Illinois Department of Insurance website. Illinois drivers can find out industry alerts, view a list of available companies, get help finding coverage, and download brochures.

In the end, you save

In this article, we covered many ideas to reduce auto insurance prices online. The most important thing to understand is the more you quote, the better your comparison will be. You may be surprised to find that the biggest savings come from a small mutual company. Regional companies may cover specific market segments cheaper as compared to the big name companies such as .

Cheaper auto insurance can be sourced on the web in addition to many Christopher insurance agents, and you should be comparing both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance companies do not provide you the ability to get quotes online and many times these small, regional companies only sell through independent insurance agents.