Getting the Cheapest Des Moines Car Insurance

Did you fall for a flashy sales pitch and buy overpriced car insurance? Believe me, many Des Moines consumers feel financially strained by their car insurance policy.

Companies like GEICO and Progressive continually bombard you with TV and radio ads and it can be hard to sift through the bull and take the time to shop coverage around.

Quick Des Moines Car Insurance Quotes

Most major insurance companies allow you to get coverage price quotes on the web. Obtaining pricing is fairly simple as you just enter the coverage amounts you desire as detailed in the form. Behind the scenes, the system will obtain your driving and credit reports and returns a price. Online quotes streamlines rate comparisons, but having to visit several different sites and fill out multiple forms is not the best way to spend an afternoon. But it's very important to compare as many rates as possible in order to find better car insurance pricing.

A less time-consuming method to find better car insurance pricing makes use of a single form that gets prices from several different companies. The form is fast, eliminates repetitive work, and makes online shopping a little more enjoyable. After your information is entered, it is rated and you can choose your choice of the returned quotes. If one or more price quotes are lower than your current rates, it's easy to complete the application and buy the new coverage. The entire process only takes a few minutes and may save quite a bit of money.

In order to find out what other companies charge, click here to open in new window and submit the form. If you have a policy now, it's recommended you copy deductibles and limits as shown on your current policy. This way, you will be getting comparison quotes based on similar coverages.

Tips to Get Lower Des Moines Rates

It's important that you understand some of the elements that go into determining the rates you pay for car insurance. Having a good understanding of what influences your rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that could result in big savings.

Listed below are some of the factors used by your company to calculate premiums.

Safer cars are cheaper to insure - Vehicles with good safety scores are cheaper to insure. Safe vehicles protect occupants better and any reduction in injury severity means lower claim amounts and more competitive rates for policyholders.
Little extras can really add up - There are many extra coverages that you can get tricked into buying when buying car insurance. Insurance for rental car reimbursement, accidental death and additional equipment coverage are examples of these. These coverages may sound good when talking to your agent, but now you might not need them so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
How many coverages with the same company - Most companies will award you with lower prices to insureds who consolidate policies with them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Discounts can be anywhere from five to ten percent in most cases. Even with this discount, it's in your best interest to shop around to verify if the discount is saving money. You may still be able to find a better deal by splitting coverages up.
Your job and insurance rates - Did you know your occupation can influence how much you pay for car insurance? Occupations such as doctors, architects and dentists have the highest average rates in part from high stress and lots of time spent at work. Other occupations such as actors, historians and homemakers get better rates.
Battle of the sexes - Statistics demonstrate women are more cautious behind the wheel. That doesn't necessarily mean that women are BETTER drivers than men. They both are in accidents at about the same rate, but the male of the species cause more damage. Men also tend to get cited for more serious violations like DUI and reckless driving. Young males tend to get in the most accidents and thus pay the highest rates.
Adjust deductibles and save - Your deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay before your car insurance pays a claim. Physical damage coverage, otherwise known as comp (or other than collision) and collision, protects your car from damage. A few examples of covered claims would be colliding with a building, collision with an animal, or theft. The more money you have to pay, the less your car insurance will be.
Bad driving skills means higher rates - Whether or not you get tickets has a huge affect on how much you pay. Drivers who don't get tickets tend to pay less for car insurance than bad drivers. Just one speeding ticket can bump up the cost forty percent or more. Drivers with serious tickets such as DUI or reckless driving are required to submit a SR-22 form to the state department of motor vehicles in order to continue driving.

These discounts can lower your rates

Car insurance companies don't necessarily list all available discounts in a way that's easy to find, so here is a list both the well known and the harder-to-find car insurance savings.

Fewer Miles Equal More Savings - Driving fewer miles can qualify you for lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
Defensive Driver - Taking part in a defensive driving course could possibly earn you a 5% discount depending on where you live.
Auto/Home Discount - When you have multiple policies with one insurance company you may save approximately 10% to 15%.
Federal Government Employee - Simply working for the federal government may qualify you for a discount depending on your company.
Senior Citizens - Older drivers may qualify for a small decrease in premiums.

Keep in mind that most credits do not apply the the whole policy. Some only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like liability and collision coverage. Just because it seems like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, it just doesn't work that way.

For a list of insurers offering car insurance discounts in Des Moines, follow this link.

Additional detailed information is available at the Iowa Insurance Division website. Visitors are able to find disaster information, discover disciplinary actions, read consumer alerts, and read industry bulletins.

Shop smart and save

Affordable car insurance can be found both online as well as from independent agents in Des Moines, so you should compare both to have the best rate selection. Some companies don't offer online quoting and usually these smaller companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

While you're price shopping online, it's a bad idea to reduce needed coverages to save money. There are a lot of situations where an insured dropped liability limits or collision coverage only to find out they didn't purchase enough coverage. The proper strategy is to find the BEST coverage for the lowest price while not skimping on critical coverages.