Tightwads Guide for Saving on Gray Car Insurance

Did you fall for a flashy sales pitch and buy high-priced car insurance? Believe me, there are many Gray consumers feeling the pinch from expensive car insurance.

Companies like GEICO and Progressive continually bombard you with TV and radio ads and it is challenging if not impossible to sift through the bull and do the work needed to find the best deal.

If you currently have a car insurance policy, you stand a good chance to be able to cut costs considerably using these methods. Buying car insurance in Gray is easy if you know what you're doing. But Maine consumers do need to know how the larger insurance companies market insurance on the web because it can help you find the best coverage.

Save big with these discounts

Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, but you can get discounts to help bring down the price. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically at the time of purchase, but a few must be asked for prior to receiving the credit.

  • Memberships - Being a member of a civic or occupational organization could qualify you for a break when buying car insurance.
  • Service Members Pay Less - Having a deployed family member could be rewarded with lower premiums.
  • Student in College - Children who are attending college and don't have a car may qualify for this discount.
  • Paperless Signup - A few companies may give you up to $50 for buying a policy and signing up digitally online.
  • Fewer Miles Equal More Savings - Low mileage vehicles could be rewarded with lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
  • No Accidents - Drivers with accident-free driving histories pay much less when compared with bad drivers.
  • Safety Course Discount - Successfully completing a defensive driving course could possibly earn you a 5% discount and easily recoup the cost of the course.
  • Auto/Home Discount - When you combine your home and auto insurance with the same company you may save at least 10% off all policies.
  • Discount for Good Grades - A discount for being a good student can earn a discount of 20% or more. Earning this discount can benefit you up until you turn 25.
  • Save with a New Car - Adding a new car to your policy can be considerably cheaper because new vehicles have to meet stringent safety requirements.

Drivers should understand that most credits do not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as physical damage coverage or medical payments. So when the math indicates adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies wouldn't make money that way. But all discounts will reduce your overall premium however.

To see a list of insurers with discount car insurance rates in Gray, follow this link.

How to Compare Car Insurance Quotes in Gray, Maine

There are several ways of comparing rates from car insurance companies in your area. The best method to find the lowest rates is simply to get online rate quotes. This can be done in a couple of different ways.

  • The best way to compare a lot of rates at once is to use a rate comparison form click here to open form in new window. This method eliminates the need for separate quotation requests for each company you want a rate for. Filling out one form will get you price quotes from car insurance companies with the best prices.
  • A slightly less efficient method to get quotes online requires a visit to each individual company website and fill out their own quote form. For example, we'll pretend you want to compare rates from , and . To get each rate you have to visit each site to input your insurance information, which is why most consumers use the first method. To view a list of companies in Gray, click here.

It doesn't matter which method you choose, just ensure you are comparing exactly the same coverage limits for every quote you compare. If you have differing limits it will be impossible to determine the best price in Gray. Just a small difference in insurance coverages may cause a big price difference. Just remember that obtaining a wide range of quotes will improve the odds of getting better pricing.

Good Decisions Result in Lower Rates

An important part of buying insurance is that you know some of the elements that play a part in calculating the rates you pay for car insurance. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay enables informed choices that could result in much lower annual insurance costs.

  • Don't sacrifice liability coverage - Your policy's liability coverage provides coverage if you are found liable for causing damage or personal injury in an accident. It will provide legal defense which can be incredibly expensive. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap as compared to coverage for physical damage, so buy as much as you can afford.
  • Safer cars are cheaper to insure - Vehicles with high crash test scores are cheaper to insure. Safe vehicles reduce injuries and any reduction in injury severity means lower claim amounts and more competitive rates for policyholders.
  • Mature drivers pay less - Older insureds are more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents and receive fewer citations. Youthful drivers have a tendency to be careless and easily distracted when behind the wheel and because of this, their car insurance rates are much higher.
  • Your spouse saves you money - Having a wife or husband helps lower the price when buying car insurance. Having a spouse means you're more mature than a single person and it's statistically proven that being married results in fewer claims.
  • Extra add-on coverages are wasting money - There are quite a few extra coverages that you can get tricked into buying when buying car insurance. Insurance for roadside assistance, accidental death and term life insurance are examples of these. They may seem like a good idea at first, but if they're wasting money eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
  • Your stress level may be raising your rates - Occupations such as judges, architects and dentists tend to have the highest average rates attributed to stressful work requirements and long work days. Other professions such as actors, historians and retirees receive lower rates.

Car insurance ads bend the truth

Allstate, GEICO and Progressive consistently run ads on TV and radio. All the companies say the same thing that you'll save big if you change to their company. How can each company claim to save you money?

Insurance companies are able to cherry pick for the driver that is profitable for them. For instance, a profitable customer might be between the ages of 40 and 55, has no driving citations, and drives newer vehicles. Any driver who fits that profile will get very good rates and most likely will save when they switch companies.

Potential customers who fall outside the requirements must pay higher prices which usually ends up with the customer not buying. The ads say "people who switch" not "people who quote" save that much. That's the way companies can claim big savings.

This illustrates why drivers must get a wide range of price quotes. You cannot predict which car insurance company will give you the biggest savings.

Final considerations

Budget-conscious car insurance is attainable both online and also from your neighborhood Gray agents, so you should be comparing quotes from both so you have a total pricing picture. A few companies may not provide the ability to get a quote online and usually these small, regional companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

We just presented a lot of tips how to compare car insurance prices online. It's most important to understand that the more rate comparisons you have, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. You may even discover the lowest priced car insurance comes from an unexpected company. These smaller insurers may only write in your state and offer lower rates than their larger competitors like .

Learn more about Maine car insurance

Much more information about car insurance in Maine is located on the website for the Maine Bureau of Insurance through this link. Visitors are able to find out which companies have the most complaints, find disaster information, read enforcement actions against agents and companies, and get help finding coverage.