Top Ways to Save on Hilo Auto Insurance

Having to pay for overpriced auto insurance can drain your checking account and put the squeeze on your family's finances. Comparing price quotes is a smart way to help make ends meet. Popular 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 do rate comparisons yearly since insurance rates are constantly changing. Just because you found the lowest rates a couple years back you can probably find a lower rate today. So ignore everything you know about auto insurance because it's time to teach you the tricks you need to know to remove unneeded coverages and save money.

If you have a policy now or are shopping for new coverage, you can follow these tips to get lower rates while maximizing coverage. Buying car insurance in Hilo is quite easy. Hawaii drivers only need an understanding of the most efficient way to get comparison rates on the web.

Hilo auto insurance comparison

How to Get Cheap Auto Insurance in Hilo, HI

Cutting your Hilo auto insurance rates is a fairly straight forward process. You just have to invest a little time to get quotes provided by online insurance companies. It is quite easy and can be accomplished in just a few minutes using one of these methods.

  • The recommended way to get the best comparison quotes is to use a rate comparison form (click to open form in new window). This method eliminates the need for a different quote for every auto insurance company. A single, simple form gets you price quotes .
  • A less efficient way to get quotes online requires a trip to each company's website and fill out their own quote form. For sake of this example, we'll pretend you want comparison quotes from , and . To get rate quotes you would need to spend time on each company's site to input your insurance information, which is why the first method is more popular.

    To view a list of companies in Hilo, click here.
  • The least efficient way of getting rate comparisons is to waste gas driving to and from local Hilo insurance agencies. The internet has reduced the need for local agents unless you require the professional guidance of a local Hilo agent. You can, however, get the lowest quotes online and still use a local agent and we'll touch on that later.

Whichever way you use, make sure you use exactly the same quote information for every quote you compare. If you enter mixed coverages it's not possible to determine the best price in Hilo.

Save big with these discounts

Companies offering auto insurance do not list all their discounts in a way that's easy to find, so we break down some of the best known as well as the least known auto insurance savings. If you aren't receiving every discount you deserve, you're paying more than you need to.

  • College Student - Children who attend school more than 100 miles from home and don't have a car may qualify for this discount.
  • Discount for Life Insurance - Larger companies have better rates if you take out a life insurance policy as well.
  • Memberships - Affiliation with a civic or occupational organization could qualify you for a break on auto insurance.
  • Drivers Ed for Students - Have your child complete a driver education course if offered at their school.
  • Military Rewards - Having a deployed family member could be rewarded with lower premiums.
  • Anti-lock Brake Discount - Anti-lock brake equipped vehicles can avoid accidents and earn discounts up to 10%.
  • Accident Waiver - A handful of insurance companies will forgive one accident before raising your premiums as long as you don't have any claims prior to the accident.
  • Senior Discount - Mature drivers may receive reduced rates.

Consumers should know that most of the big mark downs will not be given to your bottom line cost. Most only cut individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. Just because it seems like it's possible to get free car insurance, companies don't profit that way.

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

But I don't know anything about car insurance

When choosing adequate coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a one size fits all plan. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs so your insurance needs to address that. These are some specific questions can help discover if your situation might need an agent's assistance.

  • Do I pay less if my vehicle is kept in my garage?
  • What happens if I owe more than my vehicle is worth?
  • Am I getting all the discounts available?
  • Is my cargo covered for damage or theft?
  • Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
  • Can I get a multi-policy discount for packaging my home and auto coverage?
  • What are the financial responsibility laws in Hawaii?

If you don't know the answers to these questions, then you may want to think about talking to an agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, simply complete this short form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area. It only takes a few minutes and can help protect your family.

More tips and info about auto insurance can be found at the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs website. Hawaii drivers can read enforcement actions against agents and companies, file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, find out which companies have the most complaints, and download brochures.