How to Know You're Spending Too Much for Auto Insurance in Huxley

Having to pay for overpriced auto insurance can overdraw your checking account, especially in this economy. Comparing price quotes is free, only takes a few minutes, and is a good way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket. Big companies like GEICO and Progressive constantly blast consumers with fancy advertisements and it is challenging if not impossible to sift through the bull and take the time to shop coverage around.

If you have insurance now or are shopping for new coverage, you can follow these tips to shop for the lowest rates while maintaining coverages. Finding the best rates in Huxley is quite easy. Iowa drivers only need an understanding of the best way to shop for auto insurance online.

These discounts can lower your rates

Insurance can cost an arm and a leg, but companies offer discounts that you may not even be aware of. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically when you get a quote, but a few must be specially asked for before you will receive the discount. If you aren't receiving every discount you deserve, you're paying more than you need to.

  • Multi-car Discount - Buying coverage for more than one vehicle on the same auto insurance policy qualifies for this discount.
  • Accident Waiver - A handful of insurance companies will allow you to have one accident before raising your premiums so long as you haven't had any claims for a particular time prior to the accident.
  • Passive Restraints and Air Bags - Vehicles equipped with air bags or automatic seat belts can qualify for discounts of up to 25% or more.
  • No Claims - Drivers who don't have accidents pay much less when compared with bad drivers.
  • Own a Home - Owning a home in Huxley can help you save on auto insurance because owning a home shows financial diligence.
  • Government Employees - Being employed by or retired from a federal job may qualify you for a discount depending on your company.
  • Senior Citizens - Mature drivers may qualify for a discount up to 10%.

It's important to understand that most discounts do not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like physical damage coverage or medical payments. Just because you may think all those discounts means the company will pay you, it doesn't quite work that way. Any qualifying discounts will reduce the cost of coverage.

To see a list of insurers offering auto insurance discounts in Huxley, click here to view.

Auto Insurance Prices in Huxley, Iowa

Most companies quote insurance quotes on the web. This process doesn't take much effort as you just enter the coverages you want as detailed in the form. Once you submit the form, the system will obtain reports for credit and driving violations and returns pricing information. Online quotes makes it a lot easier to compare rates but the time it takes to visit several different sites and complete many quote forms can get tiresome after awhile. But it's very important to perform this step if you are searching for better auto insurance pricing.

There is an easier way!

The preferred way to find lower prices uses one form to get prices from a bunch of companies at once. The form is fast, helps eliminate reptitive entry, and makes price shopping online much more efficient. As soon as the form is sent, it is quoted and you can choose your choice of the price quotes you receive.

If one or more price quotes are lower than your current rates, you simply finish the application and buy the policy. It can be completed in a matter of minutes and can result in significant savings.

To find out what other companies charge, click here to open in new window and submit the form. If you have coverage now, it's recommended you complete the form with exactly as they are listed on your policy. This makes sure you will get comparison quotes based on the exact same insurance coverage.

Understand what determines the rate you pay

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the different types of things that go into determining the rates you pay for auto insurance. Having a good understanding of what determines base rates helps enable you to make changes that could result in big savings.

  • Protect yourself with liability coverage - Liability insurance is the protection if you are found liable for damages caused by your negligence. Liability provides legal defense which can cost thousands of dollars. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap compared to physical damage coverage, so do not cut corners here.
  • Are you male or female? - Statistics have proven women are more cautious behind the wheel. That doesn't necessarily mean that men are WORSE drivers than women. They both are in accidents in similar numbers, but the male of the species cause more damage. Men also tend to receive more costly citations like DUI and reckless driving. Male drivers age 16 to 19 tend to get in the most accidents and therefore have the most expensive auto insurance rates.
  • Clean credit earns discounts - A driver's credit score is a huge factor in determining what you pay for auto insurance. If your credit score is lower than you'd like, you could pay less to insure your by improving your credit score. Consumers who have high credit ratings tend to be less risk to insure than drivers with poor credit.
  • Your occupation can affect rates - Did you know your occupation can influence how much you pay for auto insurance? Occupations such as judges, business owners and dentists are shown to have the highest average rates in part from job stress and lots of time spent at work. Other occupations such as pilots, historians and homemakers pay the least.
  • High deductibles save money - Deductibles for physical damage represent how much money you are willing to pay before your auto insurance pays a claim. Physical damage insurance, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, covers damage that occurs to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered would be colliding with a building, collision with an animal, or theft. The more the insured has to pay upfront, the bigger discount you will receive.
  • Theft deterrents lower rates - Purchasing a vehicle with anti-theft technology or alarm system can help bring down rates. Anti-theft features like vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all aid in stopping car theft.

Are you falling for claims of savings?

Consumers in Iowa can't get away from ads for car insurance savings from companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. All the companies make an identical promise of big savings if you switch your policy.

How can each company claim to save you money? This is how they do it.

All the different companies have a preferred profile for the right customer that is profitable for them. For instance, a profitable customer might be between the ages of 40 and 55, insures multiple vehicles, and chooses high deductibles. A customer getting a price quote who meets those qualifications will qualify for the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when they switch companies.

Drivers who are not a match for the requirements must pay higher premiums and ends up with the customer not buying. The ad wording is "drivers who switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that kind of money. This is how insurance companies can confidently state the savings.

This illustrates why drivers must get as many quotes as possible. It's impossible to know which insurance companies will give you the biggest savings.

A tidy conclusion

Low-cost auto insurance is available both online in addition to many Huxley insurance agents, so you should be comparing quotes from both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance companies do not provide the ability to get a quote online and usually these small, regional companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

We covered many tips how you can compare auto insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more rate comparisons you have, the higher the chance of saving money. You may be surprised to find that the lowest priced auto insurance comes from a smaller regional carrier. These smaller insurers can often provide lower rates in certain areas than the large multi-state companies such as .

For more Iowa auto insurance information

Additional auto insurance information is located on the website for the Iowa Insurance Division. Click here for link. Visitors are able to find out which companies have the most complaints, learn about insurance regulations, find out industry alerts, and read industry bulletins.