Comparison Shop La Grange Car Insurance Prices With These Methods

Buying cheap La Grange car insurance online may be rather challenging for consumers not familiar with comparison shopping online. When there are so many online companies available, how can you effectively compare every company to locate the best available rates?

If you have car insurance now, you will be able to lower your premiums substantially using these techniques. This article will help educate you on how to effectively get price quotes and some tricks to saving. But Illinois consumers do need to know how companies sell insurance online and apply this information to your search.

What determines how much you pay?

Consumers need to have an understanding of the factors that go into determining the rates you pay for car insurance. Understanding what controls the rates you pay allows you to make educated decisions that will entitle you to lower car insurance prices.

Listed below are a few of the "ingredients" companies use to determine prices.

Your occupation can affect rates - Did you know your occupation can influence how much you pay for car insurance? Careers like lawyers, social workers and accountants tend to pay higher rates than average because of stressful work requirements and lengthy work days. On the flip side, jobs such as pilots, athletes and homemakers have the lowest average rates.
Are you male or female? - Statistics have proven that men are more aggressive behind the wheel. That doesn't necessarily mean that women are better drivers. Women and men cause accidents in similar percentages, but the men cause more damage. Men also statistically get more serious tickets like DUI and reckless driving. Teenage male drivers are most likely to cause an accident and are penalized with high car insurance rates.
Poor driving leads to higher costs - Good drivers have lower premiums than bad drivers. Even a single ticket can increase rates by as much as thirty percent. If you have serious violations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions may find they need to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) to the state department of motor vehicles in order to continue driving.
Don't buy coverages you don't need - There are many add-on coverages that can waste your money when buying car insurance. Coverages like personal injury protection, accident forgiveness and motor club memberships are some examples. They may seem like a good idea when you first buy your policy, but if you don't need them get rid of them and save.
Your location is important - Residing in a rural area can save you money when talking about car insurance. Less people living in that area means fewer accidents. City drivers have traffic congestion and much longer commute distances. More time commuting translates into higher accident risk.
Having a spouse can save you money - Having a spouse can actually save you money on car insurance. Having a significant other is viewed as being more mature than a single person and it's proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.

More discounts equal less premium

Companies offering auto insurance don't always publicize every discount in an easy-to-find place, so we took the time to find both the well known as well as the least known discounts you could be receiving.

Accident Free - Drivers who don't have accidents can save substantially when compared to accident-prone drivers.
Accident Waiver - A few companies will forgive one accident before hitting you with a surcharge if your claims history is clear prior to the accident.
Passive Restraint Discount - Cars that have air bags or automatic seat belts can get savings of more than 20%.
Defensive Driver - Completing a defensive driving course could cut 5% off your bill if your company offers it.
Multiple Policy Discount - If you insure your home and vehicles with the same insurance company you could get a discount of up to 20% off your total premium.
Senior Citizens - If you're over the age of 55, you may qualify for reduced rates.
Own a Home - Simply owning a home can save you money because owning a home is proof that your finances are in order.
Military Rewards - Being deployed with a military unit could mean lower rates.
Good Student Discount - This discount can get you a discount of up to 25%. This discount can apply until age 25.

Consumers should know that some credits don't apply to all coverage premiums. Most only cut individual premiums such as comp or med pay. So even though they make it sound like you can get free auto insurance, companies don't profit that way.

To choose insurance companies offering car insurance discounts in La Grange, click here.

Switch companies and save? Really?

Car insurance providers like Progressive, Allstate and GEICO constantly bombard you with ads in print and on television. They all have a common claim that you'll save big if you switch to them. How do they all claim to save you money?

All companies have a preferred profile for the type of driver that makes them money. For example, a driver they prefer might be between 25 and 40, insures multiple vehicles, and has excellent credit. Any new insured that hits that "sweet spot" will qualify for the lowest rates and therefore will cut their rates substantially.

Potential insureds who do not match the "perfect" profile will be quoted more money and this can result in the customer not buying. The ad wording is "customers that switch" not "everyone that quotes" save money. This is how companies can make those claims. This emphasizes why you should get a wide range of price quotes. It's just too difficult to predict which insurance companies will have the lowest rates.

More detailed Illinois car insurance information can be found at the Illinois Department of Insurance website. Visitors are able to read industry bulletins, learn about insurance regulations, and file complaints about a company.

Do the work, save more money

Drivers switch companies for a number of reasons such as high rates after DUI convictions, denial of a claim, poor customer service or even delays in responding to claim requests. It doesn't matter why you want to switch choosing a new insurance company is easier than you think.

Discount car insurance is available both online and with local La Grange insurance agents, so you should compare both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some companies do not offer online price quotes and these regional insurance providers work with independent agents.

We just covered a lot of ways to save on car insurance. The key thing to remember is the more price quotes you have, the better chance you'll have of finding lower rates. You may even discover the most savings is with a small local company.