Tightwads Tips for Saving on New Albin Auto Insurance

Having to pay for overpriced auto insurance can empty your checking account, especially in this economy. Comparing price quotes is a great way to help make ends meet.

There are many to buy insurance from, and although it's nice to be able to choose, it makes it harder to compare rates.

The purpose of this article is to help educate you on how to effectively get price quotes. If you currently have car insurance, you will be able to lower your premiums substantially using this information. Nevertheless, Iowa vehicle owners do need to know the way 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 auto insurance rates. Knowing what determines base rates allows you to make educated decisions that could result in better auto insurance rates.

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

  • Do you need the policy add-ons? - There are many add-on coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren't careful. Coverages for vanishing deductibles, accidental death and motor club memberships are some examples. They may seem good when you first buy your policy, but if you don't need them eliminate them to save money.
  • Are you male or female? - Statistics have proven that women are safer drivers than men. That doesn't necessarily mean that women are better drivers. Men and women have accidents in similar percentages, but the male of the species cause more damage. Men also tend to get more serious tickets like reckless driving and DUI. Male drivers age 16 to 19 are most likely to cause an accident and are penalized with high auto insurance rates.
  • A clean driving record saves money - Only having one moving violation can increase rates twenty percent or more. Good drivers have lower premiums than bad drivers. Drivers with serious tickets like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions are required to submit a SR-22 or proof of financial responsibility with the DMV in their state in order to continue driving.
  • High deductibles save money - The deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay if you file a covered claim. Coverage for physical damage, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, covers damage that occurs to your car. Examples of covered claims are colliding with a building, collision with an animal, and rolling your vehicle. The higher the amount you're willing to pay, the bigger discount you will receive.
  • Small claims can cost you - Auto insurance companies in Iowa generally give lower rates to policyholders who file claims infrequently. If you file claims often, you can expect either higher rates or even cancellation. Car insurance is intended to be relied upon for the bigger claims that can't be paid out-of-pocket.
  • Being married is a good thing - Having a spouse can actually save you money on auto insurance. Having a spouse is viewed as being more mature and responsible and it's proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.

auto insurance in New Albin

Be sure to get all your discounts

Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but there are discounts available that you may not even be aware of. Certain discounts will be applied at the time you complete a quote, but a few need to be manually applied prior to getting the savings.

  • Fewer Miles Equal More Savings - Driving fewer miles can earn a substantially lower rate.
  • Accident Waiver - Certain companies will forgive one accident before hitting you with a surcharge so long as you haven't had any claims for a certain period of time.
  • Good Student Discount - This discount can save 20 to 25%. This discount can apply until age 25.
  • Own a Home - Owning a home in New Albin can save you money because owning a home is proof that your finances are in order.
  • Government Employees - Employees or retirees of the government can earn a discount up to 10% depending on your company.
  • Paperless Signup - Some insurance companies give back up to $50 simply for signing over the internet.
  • Multi-car Discount - Buying insurance for more than one vehicle with the same company may reduce the rate for each vehicle.

It's important to understand that some of the credits will not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only reduce individual premiums such as liability and collision coverage. So despite the fact that it appears you could get a free auto insurance policy, it doesn't quite work that way. Any qualifying discounts will bring down the amount you have to pay.

To choose insurers offering auto insurance discounts in Iowa, click here.

Is there truth in advertising?

21st Century, Allstate and State Farm constantly bombard you with television and radio advertisements. All the companies have a common claim of big savings if you switch to them. How does each company say the same thing?

Different companies have a preferred profile for the type of driver that makes them money. For example, a profitable customer might be profiled as between the ages of 30 and 50, insures multiple vehicles, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. A propective insured that hits that "sweet spot" will get very good rates and is almost guaranteed to save when switching.

Potential customers who don't measure up to these standards must pay a more expensive rate and this can result in business not being written. The ads say "customers that switch" but not "drivers who get quotes" save money. This is how insurance companies can confidently advertise the way they do.

This illustrates why you should get as many quotes as possible. It's not possible to predict which insurance companies will provide you with the cheapest rates.

Additional auto insurance information can be found on the website for the Iowa Insurance Division located here. Iowa drivers can discover disciplinary actions, learn about insurance regulations, file complaints about a company, and report car insurance fraud.

Final considerations

Low-cost auto insurance is available on the web and with local New Albin insurance agents, and you should compare price quotes from both to have the best rate selection. Some auto insurance companies do not offer online price quotes and usually these regional insurance providers provide coverage only through local independent agents.

Throughout this article, we presented a lot of techniques to save on auto insurance. The key thing to remember is the more companies you get rates for, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. You may be surprised to find that the lowest rates come from a small local company. Some small companies can often provide lower rates in certain areas compared to the large companies like .