Easy Methods to Save Money on Rochester Auto Insurance

Are you overwhelmed by the crazy number of auto insurance company choices in Rochester? You're not the only one! People have so many companies to choose from that it can turn into a lot of work to find better rates.

It's important to price shop coverage at least once a year because insurance rates are constantly changing. Even if you think you had the best price on your last policy the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. Block out anything you think you know about auto insurance because we're going to demonstrate how to quote online to get good coverage at a lower rate.

These discounts can lower your rates

Insuring your vehicles can cost a lot, buy you may qualify for discounts to help bring down the price. Some trigger automatically at the time you complete a quote, but a few need to be inquired about prior to getting the savings.

Sign Online - Some insurance companies will discount your bill up to fifty bucks just for signing your application over the internet.
Drive Less and Save - Low mileage vehicles can earn better rates on cars that stay parked.
Safety Course Discount - Taking a course in driver safety could possibly earn you a 5% discount and easily recoup the cost of the course.
Auto/Life Discount - Some companies give a discount if you purchase life insurance from them.
Drivers Education - Have your child complete a driver education course if offered at their school.

It's important to note that most discount credits are not given the the whole policy. Most cut individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. So when the math indicates you would end up receiving a 100% discount, you're out of luck. But any discount will bring down the cost of coverage.

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

Compare the Market for Auto Insurance in Rochester

Most companies like State Farm, GEICO and Progressive allow you to get coverage price quotes directly from their websites. Getting online rates doesn't take a lot of time as you just type in the coverage amounts you desire as detailed in the form. Once you submit the form, the company's rating system will obtain your driving and credit reports and quotes a price based on many factors.

This makes it a lot easier to compare rates but having to visit many different websites and enter the same data into a form is not the best way to spend an afternoon. But it's very important to compare as many rates as possible in order to find better auto insurance pricing.

The preferred way to find better auto insurance pricing uses one simple form that gets price quotes from several different companies. The form is fast, eliminates repetitive work, and makes online shopping a lot less work. After sending your information, it is rated with multiple companies and you can pick any one of the price quotes you receive.

If a lower price is quoted, it's easy to complete the application and buy the new coverage. The entire process takes 15 minutes at the most and could lower your rates considerably.

To save time and find out what other companies charge, click here to open in new window and input your coverage information. If you currently have coverage, we recommend you duplicate the coverage information exactly as shown on your declarations page. This makes sure you will be getting a fair comparison based on the exact same insurance coverage.

Learn How to Buy Auto Insurance Cheaper

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the rating factors that play a part in calculating the price you pay for auto insurance. Knowing what influences your rates helps enable you to make changes that may reward you with better auto insurance rates.

Shown below are a few of the "ingredients" that factor into rates.

Discounts for married couples - Having a spouse helps lower the price on your auto insurance policy. It usually means you are more mature and it's proven that being married results in fewer claims.
High crash test scores lower rates - Safer cars tend to have better insurance rates. These vehicles have better occupant injury protection and lower injury rates means lower claim amounts and thus lower rates.
Extra add-on coverages are wasting money - There are quite a few extra coverages that you can buy on your auto insurance policy. Coverages for rental car reimbursement, towing coverage and membership fees may be wasting your money. These coverages may sound good when you first buy your policy, but your needs may have changed so eliminate them to save money.
Pleasure use saves money - The higher the mileage driven in a year the more you will pay for auto insurance. The majority of insurers apply a rate based on their usage. Autos that are left in the garage qualify for better rates than vehicles that are driven to work every day. Verify your auto insurance declarations sheet shows the correct usage for each vehicle.
You might want pay the small claims yourself - Car insurance companies in Indiana give lower rates to drivers who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you are a frequent claim filer, you can expect either policy cancellation or increased premiums. Car insurance is designed for the large, substantial claims.
Traffic violations increase rates - Your driving citation history has a lot to do with how much you pay for insurance. Just one moving violation may increase your cost forty percent or more. Drivers with clean records have lower premiums than their less careful counterparts. Drivers who have dangerous citations like hit and run, DWI or reckless driving convictions may need to submit a SR-22 form with their state DMV in order to prevent a license revocation.
Men are more aggressive - Statistics demonstrate that women are safer drivers than men. Now that doesn't mean men are WORSE drivers than women. Men and women are in accidents in similar percentages, but the males tend to have more serious accidents. They also have more aggressive citations such as DWI and reckless driving.

Are you falling for claims of savings?

Auto insurance companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Progressive consistently run ads on television and other media. They all seem to make the same claim that you can save if you change your policy. How does each company make almost identical claims?

Different companies are able to cherry pick for the right customer that is profitable for them. For example, a desirable insured could possibly be between 25 and 40, has no tickets, and has great credit. A driver who matches those parameters gets the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when switching.

Potential customers who are not a match for these standards will have to pay a more expensive rate which leads to the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads say "customers that switch" not "everybody who quotes" save that kind of money. That's the way insurance companies can advertise the savings.

Because of the profiling, drivers must compare as many rates as you can. It is impossible to predict which auto insurance company will fit your personal profile best.

Shop smart and save

Lower-priced auto insurance is attainable online in addition to many Rochester insurance agents, so you should compare both to have the best rate selection. There are still a few companies who do not provide the ability to get a quote online and most of the time these regional insurance providers sell through independent agents.

When you buy insurance online, make sure you don't reduce coverage to reduce premium. In many cases, an insured dropped physical damage coverage only to regret at claim time that the few dollars in savings costed them thousands. Your aim should be to purchase plenty of coverage at a price you can afford.

Insureds leave their current company for a number of reasons such as an unsatisfactory settlement offer, delays in responding to claim requests, delays in paying claims or extreme rates for teen drivers. Regardless of your reason for switching companies, choosing a new insurance company is actually quite simple.

More information can be found on the Indiana Department of Insurance website located here. Indiana consumers can get help finding coverage, find disaster information, and discover disciplinary actions.

Additional helpful sites include this page for Indiana auto insurance and see this list of insurance agents in Rochester.