How to Know You're Wasting Money for Car Insurance in South River

Did you fall for a flashy sales pitch and buy high-priced car insurance? Believe me, there are many people just like you. You have so many to buy insurance from, and although it's a good thing to have a selection, lots of choices makes it harder to compare rates.

It's important to price shop coverage every six months because rates are constantly changing. If you had the best deal a few years ago the chances are good that you can find a lower rate today. So just block out anything you think you know about car insurance because you're going to learn the proper way to lower your annual insurance bill.

Don't pay full price with these discounts

Car insurance can cost a lot, buy you may qualify for discounts to help offset the cost. Certain discounts will be applied when you purchase, but some must be manually applied before being credited. If you're not getting every credit possible, you're paying more than you need to.

Discount for Good Grades - A discount for being a good student can get you a discount of up to 25%. The discount lasts up to age 25.
Memberships - Belonging to a qualifying organization could qualify you for a break on your policy.
Pay Upfront and Save - If you pay your bill all at once instead of paying each month you could save 5% or more.
No Charge for an Accident - Certain companies will forgive one accident before raising your premiums if you are claim-free prior to the accident.
Passive Restraint Discount - Vehicles with factory air bags and/or automatic seat belt systems may earn rate discounts up to 30%.

Keep in mind that most of the big mark downs will not be given to all coverage premiums. Most cut individual premiums such as medical payments or collision. So when the math indicates it's possible to get free car insurance, it just doesn't work that way. But any discount will bring down your premiums.

To see a list of providers with the best car insurance discounts in New Jersey, follow this link.

How to Compare Car Insurance Quotes in South River, New Jersey

There are multiple methods to compare car insurance prices but one way is more efficient than others. You can waste a lot of time driving to insurance companies in South River, or you could save time and use online quoting to achieve your goal.

Many insurance companies are enrolled in a marketplace that enables customers to send in one quote, and at least one company can provide price quotes. This eliminates the need for repetitive form submissions to each individual car insurance company.

To submit your quote information now, click to open in new window.

The only downside to getting quotes like this is you can't choose which carriers you will receive quotes from. If you prefer to choose specific providers to compare prices, we have assembled a list of car insurance companies in New Jersey. View list of New Jersey insurance companies.

Whichever way you use, ensure you are comparing identical deductibles and coverage limits for each comparison quote. If you compare different values for each quote it's not possible to determine the lowest rate in South River.

Learn How to Buy Car Insurance Cheaper

An important part of buying insurance is that you know some of the elements that come into play when calculating your car insurance rates. Knowing what influences your rates helps enable you to make changes that can help you get lower car insurance prices.

The list below includes some of the factors that factor into your rates.

How's your driving record? - Your driving record has a lot to do with how much you pay for insurance. Drivers with clean records have lower premiums than people who have multiple driving citations. Just one speeding ticket may increase your cost forty percent or more. Drivers who get severe violations such as hit and run, DWI or reckless driving convictions may be required to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) with their state motor vehicle department in order to drive a vehicle legally.
Do you have enough liability coverage? - The liability section of your policy provides coverage in the event that you are found to be at fault for damages caused by your negligence. Liability insurance provides legal defense coverage starting from day one. Liability is cheap compared to insuring for physical damage coverage, so buy as much as you can afford.
Optional equipment can affect rates - Choosing a vehicle with an alarm system can get you a discount on your car insurance. Anti-theft devices such as vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems can thwart your car from being stolen.
Sex matters - Statistics demonstrate that women are safer drivers than men. However, don't assume that men are WORSE drivers than women. Women and men cause accidents at about the same rate, but men cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also get cited for more serious violations such as reckless driving.
Better credit scores mean better rates - Your credit rating is a important factor in calculating your car insurance rates. Consumers who have high credit scores tend to be less risk to insure than drivers who have poor credit. Therefore, if your credit rating can use some improvement, you could pay less to insure your by spending a little time repairing your credit.
Marriage pays dividends - Being married actually saves money when buying car insurance. Marriage usually means you are more mature and it's proven that being married results in fewer claims.

The car insurance bait and switch

Consumers can't get away from ads that promise big savings from companies such as State Farm and Allstate. All the ads say the same thing that you can save if you move your policy.

How does each company make the same claim?

All companies are able to cherry pick for the right customer that is profitable for them. An example of a preferred risk could be between the ages of 30 and 50, has no driving citations, and has a short commute. A customer who fits that profile gets the lowest rates and therefore will save when switching.

Consumers who don't measure up to these standards will be charged higher prices which usually ends up with business going elsewhere. The ads say "customers that switch" not "everyone that quotes" save that kind of money. That's the way insurance companies can make the claims of big savings.

That is why drivers must get as many quotes as possible. Because you never know which car insurance company will fit your personal profile best.

A tidy conclusion

We just showed you many ways to compare car insurance prices online. The key concept to understand is the more you quote, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. You may be surprised to find that the lowest rates come from the least-expected company. These smaller insurers can often insure niche markets at a lower cost as compared to the big name companies such as .

Affordable car insurance is possible from both online companies in addition to many South River insurance agents, and you should compare price quotes from both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some insurance providers do not provide the ability to get a quote online and many times these smaller companies only sell through independent insurance agents.

More information is available on the website for the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance located here. Consumers can file complaints about a company, find out which companies have the most complaints, view a list of available companies, and learn about insurance regulations.