Tightwads Guide to Saving on Waukegan Auto Insurance

Tired of paying out the nose each month for car insurance? You're in the same situation as millions of other consumers. Having so many online and local companies to choose from, it can be challenging to find the cheapest car insurance company.

It's important to check auto insurance prices once or twice a year since insurance rates are constantly changing. Just because you found the lowest price on your last policy there is a good chance you can find better rates now. Ignore everything you know about auto insurance because you're about to learn how to use online quotes to lower your rates without sacrificing coverage.

What determines how much you pay?

Consumers need to have an understanding of some of the elements that help determine auto insurance rates. When you know what positively or negatively impacts premium levels allows you to make educated decisions that can help you get lower auto insurance prices.

Better credit means lower rates - Your credit history is a important factor in your rate calculation. Therefore, if your credit is not that good, you could save money insuring your by improving your rating. Drivers with high credit scores tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records than drivers who have lower credit scores.
Equipment add-ons that lower auto insurance rates - Driving a car with an alarm system can help lower your rates. Theft prevention features like GM's OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all hinder your car from being stolen.
Women pay lower rates - The statistics show women tend to be less risk to insure than men. However, this does not mean women are better drivers. Women and men cause accidents in similar numbers, but men have costlier accidents. Men also get cited for more serious violations like reckless driving and DUI. Youthful male drivers are most likely to cause an accident and are penalized with high auto insurance rates.
An active claims history can cost you - Insurance companies in Illinois provide discounts to insureds who file claims infrequently. If you frequently file small claims, you can pretty much guarantee either a policy non-renewal or much higher rates. Auto insurance is intended to be relied upon for major claims that would cause financial hardship.
A clean driving record saves money - Your driving record has a big impact on rates. Even a single citation can increase rates by as much as thirty percent. Good drivers have lower premiums compared to drivers with tickets. Drivers who get flagrant violations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions may be required to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) with the DMV in their state in order to keep their license.
Safer occupants lowers premiums - Cars with high safety ratings are cheaper to insure. Safer cars result in less severe injuries and better occupant protection translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims passed on to you as lower rates.
Low deductibles can be expensive - Physical damage coverage, termed comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, protects your car from damage. Examples of covered claims are a windshield shattered by a rock, damage caused by hail, and burglary. Your deductibles are the amount of money you are required to spend in the event of a claim. The more you're willing to pay, the less your company will charge you for insurance.

Comprehensive Auto Insurance Comparison in Waukegan

Effectively comparing auto insurance prices can take hours if you don't understand the easiest way. You can spend your afternoon discussing policy coverages with insurance agencies in Waukegan, or you could save time and use online quoting for quick rates.

Most of the larger companies participate in an industry program that enables customers to submit one quote, and each company can provide price quotes determined by their information. This eliminates the need for quotation requests to each individual auto insurance company.

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

One minor caviat to pricing coverage this way is buyers cannot specifically choose which providers you will receive quotes from. So if you want to select specific providers to request quotes from, we put together a list of auto insurance companies in Illinois. Click to view list.

Which method you use is up to you, but double check that you are using apples-to-apples quote information with every price quote. If your comparisons have mixed coverages it's not possible to find the best deal in Waukegan.

Don't pay full price with these discounts

Car insurance can cost a lot, but there are discounts available that you may not know about. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically at the time you complete a quote, but less common discounts must be inquired about prior to getting the savings. If you don't get every credit available, you are paying more than you should be.

Passive Restraint Discount - Vehicles with factory air bags can receive discounts of 20% or more.
Payment Method - If you pay your bill all at once instead of making monthly payments you can actually save on your bill.
One Accident Forgiven - Some insurance companies will forgive one accident before hitting you with a surcharge if you are claim-free prior to the accident.
Employee of Federal Government - Employees or retirees of the government can save as much as 8% with certain companies.
Low Mileage - Fewer annual miles could be rewarded with lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
Resident Student - Children who are attending college and do not have access to a covered vehicle may be able to be covered for less.

A little note about advertised discounts, most credits do not apply to the entire cost. A few only apply to individual premiums such as medical payments or collision. Even though it may seem like it's possible to get free car insurance, you won't be that lucky. Any amount of discount will help reduce your premiums.

To choose providers who offer auto insurance discounts in Illinois, follow this link.

The auto insurance bait and switch

Illinois drivers can't ignore all the ads for the lowest price auto insurance by companies like State Farm and Allstate. All the ads say the same thing about savings after switching to them.

But how can every company say the same thing?

All companies can use profiling for the type of driver that makes them money. For instance, a preferred risk might be profiled as between the ages of 40 and 55, has no tickets, and has great credit. A propective insured who fits that profile receives the best rates and therefore will save a lot of money.

Potential customers who don't measure up to this ideal profile will be charged a more expensive rate which usually ends up with business not being written. Company advertisements say "customers that switch" not "everyone that quotes" save money. That's why companies can truthfully advertise the savings.

That is why you need to get as many quotes as possible. It's not possible to predict the company that will fit your personal profile best.

Additional information is located on the website for the Illinois Department of Insurance located here. Illinois drivers can find out industry alerts, view a list of available companies, learn about insurance regulations, and download brochures.

Other informative sites include NAIC.org's Understanding your Policy and this directory of Waukegan insurance agents.

In the end, you save

Throughout this article, we presented a lot of information how to compare auto insurance prices online. The most important thing to understand is the more you quote, the better your chances of lowering your rates. You may be surprised to find that the lowest priced auto insurance comes from the least-expected company. These smaller insurers may cover specific market segments cheaper as compared to the big name companies such as .

Cheaper auto insurance can be sourced on the web and with local Waukegan insurance agents, so you should be comparing quotes from both to have the best rate selection. There are still a few companies who do not offer online price quotes and many times these small, regional companies only sell through independent insurance agents.