How to Know You're Spending Too Much for Car Insurance in Westerly

Scraping up a payment for overpriced car insurance can dwindle your personal savings and force you to make sacrifices. Doing a price comparison is free and is an excellent way to help make ends meet. Because there are so many companies and agents to choose from, it is hard for the average consumer to locate the lowest price company.

It's important to price shop coverage on a regular basis because rates are constantly changing. If you had the best rates a few years ago a different company probably has better rates today. There is a lot of wrong information about car insurance online, so we're going to give you some great ways to find cheap car insurance.

Choosing the best insurance company for you in Westerly is easy if you know what you're doing. If you are paying for car insurance now, you should be able to reduce your rates substantially using these techniques. Rhode Island vehicle owners just need to know how to shop their coverage around online.

More discounts equal less premium

Companies don't always advertise every available discount very well, so the following is a list of some of the more common as well as the least known ways to save on car insurance. If you don't get every credit you deserve, you are throwing money away.

Good Student Discount - Performing well in school can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. The good student discount can last up to age 25.
Own a Home - Being a homeowner may earn you a small savings because of the fact that having a home demonstrates responsibility.
Military Discounts - Having a family member in the military can result in better rates.
Sign Early and Save - Some insurance companies reward drivers for switching to them prior to your current policy expiring. It can save you around 10%.
Passive Restraint Discount - Vehicles with factory air bags or automatic seat belts can receive discounts of more than 20%.
Pay Upfront and Save - If paying your policy premium upfront instead of monthly or quarterly installments you could save 5% or more.
55 and Retired - If you qualify as a senior citizen, you can possibly qualify for a discount up to 10%.
Driver's Ed - Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to take driver's ed class in high school.
No Claims - Drivers who don't have accidents pay less compared to drivers who are more careless.
Low Mileage - Keeping the miles down could qualify for better rates on cars that stay parked.

Drivers should understand that most discount credits are not given to all coverage premiums. Some only reduce individual premiums such as medical payments or collision. So even though it sounds like all those discounts means the company will pay you, companies wouldn't make money that way.

Learn How to Buy Car Insurance Cheaper

Smart consumers have a good feel for the rating factors that come into play when calculating your car insurance rates. When you know what positively or negatively controls the rates you pay helps enable you to make changes that can help you get big savings.

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

How's your driving record? - Drivers with clean records have lower premiums than people who have multiple driving citations. Only having one ticket may increase your cost by as much as thirty percent. 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.
Discounts for married couples - Getting married actually saves money on your car insurance policy. Marriage usually means you are more mature than a single person and it's proven that married drivers get in fewer accidents.
Safer cars are cheaper to insure - Vehicles with good safety scores tend to have better insurance rates. Safer cars have better occupant injury protection and fewer injuries translates into savings for insurance companies passed on to you as lower rates.
What type of vehicle do you drive? - The performance of the vehicle you drive makes a big difference in your rates. The lowest rates tend to be for lower performance four cylinder passenger models, but the cost you end up paying is determined by many additional factors.
Better credit scores mean better rates - Your credit rating is a important factor in determining what you pay for car insurance. Consumers who have excellent credit tend to be less risk to insure as compared to drivers with lower credit ratings. Therefore, if your credit rating can use some improvement, you could potentially save money when insuring your by improving your rating.
Save money with special equipment - Purchasing a vehicle with an alarm system can help lower your rates. Anti-theft devices such as vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all aid in stopping your vehicle from being stolen.

Switch companies and save? Really?

Consumers get pounded daily by advertisements for car insurance savings from companies such as State Farm and Allstate. All the ads make the same claim that you'll save big if you move your policy.

But how can every company make the same claim?

All the different companies have a preferred profile for the right customer that earns them a profit. A good example of a preferred risk could be over the age of 40, insures multiple vehicles, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. A customer who matches those parameters will get very good rates and therefore will save a lot of money.

Potential insureds who do not match this ideal profile will be charged more money which leads to business going elsewhere. The ads say "customers that switch" not "everyone that quotes" save that kind of money. This is how companies can advertise the way they do. That is why drivers should get a wide range of price quotes. Because you never know which insurance companies will provide you with the cheapest rates.

For more Rhode Island car insurance information

More detailed Rhode Island car insurance information can be read at the Rhode Island Division of Insurance Regulation website. Consumers can file complaints about a company, get help finding coverage, find disaster information, and learn about specific coverages.

Also read more on NAIC.org's Understanding your Policy and this directory of insurance agents in Westerly Rhode Island.

A tidy conclusion

We just showed you some good ideas how to reduce car insurance prices online. The key concept to understand is the more you quote, the better your comparison will be. Consumers may even find the lowest premiums are with a small local company. Regional companies may only write in your state and offer lower rates as compared to the big name companies such as .

Budget-conscious car insurance is possible from both online companies in addition to many Westerly insurance agents, and you need to comparison shop both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some car insurance companies do not provide you the ability to get quotes online and many times these small insurance companies only sell through independent insurance agents.