How to Get the Cheapest Woodside Auto Insurance

Purchasing low-cost Woodside auto insurance online may be challenging for beginners to online price comaprisons. With dozens of companies competing online, how can consumers even start to compare every one to find the cheapest available price?

If you have a current auto insurance policy or need new coverage, you can use these techniques to shop for the lowest rates while maximizing coverage. Pricing affordable protection in Woodside is quite easy. California vehicle owners just need to know the tricks to compare prices over the internet.

Woodside Auto Insurance Prices Online

Effectively comparing auto insurance prices can be exhausting if you don't know the best way to get rate quotes. You could spend your day talking to local insurance agents in Woodside, or you can stay home and use the web to get rate comparisons in just a few minutes.

All the larger companies participate in a marketplace that allows shoppers to only type in their quote data once, and every company provides a quote based on the submitted data. This prevents consumers from doing quote forms for each company you want a rate for.

To submit your quote information now, click here (opens in new window).

The one downside to using this type of form is you don't know exactly which companies to get pricing from. So if you want to choose from a list of companies to receive pricing from, we have a page of the cheapest auto insurance companies in California. Click to view list.

However you get your quotes, ensure you are comparing exactly the same quote information with each company. If each company quotes mixed coverages it will be very difficult to make an equal comparison in Woodside.

Understand what determines the rate you pay

It's important that you understand the factors that help determine auto insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay helps enable you to make changes that could result in much lower annual insurance costs.

Don't get talked into coverage you don't need - There are a ton of add-on coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren't careful. Insurance for vanishing deductibles, accidental death and membership fees are some examples. They may seem like a good idea when talking to your agent, but your needs may have changed so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
Being married is a good thing - Having a spouse can get you a discount on auto insurance. Having a spouse usually means you are more mature than a single person it has been statistically shown that married drivers get in fewer accidents.
High deductibles save money - The deductibles represent how much money you are required to spend before your auto insurance pays a claim. Coverage for physical damage, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, insures against damage to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered are colliding with a building, damage caused by hail, and rolling your vehicle. The higher the amount the insured has to pay upfront, the bigger discount you will receive.
A lapse in coverage is a bad thing - Allowing your auto insurance policy to lapse will be a quick way to trigger a rate increase. Not only will rates go up, but being ticketed for driving with no insurance may earn you a license revocation or jail time.
Occupation reflects on rates - Did you know your auto insurance rates can be affected by your occupation? Occupations such as lawyers, social workers and dentists are shown to have the highest average rates in part from stressful work requirements and long work days. Other occupations like pilots, historians and performers pay the least.
Clean credit earns discounts - A driver's credit history is a huge factor in determining what you pay for auto insurance. If your credit is not that good, you could be paying less to insure your by improving your credit score. Consumers who have high credit ratings tend to be less risk to insure as compared to drivers with lower credit scores.

How much can you save with discounts?

Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but companies offer discounts that you may not know about. Some discounts apply automatically at the time of quoting, but a few need to be asked for before you will receive the discount. If you aren't receiving every discount you deserve, you're just leaving money on the table.

Fewer Miles Equal More Savings - Fewer annual miles can earn a substantially lower rate.
Paperless Signup - A few companies give back up to $50 for buying a policy and signing up digitally online.
Own a Home - Owning a home in Woodside can save you money due to the fact that maintaining a home is proof that your finances are in order.
Seat Belt Usage - Using a seat belt and requiring all passengers to buckle their seat belts can save 10% or more off your medical payments premium.
Government Employees - Simply working for the federal government could cut as much as 10% off depending on your company.
Anti-lock Brakes - Vehicles with anti-lock braking systems can reduce accidents and will save you 10% or more.
Passive Restraints and Air Bags - Vehicles equipped with air bags or automatic seat belts can qualify for discounts of more than 20%.
Drivers Ed for Students - Require your teen driver to enroll in driver's education if it's offered in school.
Military Discounts - Being deployed with a military unit may qualify for rate reductions.

Consumers should know that some of the credits will not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like liability and collision coverage. Just because you may think adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies don't profit that way. But all discounts will reduce the amount you have to pay.

For a list of insurers who offer auto insurance discounts in Woodside, click here.

Much more information about auto insurance in California can be found on the California Department of Insurance website. Click here for link. California drivers can discover disciplinary actions, get help finding coverage, and report car insurance fraud.

A tidy conclusion

Discount auto insurance can be sourced on the web in addition to many Woodside insurance agents, and you should be comparing both to have the best chance of lowering rates. There are still a few companies who do not provide online quoting and usually these regional insurance providers provide coverage only through local independent agents.

Drivers change insurance companies for any number of reasons including delays in responding to claim requests, an unsatisfactory settlement offer, being labeled a high risk driver and high rates after DUI convictions. It doesn't matter what your reason, switching auto insurance companies is not as hard as you think.

As you prepare to switch companies, it's a bad idea to reduce needed coverages to save money. There are a lot of situations where drivers have reduced physical damage coverage only to regret at claim time that the small savings ended up costing them much more. The proper strategy is to get the best coverage possible for the lowest price while not skimping on critical coverages.