6 Tips Guaranteed to Save Money on Kia Sportage Car Insurance Expenses

Have you had enough of wondering where the money will come from to keep your car insured? You are no different than many other drivers. Drivers have many insurers to choose from, and though it is a good thing to have a selection, so many choices can make it hard to compare rates and find the lowest cost car insurance.

Consumers need to take a look at other company’s rates quite often because car insurance prices change quite often. Despite the fact that you may have had the lowest price for Sportage insurance two years ago a different company probably has better rate quotes today. There are lots of tips to save on car insurance online, but we’re going to give you the best ways to lower your car insurance premiums.

Reducing your Kia Sportage insurance rates is actually easier than you may think. Drivers just need to take a couple of minutes comparing online from several insurance companies. Comparing prices online can be done by following the guidelines below.

The first (and easiest) way to get quotes is an all-inclusive rate comparison click to view form in new window. This quick form keeps you from doing repetitive form entry for each company. One simple form gets insurance cost estimates direct from many companies.
A harder way to find better pricing is to manually visit the website of each company and go through the quote process again. For example, we’ll assume you are doing a rate comparison from Auto-Owners, Safeco and GEICO. To get each rate you have to take the time to go to each site and enter your information, which can get old fast.
For a list of companies in your area, click here.
The least recommended method to comparison shop is to drive around to and from local insurance agencies. Quoting online makes this process obsolete unless you have a need for the guidance that only an agent can give. Drivers can comparison shop your insurance online and still use a local agent.

It’s up to you how you get prices quotes, just do your best to use the exact same coverage data on every price quote you get. If you are comparing different liability limits you will not be able to make a fair comparison for your Kia Sportage.

Cheap car insurance quotes with discounts

Car insurance is not cheap, but you may qualify for discounts that you may not even be aware of. Some discounts apply automatically when you purchase, but once in a while a discount must be specially asked for before you will receive the discount.

Renewal Discounts – A few larger companies give discounts for switching policies prior to your current policy expiring. You could save around 10% when you .
Safety Course Discount – Completing a defensive driver course could earn you a small percentage discount and make you a better driver.
Employee of Federal Government – Being employed by or retired from a federal job can save as much as 8% for Sportage insurance but check with your company.
Waiver for an Accident – Not really a discount, but some companies like Progressive, Allstate, and Liberty Mutual will allow you to have one accident without the usual rate increase with the catch being you have to be claim-free for a particular time prior to the accident.
Paper-free Discount – A handful of larger companies will give a small break for buying a policy and signing up on their website.
Memberships – Being a member of a civic or occupational organization is a good way to get lower rates on your next renewal.

We need to note that most credits do not apply to the entire policy premium. The majority will only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like physical damage coverage or medical payments. Even though it appears having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, companies wouldn’t make money that way.

Companies and the discounts they provide are:

GEICO policyholders can earn discounts including membership and employees, defensive driver, good student, multi-policy, and daytime running lights.
Auto-Owners Insurance has savings for good student, multi-policy, multiple vehicles, air bags, teen driver, and company car.
American Family has discounts for TimeAway discount, good driver, air bags, good student, bundled insurance, multi-vehicle, and mySafetyValet.
Esurance offers premium reductions for anti-theft, good student, online shopper, defensive driver, and anti-lock brakes.
Progressive offers discounts for multi-policy, multi-vehicle, continuous coverage, online quote discount, online signing, and good student.
State Farm may offer discounts for good driver, Drive Safe & Save, accident-free, multiple autos, passive restraint, and safe vehicle.
AAA includes discounts for pay-in-full, good driver, good student, anti-theft, AAA membership discount, and multi-car.

Before purchasing a policy, check with all the companies how many discounts you can get. Discounts might not be offered on policies in your area. To find providers that offer some of these discounts, click here.

Captive versus independent car insurance agents

A lot of people would prefer to have an agent’s advice and that is OK! Licensed agents are trained to spot inefficiencies and give you someone to call. One of the benefits of comparing insurance prices online is that you can find cheap car insurance quotes but also keep your business local.

After completing this simple form, your insurance data is submitted to local insurance agents who will gladly provide quotes for your insurance coverage. It makes it easy because there is no need to search for any insurance agencies due to the fact that quote results will go to you instantly. If for some reason you want to get a price quote for a specific company, you just need to search and find their rate quote page and fill out their quote form.

Finding the right insurance company shouldn’t rely on just a low price. The following questions are important to ask.

Is the agent and/or agency licensed to do business in your state?
Do they carry Errors and Omissions coverage?
Does the agent recommend any additional coverage?
How is replacement cost determined on your vehicle?
What are their preferred companies if they are an independent agency?

When finding a local agent, you should know the types of agencies and how they are distinctly different. Agents can be classified as either independent or captive. Both types can write car insurance policies, but it’s worth learning how they are different because it can factor into which type of agent you select.

Captive Insurance Agents

Captive agencies can only provide one company’s prices like State Farm, Allstate, or Farmers Insurance. Captive agents cannot place coverage with different providers so it’s a take it or leave it situation. Captive agents receive a lot of sales training on sales techniques and that allows them to sell at a higher price point.

Independent Car Insurance Agents

Agents of this type are appointed with more than one company so they can insure your vehicles through many companies and find the cheapest car insurance rates. If they find a lower price, an independent agent can move your coverage which makes it simple for you.

When comparing car insurance prices, it’s recommended you get some free quotes from independent agents so that you have a good selection of quotes to compare.

To see available agents near you, click to locate an car insurance agency.

Auto insurance coverage information

Understanding the coverages of a car insurance policy can be of help when determining which coverages you need at the best deductibles and correct limits. Car insurance terms can be impossible to understand and coverage can change by endorsement. Listed below are typical coverages found on the average car insurance policy.

Comprehensive insurance

This will pay to fix damage that is not covered by collision coverage. A deductible will apply and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.

Comprehensive coverage pays for claims such as damage from getting keyed, hitting a deer, damage from flooding, rock chips in glass and fire damage. The maximum payout you’ll receive from a claim is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle’s value is low consider removing comprehensive coverage.

Coverage for liability

Liability coverage protects you from damage or injury you incur to other people or property in an accident. This insurance protects YOU from legal claims by others. It does not cover your injuries or vehicle damage.

Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. You commonly see policy limits of 50/100/50 that means you have $50,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a limit of $100,000 in injury protection per accident, and $50,000 of coverage for damaged propery.

Liability insurance covers things like medical services, legal defense fees, structural damage and court costs. How much liability should you purchase? That is your choice, but consider buying as large an amount as possible.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM)

This coverage gives you protection when other motorists either have no liability insurance or not enough. Covered claims include injuries to you and your family and also any damage incurred to your Kia Sportage.

Because many people carry very low liability coverage limits, their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is a good idea.

Med pay and Personal Injury Protection (PIP)

Med pay and PIP coverage pay for expenses like funeral costs, pain medications, EMT expenses, surgery and hospital visits. The coverages can be utilized in addition to your health insurance program or if you are not covered by health insurance. It covers both the driver and occupants as well as getting struck while a pedestrian. Personal Injury Protection is not universally available and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay

Auto collision coverage

This coverage pays for damage to your Sportage resulting from colliding with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You have to pay a deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.

Collision coverage protects against claims like hitting a mailbox, scraping a guard rail and sustaining damage from a pot hole. This coverage can be expensive, so consider dropping it from older vehicles. It’s also possible to increase the deductible to bring the cost down.

A tidy conclusion

When buying insurance coverage, don’t be tempted to sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. In many instances, someone sacrificed comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to discover later that it was a big mistake. Your goal is to buy enough coverage at the lowest possible cost, not the least amount of coverage.

We just showed you many tips how you can shop for Kia Sportage insurance online. The key thing to remember is the more price quotes you have, the better your chances of lowering your prices. Consumers could even find that the best price on car insurance is with the smaller companies. Smaller companies may only write in your state and offer lower prices than the large multi-state companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Nationwide.