Did a good deal turn out to be high-priced car insurance? It’s a common feeling and there are lots of Dallas residents who feel the same. Insurance companies such as GEICO and Progressive constantly blast consumers with advertising and consumers find it hard to separate fact from fiction and take the time to shop coverage around.
If you currently have car insurance, you should be able to save some money using these techniques. Finding the best rates in Dallas is not rocket science. But Texas car owners do need to understand how the larger insurance companies sell online and take advantage of how the system works.
Get lower rates with these five discounts
Car insurance is neither fun to buy or cheap, but you may qualify for discounts that you may not know about. Some discounts will apply when you quote, but once in a while a discount must be asked for before being credited.
- Claim-Free Discount – Good drivers with no accidents pay much less when compared to accident-prone drivers.
- Braking Control Discount – Cars that have steering control and anti-lock brakes are much safer to drive so you can save 10 percent or more.
- Save with a New Car – Insuring a vehicle that is new can be considerably cheaper because newer models are generally safer.
- Mature Driver Discount – If you’re over the age of 55, you may be able to get a discount up to 10% for Liberty coverage.
- Early Renewal Discounts – Some insurance companies reward drivers for signing up before your current policy expires. It’s a savings of about 10%.
Consumers should know that most discount credits are not given to the overall cost of the policy. Most cut specific coverage prices like comp or med pay. Despite the appearance that all the discounts add up to a free policy, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy.
Companies and some of the discounts are outlined below.
- Farm Bureau offers premium reductions for safe driver, good student, driver training, multi-policy, and youthful driver.
- Liberty Mutual includes discounts for hybrid vehicle, new vehicle discount, new move discount, exclusive group savings, newly married, and multi-policy.
- State Farm discounts include Steer Clear safe driver discount, good student, multiple autos, multiple policy, anti-theft, student away at school, and passive restraint.
- Auto-Owners Insurance has discounts for air bags, safe driver, teen driver, good student, and paperless.
- GEICO offers discounts including driver training, seat belt use, anti-lock brakes, federal employee, defensive driver, and emergency military deployment.
- SAFECO may include discounts for drive less, anti-theft, bundle discounts, homeowner, safe driver, teen safety rewards, and teen safe driver.
If you want , ask all companies you are considering what discounts are available to you. A few discounts might not be offered on policies in Dallas. To view companies that offer multiple discounts in Dallas, follow this link.
Neighborhood insurance agents
A lot of people would prefer to sit down with an agent and that can be a smart move A good thing about getting free rate quotes online is that you can obtain cheap car insurance quotes and still have a local agent.
After completing this short form, your insurance data is instantly submitted to local insurance agents in Dallas who want to provide quotes for your coverage. You won’t even need to drive around since price quotes are sent straight to your inbox. You can get cheaper car insurance rates AND a local agent. If you wish to get a rate quote from a particular provider, you just need to jump over to their website and complete a quote there.
Choosing the best provider needs to be determined by more than just a cheap quote. Agents should be asked these questions:
- What is their Better Business Bureau rating?
- Do they prorate repair cost based on vehicle mileage?
- Does the agent have a valid license to sell insurance in Texas?
- How many years have they been established?
- Are you getting all the discounts the company offers?
- How much experience to they have in personal lines coverages?
If you prefer to buy car insurance from a good Dallas insurance agent, there are two different agency structures and how they can write your policy. Agents may be either independent (non-captive) or captive.
Captive Car Insurance Agencies
Agents that choose to be captive work for only one company like Farmers Insurance, State Farm, Allstate, and AAA. These agents are not able to place coverage with different providers so you need to shop around if the rates are high. Captive insurance agents are trained well on their products and sales techniques and that allows them to sell at a higher price point.
Independent Agents (or Brokers)
These type of agents are normally appointed by many insurers so they can insure your vehicles with an assortment of companies and get you the best rates possible. If your premiums go up, your agent can just switch to a different company and you don’t have to find a new agent.
If you are trying to find cheaper rates, it’s recommended you get quotes from a couple of independent agencies so that you have a good selection of quotes to compare.
Tricks in car insurance advertising
Popular car insurance providers such as Progressive, GEICO, Allstate and State Farm constantly bombard you with ads on television and other media. All the ads advertise the message that you’ll save big if you switch your car insurance policy to them. How does every company save you money? It’s all in the numbers.
Car insurance companies have an ideal profile for the type of driver that earns them a profit. For example, a driver they prefer may need to be over the age of 40, has a clean driving record, and has great credit. A driver who matches those parameters gets the lowest premium rates and most likely will save if they switch.
Potential insureds who cannot meet these standards may be forced to pay a more expensive rate which usually ends up with the customer not buying. If you listen closely, the ads state “drivers who switch” but not “all drivers who get quotes” will save that much if they switch. That’s the way insurance companies can make the claims of big savings. This really illustrates why it is so important to compare quotes as often as possible. Because you never know which company will fit your personal profile best.
Auto insurance 101
Learning about specific coverages of a car insurance policy can be of help when determining appropriate coverage for your vehicles. Car insurance terms can be difficult to understand and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Shown next are the normal coverages offered by car insurance companies.
Collision – Collision coverage pays for damage to your Liberty from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You have to pay a deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision can pay for claims such as hitting a mailbox, colliding with a tree, sustaining damage from a pot hole and driving through your garage door. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so you might think about dropping it from older vehicles. It’s also possible to bump up the deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
UM/UIM Coverage – This coverage gives you protection from other motorists when they do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered claims include injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants and damage to your Jeep Liberty.
Since a lot of drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits (30/60/25 in Texas), it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is a good idea.
Liability coverages – Liability insurance protects you from damage that occurs to people or other property by causing an accident. Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. You might see liability limits of 50/100/50 which means a limit of $50,000 per injured person, a per accident bodily injury limit of $100,000, and a limit of $50,000 paid for damaged property.
Liability insurance covers claims such as medical expenses, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, structural damage, attorney fees and repair costs for stationary objects. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is your choice, but consider buying as much as you can afford. Texas state minimum liability requirements are 30,000/60,000/25,000 but drivers should carry higher limits.
Comprehensive or Other Than Collision – Comprehensive insurance will pay to fix damage that is not covered by collision coverage. You first have to pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.
Comprehensive coverage protects against claims like hail damage, fire damage, theft, falling objects and hitting a bird. The maximum payout you’ll receive from a claim is the ACV or actual cash value, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.
Medical costs insurance – Med pay and PIP coverage pay for expenses such as nursing services, surgery, dental work and pain medications. They are used to fill the gap from your health insurance policy or if you lack health insurance entirely. Coverage applies to you and your occupants as well as if you are hit as a while walking down the street. PIP is only offered in select states and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay
Additional resources for Texas consumers
Even more information can be found at the Texas Department of Insurance website. Texas consumers can learn about insurance regulations, view a list of available companies, and read state legal mandates and laws.
Other related articles:
- Dallas, TX Auto Insurance Agents Which is Right for You?
- Methods for Lowering Your Dallas Texas Auto Insurance Rates
- Insider Tricks to Paying Less for Dallas Texas Car Insurance
Smart shoppers get results
Budget-friendly car insurance can be found online and with local Dallas insurance agents, so you should compare both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some companies may not provide price quotes online and most of the time these regional insurance providers provide coverage only through local independent agencies.
We just covered quite a bit of information on how to reduce Jeep Liberty insurance rates online. The key thing to remember is the more quotes you get, the higher your chance of finding . Consumers could even find that the lowest priced car insurance comes from the smaller companies. They can often insure niche markets at a lower cost than the large multi-state companies such as Progressive and GEICO.
While you’re price shopping online, it’s not a good idea to buy lower coverage limits just to save a few bucks. There have been many situations where an insured cut collision coverage only to find out that the savings was not a smart move. Your aim should be to find the BEST coverage for the lowest cost, but do not sacrifice coverage to save money.