Trying to come up with a payment for pricey auto insurance can dry up your savings and make it impossible to make ends meet. You have so many auto insurance companies to pick from, and although it’s a good thing to be able to choose, having more auto insurance companies makes it harder to find the best rates.
You should take the time to take a look at other company’s rates on a regular basis because insurance rates are rarely the same from one policy term to another. If you had the lowest premium rates on Enclave coverage a couple years back you can probably find a better price now. Don’t believe everything you read about auto insurance out there, but in this article, you’re going to get some solid techniques on how to lower your auto insurance premiums.
Buying the lowest cost coverage in Dallas can be fairly easy. In a nutshell, anyone who is shopping for auto insurance should be able to lower their premiums. Although Texas car owners should learn the methods companies use to price online insurance and take advantage of how the system works.
What Impacts Buick Enclave Insurance Prices?
The best way to find cheaper auto insurance is to take a look at a few of the rating criteria that come into play when calculating your premiums. When you know what positively or negatively determines base rates, this allows you to make educated decisions that can help you get cheaper rates. Many things are part of the calculation when you quote your car insurance policy. Some are obvious like your driving record, but other criteria are more obscure such as your marital status and annual miles driven.
- Poor credit score equals high rates – Credit score can be a huge factor in calculating your auto insurance rates. So if your credit score is not that good, you could potentially save money when insuring your Buick Enclave by improving your rating. People that have very good credit scores tend to be better drivers and file fewer claims than those with bad credit.
- Cars with good safety ratings save money – Safer cars tend to have better insurance rates. Vehicles engineered for safety reduce occupant injuries and fewer serious injuries means lower claim amounts and more competitive rates for policyholders. If your Buick Enclave scored at minimum four stars on Safercar.gov it is probably cheaper to insure.
- Alarms and GPS tracking lower rates – Choosing to buy a car with a theft deterrent system can save you some money. Systems that thwart theives like tamper alarm systems, vehicle immobilizer technology and General Motors OnStar all help stop car theft and help bring rates down.
- Is your car built for speed? – The make and model of the vehicle you need to insure makes a big difference in your rates. Since the Buick Enclave falls in the standard SUV class, insuring your vehicle will cost slighty more than the average rate where you live in Dallas. Small economy passenger vehicles generally have the cheapest insurance rates, but your final cost has many other factors.
Don’t overlook these auto insurance discounts
Buying auto insurance is not cheap, but there’s a good chance there are discounts that can help lower your rates. Many of these discounts will be applied automatically at the time of purchase, but less common discounts must be requested specifically before being credited.
- New Car Discount – Buying insurance on a new vehicle can get you a discount compared to insuring an older model.
- Driver Education Discount – Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to enroll in driver’s education as it will make them better drivers and lower rates.
- Telematics Data – Insureds who allow data collection to study where and when they drive by using a small device installed in their vehicle like Drivewise from Allstate or In-Drive from State Farm could possibly reduce rates as long as they are good drivers.
- Student in College – Children who are enrolled in higher education away from home and won’t have access to an insured vehicle may be insured at a cheaper rate.
- Discount for Low Mileage – Fewer annual miles on your Buick could qualify for lower auto insurancerates due to less chance of an accident.
- Waiver for an Accident – but a few companies such as GEICO, Allstate and Liberty Mutual allow you one accident without the usual rate increase as long as you don’t have any claims for a certain period of time.
Drivers should understand that most discount credits are not given to your bottom line cost. Some only reduce individual premiums such as comp or med pay. Even though the math looks like adding up those discounts means a free policy, that’s just not realistic.
A few popular companies and a partial list of their discounts are detailed below.
- State Farm may have discounts that include safe vehicle, defensive driving training, anti-theft, Drive Safe & Save, good student, and multiple autos.
- Progressive offers discounts including homeowner, online quote discount, continuous coverage, online signing, multi-vehicle, good student, and multi-policy.
- Travelers has discounts for hybrid/electric vehicle, home ownership, payment discounts, save driver, and IntelliDrive.
- American Family may include discounts for early bird, Steer into Savings, bundled insurance, accident-free, and defensive driver.
- Liberty Mutual discounts include good student, newly married, new move discount, multi-policy, preferred payment discount, and exclusive group savings.
Check with each company to apply every possible discount. Some of the discounts discussed earlier may not apply to policies in Dallas. To choose providers who offer online auto insurance quotes in Texas, follow this link.
Shop online but buy locally
A small number of people still prefer to get advice from a local agent and often times that is recommended A good thing about comparing rates online is that you can obtain the lowest rates but still work with a licensed agent. And supporting local agents is important particularly in Dallas.
To find an agent, once you fill out this simple form, your coverage information is emailed to local insurance agents who will give you quotes to get your business. You won’t even need to drive around because quoted prices will be sent immediately to your email address. You can find the lowest rates without requiring a lot of work. If you need to get a rate quote for a specific company, you just need to search and find their rate quote page and submit a quote form there.
Different types of auto insurance agents in Dallas
When researching a reputable agency, it helps to know the two different agency structures and how they operate. Auto insurance policy providers can either be captive or independent.
Independent Auto Insurance Agents
Independent agencies often have many company appointments and that enables them to quote your coverage with a variety of different insurance companies depending on which coverage is best. If your premiums go up, your agent can just switch to a different company which makes it simple for you. When searching for an agent, you absolutely need to compare quotes from several independent insurance agents to have the most options to choose from.
Captive Insurance Agents
Agents of this type write business for a single company such as American Family, State Farm, and Allstate. Captives cannot shop your coverage around so they are skilled at selling on more than just price. Captive insurance agents are usually quite knowledgeable in insurance sales which helps them compete with independent agents.
Selecting an insurance agency requires you to look at more than just a cheap price. A good agent will have answers to these questions.
- What kind of financial rating does the company have?
- Do they specialize in personal lines auto insurance?
- Are you getting all the discounts the company offers?
- In the event of vehicle damage, can you pick the collision repair facility?
- Can you contact them at any time?
- Which family members are covered?
- Is coverage determined by price?
- Is the agency covered by Errors and Omissions coverage?
Once you have received good feedback and an affordable coverage quote, chances are good that you have found an insurance agency that is reliable enough to properly service your auto insurance policy.
Do drivers who switch really save $451 a year?
Big name companies like Allstate and Progressive regularly use ads in print and on television. They all seem to seem to make the promise about how much you will save if you change to their company. It sounds good, but how can they all claim to save you money? Here is the trick they use.
Insurance companies have specific characteristics for a prospective insured that will be a good risk. A good example of a desirable risk might have to be a married female, has few claims, and has great credit. Anyone that meets those criteria may get the lowest premium rates in Dallas and will also save some money.
Consumers who don’t qualify for the ideal profile will see a higher rate with the end result being business not being written. The trick companies use is to say “people who switch” but not “everyone who gets a quote” can get the lowest rates when switching. This is how insurance companies can confidently lure you into getting a quote.
Because of this risk profiling, it’s extremely important to compare price quotes frequently. Because you never know with any certainty which company will fit you best based on your risk profile.
Much more information about auto insurance in Texas can be found on the through this link. Texas drivers can find out industry alerts, view agent and company licensing information, file complaints about a company, and read enforcement actions against agents and companies.
Other related articles:
- Things You Must Know Before Buying Dallas Texas Auto Insurance Online
- Is Your Dallas, TX Auto Insurance Too High? Learn How to Lower Your Rates
- Useful Tips for Finding a Dallas, TX Insurance Agent
Leave no stone unturned
We covered quite a bit of information on how to shop for Buick Enclave insurance online. The key thing to remember is the more times you quote, the higher the chance of saving money. Consumers may even find the best rates are with a smaller regional carrier. These smaller insurers can often insure niche markets at a lower cost than the large multi-state companies such as State Farm or Progressive.
As you prepare to switch companies, you should never buy less coverage just to save a little money. There have been many situations where consumers will sacrifice uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret at claim time they didn’t have enough coverage. Your strategy should be to buy a smart amount of coverage for the lowest price but still have enough coverage for asset protection.