Pricey auto insurance can eat up your personal savings and force you to make tough financial choices. Price shopping at each renewal is a smart way to cut your insurance bill.
Lots of insurance companies contend for your hard-earned dollar, and it can be difficult to compare rates to find the absolute best rates possible.
It’s a great practice to check auto insurance prices once or twice a year because auto insurance prices change frequently. Even if you think you had the best price on Grand Caravan coverage a couple years back you will most likely find a better rate today. Ignore everything you know about auto insurance because you’re going to learn the fastest way to lower your annual insurance bill.
There are several ways to shop for auto insurance, but some are less time-consuming than others. You can spend your afternoon talking about coverages with insurance agencies in Houston, or you can utilize the internet to accomplish the same thing much quicker.
Many insurance companies enroll in a system that allows shoppers to enter their coverage request one time, and every company can provide price quotes based on that information. This prevents consumers from doing quote forms to every company.
To use this form to compare rates click to open in new window.
The one downside to using this type of system is you can’t choose the insurers you will receive quotes from. If you wish to select individual companies for rate comparison, we put together a list of auto insurance companies in Texas. Click to view list.
Take whichever approach you prefer, but do your best to use nearly identical coverage data on every price quote you get. If the quotes have different liability limits it will be nearly impossible to decipher which rate is best in Houston. Having just a slight variation in insurance coverages or limits can result in a big premium difference. And when price shopping your coverage, comparing more company’s prices increases your odds of finding the best rates. Some insurance companies are not set up to provide prices over the internet, so you also need to get price estimates from them as well.
Lower rate quotes by taking advantage of discounts
Not many people think insurance is cheap, but you may find discounts that you may not know about. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically at quote time, but some need to be inquired about before you get the savings.
- Paperwork-free – Some larger companies may give you up to $50 for buying your policy digitally online.
- Student in College – Older children who attend college more than 100 miles from home and do not take a car to college could get you a discount.
- Senior Citizen Rates – Drivers that qualify as senior citizens may receive a small decrease in premiums on Grand Caravan coverage.
- First Accident Forgiveness – This one isn’t a discount, but some insurance companies will turn a blind eye to one accident without raising rates with the catch being you have to be claim-free prior to being involved in the accident.
- Life Insurance Discount – Some insurance companies give a small discount if you purchase life insurance.
- Savings for New Vehicles – Buying insurance coverage on a new vehicle is cheaper compared to insuring an older model.
- Military Discounts – Being deployed in the military could qualify you for better prices.
- Responsible Driver Discounts – Insureds who avoid accidents can get discounts for up to 45% lower rates on Grand Caravan coverage compared to rates paid by drivers with frequent claims.
- Smart Student Discounts – Excelling in school can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. The good student discount can last well after school through age 25.
- Auto/Home Discount – When you combine your home and auto insurance with the same company you may earn up to 20% and get you .
Policy discounts save money, but most of the big mark downs will not be given to your bottom line cost. Most only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as collision or personal injury protection. So even though it sounds like you could get a free auto insurance policy, you won’t be that lucky.
A few of the larger companies and their offered discounts are included below.
- GEICO discounts include multi-policy, anti-lock brakes, anti-theft, seat belt use, five-year accident-free, and air bags.
- Travelers includes discounts for multi-policy, home ownership, hybrid/electric vehicle, new car, and multi-car.
- Nationwide may have discounts that include defensive driving, multi-policy, easy pay, anti-theft, and good student.
- Farmers Insurance has savings for teen driver, multi-car, alternative fuel, bundle discounts, youthful driver, and pay in full.
- Esurance may offer discounts for anti-theft, multi-car, good driver, Pac-12 alumni, homeowner, and paid-in-full.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including safe vehicle, defensive driving training, passive restraint, Steer Clear safe driver discount, multiple policy, and good driver.
- Progressive offers discounts for continuous coverage, multi-vehicle, multi-policy, homeowner, online signing, good student, and online quote discount.
- Mercury Insurance has discounts for anti-theft, type of vehicle, good driver, annual mileage, and multi-policy.
If you need lower rates, check with every prospective company how you can save money. Savings may not be available in your state.
Learn How to Lower Your Insurance Rates
Part of the auto insurance buying process is learning the factors that come into play when calculating your auto insurance rates. When consumers understand what controls the rates you pay, this enables informed choices that could help you find big savings.
The following are a partial list of the pieces companies use to determine your prices.
- Consolidate and save – Most major auto insurance companies afford lower prices to customers who consolidate policies with them, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Even though this discount sounds good, it’s in your best interest to compare other insurance prices to guarantee you are still saving the most.
- Experienced drivers pay less – Older, more experienced drivers are more cautious drivers, cost insurance companies less in claims , and usually have better credit.Drivers with little experience are statistically proven to be inattentive and easily distracted behind the wheel so they pay higher auto insurance rates.
- High credit scores save money – Your credit score is a large factor in determining what you pay for auto insurance. Consumers who have very good credit scores tend to be better risks to insure than those with lower ratings. So if your credit score leaves room for improvement, you may save money insuring your Dodge Grand Caravan by taking the time to improve your credit score.
- Avoid tickets and save – Drivers with clean records tend to pay less for car insurance as compared to careless drivers. Even a single speeding ticket can increase the cost of insurance by twenty percent. Drivers with flagrant tickets such as DUI or willful reckless driving are required to prove financial responsibility with their state DMV in order to continue driving.
Auto insurance savings promises
Big name companies like 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm continually stream television, radio, and online ads. All the companies make the same claim that you’ll save big if you get a free and switch your policy. How can each company sell you cheaper insurance coverage? Just pay attention to how they say it.
All companies give the cheapest rates for the type of insured that will most likely be profitable. A good example of this type of driver might be between 30 and 50, has other policies, and chooses high deductibles. Any new insured who matches those parameters is entitled to the best price and most likely will cut their rates if they switch.
People who are not a match for these standards will probably have to pay higher premium rates and this can result in the customer buying from a different company. The ads say “customers who switch” not “everyone who quotes” can get the lowest rates when switching. That’s the way companies can claim big savings.
Each company has different criteria, so you really need to compare rate quotes every year. It is impossible to guess the company that will fit your personal profile best.
Don’t give up on lower rates
While you’re price shopping online, do not skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. There are too many instances where an accident victim reduced uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret that saving that couple of dollars actually costed them tens of thousands. Your focus should be to purchase a proper amount of coverage for the lowest price while not skimping on critical coverages.
We covered some good ideas how to get a better price on Dodge Grand Caravan insurance. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the higher the chance of saving money. Drivers may discover the lowest premium rates come from an unexpected company. They can often insure niche markets at a lower cost than the large multi-state companies such as GEICO and State Farm.
Discount Dodge Grand Caravan insurance is possible both online and from local agencies, so you need to with both so you have a total pricing picture. Some insurance companies may not provide online rate quotes and most of the time these smaller providers provide coverage only through local independent agents.
For more reading
Additional information can be read on the found here. Visitors are able to view a list of available companies, read enforcement actions against agents and companies, read industry bulletins, and read state legal mandates and laws.
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