Paying for high-priced auto insurance can overdraw your checking account and force you to prioritize other expenses. Doing a price comparison is a great way to help make ends meet. Many auto insurance companies compete for your business, and it can be difficult to compare rates to discover the definitive lowest rate possible.
If you are insured now or are shopping for new coverage, you can follow these tips to cut your premiums and still get good coverage. Finding the best rates in Austin is easy if you know what you’re doing. Texas drivers only need an understanding of the most effective way to compare company rates on the web.
Austin Auto Insurance Prices Online
Lowering your auto insurance rates isn’t really that difficult. Drivers just need to take time to get quotes online from several insurance companies. This is very easy and can be done in several different ways.
- The first (and easiest) way to compare a lot of rates at once would be an industry-wide quote request form (click to open form in new window). This form saves time by eliminating separate quotation requests for each company you want a rate for. A single form gets you coverage quotes instantly.
- A harder way to find lower rates consists of going to each individual company website and request a quote. For instance, let’s assume you want comparison quotes from State Farm, Farmers and Liberty Mutual. To get rate quotes you would need to go to every website and enter your policy data, which is why the first method is more popular.
To view a list of companies in Austin, click here.
However you get your quotes, make sure you use identical deductibles and coverage limits on every quote you get. If each company quotes different values for each quote it will be impossible to make a fair comparison in Austin.
Auto insurance myths debunked
Texas drivers can’t get away from ads for the lowest price auto insurance by Progressive, Allstate and Geico. All the companies say the same thing about savings after switching to their company.
How can each company say the same thing? It’s all in the numbers.
Insurance companies are able to cherry pick for the type of customer that makes them money. For example, a desirable insured might be between 25 and 40, a clean driving record, and has a short commute. A customer who matches those parameters is entitled to the best price and is almost guaranteed to cut their rates substantially.
Drivers who don’t qualify for the “perfect” profile will be charged a more expensive rate which leads to business not being written. Company advertisements say “customers who switch” but not “drivers who get quotes” save that kind of money. That’s the way insurance companies can confidently make the claims of big savings. That is why you absolutely need to quote coverage with many companies. You cannot predict the company that will have the lowest rates.
Are you getting all your discounts?
Car insurance companies don’t always advertise all available discounts in a way that’s easy to find, so we break down both the well known and also the lesser-known auto insurance savings. If you aren’t receiving every discount available, you’re just leaving money on the table.
- Lower Rates for Military – Having a deployed family member could be rewarded with lower premiums.
- Homeowners Pay Less – Owning a house in Austin can help you save on auto insurance because owning a home requires personal responsibility.
- More Vehicles More Savings – Buying coverage for multiple cars or trucks on one policy qualifies for this discount.
- Auto/Life Discount – Select insurance companies reward you with better rates if you take out life insurance from them.
- Good Student Discount – Getting good grades can save 20 to 25%. The discount lasts up to age 25.
- Organization Discounts – Affiliation with a qualifying organization could qualify you for a break on auto insurance.
Drivers should understand that some credits don’t apply to your bottom line cost. Most only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as collision or personal injury protection. So even though they make it sound like you would end up receiving a 100% discount, companies wouldn’t make money that way.
More detailed Texas auto insurance information can be read at the Texas Department of Insurance website. Visitors are able to find out which companies have the most complaints, file complaints about a company, file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, and find out industry alerts.
Auto insurance coverages 101
Knowing the specifics of your auto insurance policy helps when choosing appropriate coverage and the correct deductibles and limits. The terms used in a policy can be difficult to understand and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Listed below are typical coverages offered by auto insurance companies.
Liability coverages – This will cover injuries or damage you cause to people or other property. Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. You commonly see liability limits of 25/50/25 which means $25,000 bodily injury coverage, a total of $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and a total limit of $25,000 for damage to vehicles and property.
Liability coverage pays for claims such as medical expenses, court costs, funeral expenses and structural damage. How much liability coverage do you need? That is your choice, but consider buying as much as you can afford. Texas requires drivers to carry at least 30,000/60,000/25,000 but you should think about purchasing more coverage.
Comprehensive coverage (or Other than Collision) – This coverage pays for damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. You first must pay your deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive can pay for things like hitting a deer, damage from flooding, rock chips in glass and damage from getting keyed. The maximum amount a auto insurance company will pay at claim time is the cash value of the vehicle, so if it’s not worth much more than your deductible it’s not worth carrying full coverage.
Collision coverages – This coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.
Collision can pay for things such as backing into a parked car, crashing into a building, damaging your car on a curb and hitting a mailbox. This coverage can be expensive, so consider dropping it from vehicles that are older. It’s also possible to bump up the deductible to bring the cost down.
Uninsured Motorist or Underinsured Motorist insurance – This coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants from other drivers when they either have no liability insurance or not enough. Covered claims include hospital bills for your injuries and also any damage incurred to your vehicle.
Since many Texas drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits (Texas limits are 30/60/25), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is important protection for you and your family.
Insurance for medical payments – Med pay and PIP coverage reimburse you for immediate expenses such as doctor visits, EMT expenses, X-ray expenses, chiropractic care and ambulance fees. The coverages can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance policy or if there is no health insurance coverage. It covers both the driver and occupants and also covers if you are hit as a while walking down the street. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Smart shoppers get results
When trying to cut insurance costs, do not sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. In many instances, drivers have reduced collision coverage only to find out that it was a big mistake. The ultimate goal is to get the best coverage possible at a price you can afford while still protecting your assets.
In this article, we covered a lot of tips how to save on auto insurance. The key thing to remember is the more rate quotes you have, the better your comparison will be. Consumers could even find that the lowest premiums are with a company that doesn’t do a lot of advertising. Some small companies often have lower prices on specific markets compared to the large companies like Allstate or State Farm.
Discount auto insurance is definitely available on the web as well as from independent agents in Austin, so you should compare both to have the best selection. Some insurance providers don’t offer you the ability to get quotes online and these small insurance companies work with independent agents.