Do you think you bought an expensive auto insurance policy? You’re preaching to the choir because many Athens consumers feel financially strained by their auto insurance policy. Big-name insurance companies like Geico and Progressive continually hit you with advertising and consumers find it hard to see through the deception and take the time to shop coverage around.
You should make it a habit to check auto insurance prices occasionally because rates go up and down regularly. Just because you had the lowest premium rates last year other companies may now be cheaper. Ignore everything you know about auto insurance because you’re about to learn the proper way to find lower rates on auto insurance.
Learn how to lower your auto insurance premiums
Multiple criteria are taken into consideration when pricing auto insurance. A few of the factors are predictable like your driving record, but others are less obvious such as your credit history and annual miles driven.
- More performance means more cost – The type of car or truck you are trying to find cheaper insurance for makes a substantial difference in determining your rates. The lowest rates are usually for smaller low performance passenger vehicles, but other factors influence the final cost greatly.
- Your location is a factor – Residing in less populated areas of the country can be a good thing when insuring your vehicles. Drivers who live in large cities regularly have more traffic problems and longer commutes to work. Fewer drivers translates into fewer accident claims and a lower car theft rate.
- Your gender affects prices – Statistics have proven that females take fewer risks when driving. That doesn’t necessarily mean that women are BETTER drivers than men. Both sexes cause fender benders in similar percentages, but men tend to have higher claims. Men also statistically get higher numbers of serious violations such as reckless driving. Young men ages 16 to 20 are several times more likely to be in an accident and therefore pay the highest rates.
- Lower rates with a multi-policy discount – Most insurance companies provide lower prices to insureds who buy several policies from them such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Even if you already get this discount, you still need to compare other company rates to ensure the best deal. It’s possible to still save more without the discount even if you have your coverage with different companies
- Do thieves like your car? – Purchasing a vehicle with a theft deterrent system can save you some money. Advanced theft deterrents such as GM’s OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all hinder your vehicle from being stolen.
- Buy a safe car and pay less – Vehicles that have high safety ratings are cheaper to insure. Highly rated vehicles help reduce the chance of injuries in an accident and any reduction in injury severity translates into savings for insurance companies and lower rates for you.
- Mature drivers save more – Mature drivers are viewed as being more responsible, statistically cause fewer accidents .Youthful drivers are statistically proven to be more careless behind the wheel therefore auto insurance rates are much higher.
- Get hitched and get better rates – Walking down the aisle may earn you lower rates compared to being single. Having a significant other usually means you are less irresponsible and insurance companies reward insureds because married drivers get in fewer accidents.
Cheaper Tennessee auto insurance quotes with discounts
Insuring your fleet can be pricey, but there may be some discounts that you may not even be aware of. A few discounts will automatically apply when you get a quote, but occassionally some discounts must be inquired about in order for you to get them.
- Renewal Discounts – A few insurance companies offer discounts for switching policies prior to your current policy expiring. Ten percent is about the average savings.
- Discounts for Federal Employees – Employees or retirees of the government may reduce rates when you depending on your auto insurance provider.
- Paper-free Discount – Many companies will give a small break just for signing your application on the web.
- Passive Restraint Discount – Factory options such as air bags or automatic seat belts may get savings as much as 30%.
- Pay Early and Save – If you pay your bill all at once as opposed to paying monthly you can avoid the installment charge.
- Low Mileage – Low annual miles can earn substantially lower auto insurancerates.
- Multiple Policy Discount – If you insure your home and vehicles and insure them both with the same insurance company you could get a discount of nearly 15% which can help you find .
- Active Military Service – Being deployed with a military unit could mean lower premium rates.
- Telematics Data – Drivers that enable driving data collection to analyze when and where they use their vehicle through the use of a telematics system such as Allstate’s Drivewise and State Farm’s In-Drive system could save a few bucks if they exhibit good driving behavior.
Policy discounts save money, but some credits don’t apply to your bottom line cost. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. So when it seems like you can get free auto insurance, companies don’t profit that way.
A list of companies and a selection of discounts are included below.
- Progressive offers premium reductions for multi-policy, online signing, homeowner, multi-vehicle, and online quote discount.
- SAFECO offers discounts including bundle discounts, anti-theft, multi-car, safe driver, anti-lock brakes, accident prevention training, and drive less.
- American Family policyholders can earn discounts including Steer into Savings, bundled insurance, TimeAway discount, good student, and mySafetyValet.
- MetLife has savings for claim-free, good student, accident-free, defensive driver, and good driver.
- Geico includes discounts for good student, five-year accident-free, anti-theft, air bags, and anti-lock brakes.
- The Hartford may have discounts that include bundle, anti-theft, defensive driver, air bag, driver training, and good student.
Before buying, ask every insurance company how you can save money. Savings might not be offered in your area.
Do I need an insurance agency?
Many people just want to get professional advice from a licensed agent. An additional benefit of comparing rate quotes online is you can get lower car insurance rates and still buy from a local agent. Putting coverage with neighborhood insurance agencies is important especially in Athens.
To help locate an agent, after submitting this short form, your insurance coverage information gets sent to insurance agents in Athens who will gladly provide quotes to get your business. It simplifies rate comparisons since you won’t have to find an agent because quoted prices will be sent to your email. Get lower rates and work with a local agent. If you wish to compare prices from a specific insurance company, you would need to find their quoting web page and give them your coverage information.
If you would like to find a reputable agency, you should know the different agency structures and how they are slightly different. Agencies in Athens are categorized either captive agents or independent agents.
Independent Auto Insurance Agencies or Brokers
Agents of this type are not restriced to one company so they can quote policies through lots of different companies and find the cheapest auto insurance rates. If your agent finds better pricing, an independent agent can move your coverage which requires no work on your part. When searching for an agent, we recommend you check rates from multiple independent agents to have the best price comparison.
Featured below is a list of independent agents in Athens who can help you get pricing information.
Madison Insurance Ctr – 1700 W Madison Ave – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 745-2552
Insurance Inc Of Athens – 2622 Decatur Pike – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 744-9031
Direct General Ins Agency – 321 Decatur Pike – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 507-8001
Jim Pitt Agency – 1404 Decatur Pike – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 744-7488
Direct General Ins Agency – 933 Decatur Pike – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 507-8001
Captive Auto Insurance Agencies
Captive insurance agents have only one company to place business with like Allstate and State Farm. These agents are not able to provide prices from multiple companies so you might not find the best rates. They are usually well trained on their products and sales techniques which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums.
Below are Athens captive insurance agents that are able to give rate quotes.
State Farm Insurance – 506 Congress Pkwy S – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 745-7757
Shelter Insurance – 115 Park St – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 745-8300
Farm Bureau Insurance – 208 Congress Pkwy S – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 745-4521
Allstate Insurance – 500 Maple St – Athens, TN 37303 – (423) 745-6700
For insurance agents in your area, please visit this list of Athens auto insurance providers.
Deciding on an car insurance agent is decision based upon more than just the premium amount. Below are some questions you should ask.
- Are they able to influence company decisions when a claim is filed?
- Do you qualify for any additional discounts?
- If they are an independent agency, which companies do they recommend?
- Will high miles depreciate repair valuations?
- How much experience to they have in personal lines coverages?
- Do they have 24-hour customer assistance?
- Do they make recommendations based only on price?
But the ad said I’d save 15% in 15 minutes!
Big name companies like State Farm, Geico and Progressive consistently run ads on television and other media. All the ads state the claim that people will save if you switch your coverage. Is it even possible that every company can give you a lower rate? Here is how they do it.
Auto insurance companies quote their cheapest rates for the type of driver that earns them a profit. For example, a profitable insured may need to be over the age of 35, has other policies, and chooses high deductibles. A customer that hits that “sweet spot” gets the lowest rates and most likely will save a lot of money.
Drivers who don’t measure up to these stringent criteria will be quoted higher prices with the end result being the customer not buying. Company advertisements say “drivers who switch” not “all people who quote” save that much. That’s the way companies can make it sound like they have such great rates.
Because of the profiling, you really need to quotes from several different companies. Because you cannot predict with any certainty which company will fit you best based on your risk profile.
How to know if you need help
When it comes to choosing coverage, there really is no “perfect” insurance plan. Every situation is different so this has to be addressed. For instance, these questions may help highlight if you would benefit from professional advice.
- Is rental equipment covered for theft or damage?
- Should I sign the liability waiver when renting a car?
- Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
- Does my insurance cover my expensive audio equipment?
- Does my policy cover me when driving someone else’s vehicle?
- Does my policy pay for OEM or aftermarket parts?
If you don’t know the answers to these questions then you might want to talk to an insurance agent. If you don’t have a local agent, take a second and complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies.
More Tennessee auto insurance resources
More information can be found on the found here. Consumers can read industry bulletins, learn about insurance regulations, file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, and download brochures.
The articles below may also help you learn more about auto insurance in Athens
Cheaper auto insurance rates are out there
As you , it’s not a good idea to skimp on coverage in order to save money. There are a lot of situations where consumers will sacrifice collision coverage only to regret that the small savings ended up costing them much more. Your focus should be to purchase a proper amount of coverage for the lowest price, not the least amount of coverage.
Cheap auto insurance is available online and also from your neighborhood Athens agents, so get from both of them to have the best selection. Some insurance companies may not provide internet price quotes and most of the time these small insurance companies only sell through local independent agents.
In this article, we presented many ways to reduce auto insurance car insurance rates online. The key concept to understand is the more providers you compare, the better chance you’ll have of finding . Consumers could even find that the best car insurance rates are with the least-expected company. Regional companies can often insure niche markets at a lower cost as compared to the big name companies such as Geico and State Farm.