Are you a victim of an overpriced auto insurance policy? Don’t sweat it because many Catoosa drivers feel the same as you. Due to the large number of auto insurance companies to choose from, it can be impossible to choose the lowest price company.
Consumers need to price shop coverage at least once a year because auto insurance rates are variable and change quite frequently. Despite the fact that you may have had the lowest rate a year ago you will most likely find a better price today. Block out anything you think you know about auto insurance because I’m going to let you in on the secrets to the things you must know in order to lower your rates without sacrificing coverage.
The purpose of this post is to teach you the most effective way to quote insurance and some tricks to saving. If you are paying for car insurance now, you will most likely be able to cut costs considerably using these tips. But Oklahoma consumers need to learn the way companies determine prices and use this information to your advantage.
There are a variety of methods to shop for auto insurance, but some are easier and takes less work. You can waste a few hours (or days) talking to agents in Catoosa, or you can utilize the internet to maximize your effort.
Most of the best insurance companies take part in a program where insurance shoppers send in one quote, and each company then returns a price quote. This eliminates the need for quote requests for every auto insurance company.
To compare pricing click here to start a free quote.
The one disadvantage to comparing rates this way is you can’t choose which insurance companies to receive prices from. If you wish to select individual companies to compare prices, we put together a list of companies who write auto insurance in Oklahoma. Click here to view list.
Compare rates however you want, just be sure you’re using the exact same coverages and limits on every price quote you get. If the quotes have mixed coverages it will be very difficult to determine which company has the best rates in Catoosa. Even a minor difference in insurance coverages may result in a large different in cost. And when comparing auto insurance rates, know that comparing a large number of companies will enable you to find the best offered rates. Not every company does online price quotes, so it’s important to compare price quotes from those companies as well.
Discounts can really help lower rates
Companies offering auto insurance do not list all disounts in a way that’s easy to find, so the list below gives a summary of both well-publicized in addition to some of the lesser obvious credits that you can use to lower your rates.
- Club Memberships – Being a member of a professional or civic organization is a simple method to lower premiums on your bill.
- Defensive Driver Discount – Completing a defensive driving class could possibly earn you a 5% discount depending on where you live.
- Distant Student Discount – Older children who live away from home to go to college without a vehicle on campus may be insured at a cheaper rate.
- Theft Prevention System – Anti-theft and alarm system equipped vehicles are stolen less frequently and therefore earn up to a 10% discount.
- Federal Government Employee – Simply working for the federal government may qualify for a discount when you with select insurance companies.
- Senior Citizen Discount – If you’re over the age of 55, you can get a small decrease in premiums.
- Driver’s Ed – Require your teen driver to take driver’s ed class in high school.
One last thing about discounts, most discounts do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. Some only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. Even though the math looks like you could get a free auto insurance policy, it’s just not the way it works. But all discounts should help lower your auto insurance premiums.
A list of auto insurance companies and some of the discounts can be read below.
- Geico policyholders can earn discounts including good student, five-year accident-free, federal employee, anti-theft, and defensive driver.
- USAA offers discounts including multi-policy, family discount, vehicle storage, military installation, and safe driver.
- Progressive discounts include online quote discount, good student, multi-policy, online signing, homeowner, and continuous coverage.
- American Family may offer discounts for early bird, air bags, bundled insurance, good driver, mySafetyValet, and good student.
- Esurance includes discounts for safety device, anti-theft, Pac-12 alumni, Switch & Save, and online shopper.
- Farmers Insurance may have discounts that include early shopping, distant student, alternative fuel, business and professional, homeowner, and bundle discounts.
- State Farm offers discounts for driver’s education, good driver, good student, passive restraint, defensive driving training, and multiple autos.
It’s a good idea to ask every company to apply every possible discount. Discounts might not apply in Catoosa. To see auto insurance companies with discount auto insurance rates in Oklahoma, follow this link.
How to lower your auto insurance premiums
An important part of buying insurance is that you know a few of the rating criteria that play a part in calculating auto insurance rates. If you understand what determines base rates, this helps enable you to make changes that could help you find lower premium levels.
The factors shown below are some of the most rate-impacting factors companies use to determine your rate level.
- Single drivers may pay higher rates – Being married may cut your premiums on auto insurance. It means you’re more financially stable and statistics show married drivers get in fewer accidents.
- Deter theft and save money – Owning a car with anti-theft technology or alarm system can help lower your premiums. Anti-theft features like LoJack tracking devices, vehicle tamper alarm systems or GM’s OnStar system can help prevent auto theft.
- Never go without auto insurance – Driving any period of time without insurance can get you a ticket and as a result your rates will increase for letting your coverage lapse. And not only will your rates increase, getting caught without coverage could result in a fine, jail time, or a revoked license. You could then be forced to prove you have insurance by filing a SR-22 with the Oklahoma motor vehicle department.
- Why do you need liability? – Your policy’s liability coverage will afford coverage in the event that you are found liable for an accident. It provides for a legal defense which can be incredibly expensive. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap as compared to coverage for physical damage, so do not cut corners here.
Much more information about auto insurance in Oklahoma is located on the Oklahoma Insurance Department website located here. Visitors are able to view a list of available companies, file complaints about a company, read industry bulletins, and get help finding coverage.
Save $481 a year? Really?
Auto insurance providers like 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm consistently run ads in print and on television. All the companies tend to make the same promise that drivers can save some big amount if you change your auto insurance coverage to their company. That’s great but how can every company offer you a better deal? Here is the trick they use.
Auto insurance companies require specific criteria for the type of driver that earns them a profit. An example of a driver they prefer may need to be over the age of 35, has a low-risk occupation, and drives less than 10,000 miles a year. A propective insured who matches those parameters will probably get the lowest premium rates and most likely will save quite a bit of money when switching.
Drivers who do not match this stringent profile will have to pay more expensive rates which leads to the customer not purchasing. If you listen closely, the ads state “people who switch” not “everyone who quotes” save that kind of money. That’s why insurance companies can confidently claim big savings.
Different companies use different criteria so it’s extremely important to do a quote comparison often. It is impossible to predict which company will have better prices than you’re paying now.
You can lower your rates
Some insurance companies don’t offer the ability to get a quote online and these smaller companies prefer to sell through local independent agents. Cheaper auto insurance is definitely available on the web and also from your neighborhood Catoosa agents, so you need to compare both to have the best rate selection.
In this article, we covered some good ideas how to shop for auto insurance online. The key thing to remember is the more times you quote, the higher the chance of saving money. You may even find the lowest priced auto insurance comes from a small mutual company. These smaller insurers may have significantly lower prices on certain market segments as compared to the big name companies such as Allstate, Geico and Progressive.