Paying for high-priced car insurance can dwindle your monthly budget, especially in this economy. Doing a rate comparison is a fast and free way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket.
With so many insurance companies to choose from, it can be challenging to find a more affordable car insurance provider.
It’s smart to do price comparisons once or twice a year due to the fact that insurance prices tend to go up over time. Even if you got the best deal two years ago you can probably find a lower rate today. Forget all the misinformation about car insurance because I’m going to let you in on the secrets to the fastest and easiest way to find better coverage at a better price.
Finding affordable coverage in Clay Center is not rocket science. If you currently have a car insurance policy, you stand a good chance to be able to reduce your rates substantially using this strategy. But Kansas vehicle owners should learn the way insurance companies sell insurance online and take advantage of how the system works.
The majority of larger companies give prices on their websites. Obtaining pricing is pretty easy because it’s just a matter of typing in your required coverages into a form. When complete, the company’s rating system makes automated requests for credit information and your driving record and generates pricing information. Being able to quote online makes it a lot easier to compare rates but the time it takes to visit each company’s website and repetitively type in the same information is repetitive and time-consuming. But it’s also necessary to do this if you are searching for the best price on car insurance.
The quickest way to lower your rates requires only one form to get prices from a bunch of companies at once. It’s a real time-saver, requires less work, and makes online shopping much more enjoyable. After sending your information, it is quoted and you are able to buy any one of the returned quotes. If the quotes result in lower rates, you can simply submit the application and buy the policy. The whole process can be completed in less than 10 minutes and you will know how your current rates stack up.
If you want to find out how much you’re overpaying now, click here to open in new window and fill out the form. If you have your current policy handy, we recommend you duplicate the coverages exactly as shown on your declarations page. This ensures you will have a rate comparison for similar insurance coverage.
Car insurance discounts are available to cut your rates
Auto insurance companies don’t list all their discounts in a way that’s easy to find, so below is a list a few of the more well known and also the lesser-known credits available to bring down your rates.
- Paper-free Discount – Many insurance companies give back up to $50 just for signing your application online.
- Discounts for Federal Employees – Active or former government employment can earn a discount up to 10% with certain companies.
- Clay Center Homeowners Discount – Owning your own home or condo may earn you a small savings since owning and maintaining a home means you have a higher level of financial diligence.
- Driving Data Discount – Clay Center drivers who agree to allow driving data collection to look at driving habits by installing a telematics device such as Progressive’s Snapshot may see discounts as long as they are good drivers.
- Pay Now and Pay Less – By paying your entire bill at once instead of monthly or quarterly installments you can avoid monthly service charges.
One last thing about discounts, most credits do not apply the the whole policy. Some only apply to the cost of specific coverages such as medical payments or collision. Even though it appears you can get free auto insurance, car insurance companies aren’t that generous. Any qualifying discounts will definitely lower your overall premium however.
The best car insurance companies and a summarized list of policyholder discounts can be found below.
- Progressive offers discounts including homeowner, multi-vehicle, online signing, continuous coverage, and good student.
- Farmers Insurance may include discounts for mature driver, good student, youthful driver, teen driver, homeowner, and distant student.
- Farm Bureau has savings for renewal discount, youthful driver, driver training, multi-vehicle, good student, safe driver, and 55 and retired.
- State Farm offers discounts for passive restraint, accident-free, multiple autos, multiple policy, Drive Safe & Save, defensive driving training, and anti-theft.
- Geico offers premium reductions for anti-theft, emergency military deployment, military active duty, multi-vehicle, and good student.
- SAFECO policyholders can earn discounts including multi-car, safe driver, teen safe driver, bundle discounts, accident prevention training, and anti-lock brakes.
- Liberty Mutual has discounts for newly married, multi-car, hybrid vehicle, exclusive group savings, new vehicle discount, and new graduate.
When quoting, ask every insurance company how you can save money. Some discounts may not be available in Clay Center. To see a list of car insurance companies who offer free car insurance quotes in Kansas, click this link.
Get more affordable premiums by understanding these factors
Lots of factors are taken into consideration when you get your auto insurance bill. Some are pretty understandable like a motor vehicle report, although some other factors are less obvious such as whether you are married or how financially stable you are. Consumers need to have an understanding of a few of the rating criteria that help calculate the level of your policy premiums. If you understand what influences your rates, this allows you to make educated decisions that could help you find cheaper rates.
The list below includes most of the major factors car insurance companies consider when setting prices.
- Drive a safer car and pay less – Cars with five star safety ratings tend to have better insurance rates. Vehicles engineered for safety reduce injuries and reduced instances of injuries means less money paid by your insurance company which can result in lower premiums. If your car, truck, or SUV has at least an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website you may pay a lower rate.
- Do thieves like your car? – Purchasing a vehicle with a theft deterrent system can save you some money. Anti-theft features like tamper alarm systems, vehicle immobilizer technology and General Motors OnStar all help prevent car theft and help bring rates down.
- How old are your drivers? – More experienced drivers are viewed as being more responsible, are lower risk to insure and receive fewer citations.Teenage drivers have been known to be inattentive in a vehicle therefore car insurance rates are much higher.
- Certain vocations pay higher premiums – Occupations such as doctors, architects and financial analysts generally pay the highest average rates due to intense work situations and extremely grueling work hours. Conversely, careers such as farmers, students and retirees have the lowest average rates.
- Cautious drivers pay better premiums – How you drive has a huge affect on how much you pay. Drivers with clean records pay less for auto insurance than bad drivers. Having just one speeding ticket or other violation could increase your next policy renewal substantially. Drivers who have gotten serious tickets like hit and run, DWI or reckless driving convictions may find that they have to to prove financial responsibility with their state DMV in order to continue driving.
- Don’t let your car insurance policy lapse – Having an insurance coverage lapse is a guaranteed way to drive up your policy premiums. And not only will your rates increase, failure to provide proof of insurance may result in a steep fine or even jail time.
Don’t I need to have guidance from a local insurance agent?
Some people just want to buy from a licensed agent and that is just fine! The best thing about comparing car insurance online is you can get cheap rate quotes but still work with a licensed agent.
To make it easy to find an agent, after completing this short form, your information is sent to participating agents in Clay Center who will give you quotes for your business. It simplifies rate comparisons since you won’t have to leave your computer because quoted prices will be sent straight to your inbox. Get lower rates AND an agent nearby. If for some reason you want to get a rate quote for a specific company, just find their quoting web page and give them your coverage information.
Choosing a insurance company should depend on more than just a cheap quote. Below are some questions you should ask.
- Are you getting all the discounts the company offers?
- What is the financial rating for the quoted company?
- Which insurance companies are they affiliated with?
- Does the agency have a positive business rating?
- Does the company allow you to choose your own collision repair facility?
- Is insurance their full-time profession?
- Will the quote change when the policy is issued?
Clay Center auto insurance agents come in two flavors
If you want to use a reliable insurance agent, you should know the different types of agencies that you can select. Agents in Clay Center may be either independent or captive.
Captive Insurance Agents
These agents can only quote rates from one company such as Allstate, AAA, Farmers Insurance, and State Farm. Captive agencies are unable to compare other company’s rates so they have no alternatives for high prices. They are trained well on sales techniques which helps overcome the inability to quote other rates.
Listed below are captive agencies in Clay Center that can give you rate quotes.
State Farm Insurance – 429 Court St – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-5642
Shelter Insurance – 436 Lincoln Ave – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-3902
Farm Bureau Insurance – 622 Court St – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-2585
Independent Agents (or Brokers)
These agents do not work for one specific company so as a result can place your coverage with lots of companies and find the cheapest rate. If they find a cheaper price, they simply move the coverage in-house which is easy for the insured.
When searching for an agent, it’s recommended you get some free quotes from at a minimum one independent agency in order to compare the most rates.
Below is a list of independent insurance agencies in Clay Center that are able to give price quotes.
Slingsby Agency – 1121 Crawford St – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-2486
Home Agency Clay Ctr – 423 Court St – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-6767
Heilman Insurance – 507 Court St – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-2601
Kalivoda Insurance – 726 Washington St – Clay Center, KS 67432 – (785) 632-3933
For more car insurance agents in Clay Center, feel free to view this complete selection of Clay Center, KS car insurance providers.
How much car insurance do I need?
When it comes to buying coverage, there really is not a best way to insure your cars. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs and your policy should reflect that. For instance, these questions can aid in determining if you may require specific advice.
- Do I have any recourse if my insurance company denies a claim?
- Should I buy only the required Kansas minimum liability coverage?
- Does liability extend to a camper or trailer?
- How high should my uninsured/underinsured coverage be in Kansas?
- Should I rate my vehicle as pleasure use or commute?
- How much liability do I need to cover my assets?
If you’re not sure about those questions, then you may want to think about talking to an insurance agent. To find an agent in your area, fill out this quick form or go to this page to view a list of companies.
Additional detailed information can be read at the Kansas Insurance Department website. Kansas consumers can view a list of available companies, find disaster information, file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, and find out industry alerts.
Be persistent and save
Affordable car insurance can be found from both online companies and from local agencies, and you should compare rates from both so you have a total pricing picture. Some insurance providers may not provide the ability to get a quote online and these smaller providers only sell through independent agencies.
Throughout this article, we presented some good ideas how you can shop for car insurance online. The most important thing to understand is the more you , the better likelihood of getting . Consumers could even find that the biggest savings come from a smaller regional carrier. Regional companies may only write in your state and offer lower premium rates than their larger competitors like Allstate and Progressive.