It goes without saying that car insurance companies don’t want customers comparing rates. Insureds who shop for lower prices will most likely move their business because there is a significant possibility of finding a lower-priced company. A recent survey found that drivers who compared prices regularly saved an average of $3,450 over four years compared to drivers who never compared prices.
If finding low prices for auto insurance is your ultimate target, then having a grasp of the best ways to shop for insurance coverage can help make the process easier.
If your goal is the lowest price, then the best way to get the cheapest auto insurance rates is to regularly compare prices from insurance carriers who sell auto insurance in Louisville.
- Step 1: Spend some time learning about how companies set rates and the measures you can take to keep rates in check. Many rating criteria that cause rate increases such as at-fault accidents, careless driving, and a less-than-favorable credit history can be eliminated by making small lifestyle or driving habit changes.
- Step 2: Obtain price quotes from exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct providers. Exclusive and direct companies can provide rates from a single company like Progressive and State Farm, while independent agents can give you price quotes from multiple companies.
- Step 3: Compare the new rates to the premium of your current policy to see if you can save by switching companies. If you can save money, verify that coverage does not lapse between policies.
- Step 4: Tell your current agent or company of your intent to cancel your current policy. Submit a down payment and signed policy application to the new company. Once coverage is bound, put the new certificate of insurance somewhere easily accessible.
One key aspect of rate comparisons is to use the same amount of coverage on each quote request and and to analyze as many carriers as you can. Doing this provides an accurate price comparison and a complete selection of prices.
The auto insurance companies shown below provide quotes in Kentucky. To buy cheaper car insurance in Kentucky, it’s a good idea that you compare several of them to get a more complete price comparison.
Volkswagen e-Golf Insurance Rate Factors
Part of the insurance buying process is learning the rating factors that are used to determine your policy premiums. If you know what impacts premium levels, this enables you to make decisions that could help you find lower premium levels.
- Save money by raising comp and collision deductibles – Physical damage insurance, aka comp and collision, protects your Volkswagen from damage. Some examples of claims that would be covered would be a windshield shattered by a rock, damage caused by hail, and burglary. Deductibles for physical damage define how much you are willing to pay if a covered claim is submitted. The more money you’re willing to pay, the bigger discount you will receive.
- Get a ticket, pay higher rates – Careful drivers have lower premiums than bad drivers. Just one moving violation may increase your cost by twenty percent. Drivers who have gotten dangerous citations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions are required to submit a SR-22 or proof of financial responsibility with their state’s department of motor vehicles in order to keep their license.
- High credit saves on insurance – Your credit score can be a huge factor in determining what you pay. Insureds with high credit scores tend to be better drivers and file fewer claims than drivers who have poor credit scores. So if your credit rating leaves room for improvement, you could be paying less to insure your Volkswagen e-Golf by improving your rating.
- Alarms and GPS tracking lower rates – Choosing to buy a car that has an advanced theft prevention system can help bring down rates. Theft prevention features like vehicle immobilizer systems, OnStar, and tracking devices like LoJack all help prevent your car from being stolen.
- Having a spouse is a bonus – Being married helps lower the price on your policy. Having a spouse usually means you are more mature and it’s statistically proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
- Continuous insurance coverage lowers premiums – Driving with no insurance is a misdemeanor and your next policy will cost more because you let your coverage have a gap. Not only will rates go up, not being able to provide proof of insurance could earn you fines or a revoked license.
- Do you really need to file those claims? – Companies in Kentucky award the best rates to people who are claim-free. If you tend to file frequent claims, you can expect higher rates. Auto insurance is intended for the large, substantial claims.
Why you need to buy auto insurance
Despite the fact that auto insurance is not cheap in Louisville, insurance may not be optional for several reasons.
- Just about all states have minimum liability requirements which means state laws require a specific level of liability coverage in order to license the vehicle. In Kentucky these limits are 25/50/10 which means you must have $25,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $10,000 of property damage coverage.
- If your vehicle has a lienholder, most banks will force you to have physical damage coverage to ensure the loan is repaid in case of a total loss. If you let the policy lapse, the bank will be required to insure your Volkswagen at an extremely high rate and force you to pay much more than you were paying before.
- Insurance safeguards your vehicle and your assets. Insurance will pay for medical expenses for you, your passengers, and anyone else injured in an accident. Liability insurance, one of your policy coverages, also covers all legal expenses up to the policy limit if you are sued as the result of an accident. If mother nature or an accident damages your car, comprehensive and collision coverage will cover the repair costs.
The benefits of carrying enough insurance greatly outweigh the cost, especially if you ever need it. Today the average American driver is overpaying more than $700 annually so it’s recommended you shop around at least once a year to make sure the price is not too high.