9 Guaranteed Ways to Reduce Car Insurance Costs in Sioux Falls South Dakota

Are you a victim of overpriced car insurance? Trust us, there are lots of people in the same boat. You have multiple insurance companies to purchase coverage from, and though it is a good thing to have a selection, lots of choices makes it harder to compare rates and find the lowest cost car insurance.

Policy discounts you shouldn’t miss

Car insurance is not cheap, but there are discounts available to help bring down the price. Certain discounts will be applied when you get a quote, but some must be manually applied before you get the savings. If you’re not getting every credit possible, you are throwing money away.

• Good Student Discount – This discount can save 20 to 25%. The discount lasts up to age 25.
• Club Memberships – Belonging to certain professional organizations could qualify you for a break when buying car insurance.
• Passive Restraints and Air Bags – Vehicles with factory air bags and/or automatic seat belt systems can receive discounts of more than 20%.
• College Student – Any of your kids who live away from home and do not have a car may qualify for this discount.
• Multiple Policy Discount – If you have multiple policies with one company you may earn at least 10% off all policies.
• Student Driver Training – Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to take driver’s ed class in school.
• Anti-theft Discount – Anti-theft and alarm systems help deter theft and will save you 10% or more.
• Pay Upfront and Save – If you pay your bill all at once rather than paying monthly you could save 5% or more.
• Drive Safe and Save – Drivers who don’t get into accidents can pay as much as 50% less than less cautious drivers.

Drivers should understand that most discounts do not apply to all coverage premiums. Some only apply to the cost of specific coverages such as medical payments or collision. So when the math indicates having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you won’t be that lucky. But all discounts will bring down your overall premium however.

For a list of insurers with the best car insurance discounts in South Dakota, click here.

What about using a local agent?

Certain consumers just want to sit down with an agent and that is OK! Good agents can answer important questions and help submit paperwork. One of the best bonuses of price shopping on the web is you may find the best rates but also keep your business local. Buying from local agencies is important particularly in Sioux Falls.

Upon completion of this short form, the quote information gets sent to insurance agents in Sioux Falls who will battle for your business. There is no need to leave your computer because quoted prices will be sent to your email.

Below is a list of insurance companies in Sioux Falls that may be willing to give price quote information.

Farm Bureau Insurance – 5009 W 12th St # 9a, Sioux Falls, SD 57106 – (605) 332-0582
Farmers Insurance Group – 3300 E 26th St # 104, Sioux Falls, SD 57103 – (605) 575-0924
Allstate Insurance Co – 800 E 41st St, Sioux Falls, SD 57105 – (605) 334-9926
Horton Insurance – 705 W Ralph Rogers Rd, Sioux Falls, SD 57108 – (605) 334-2101
State Farm Insurance – 3823 S Western Ave, Sioux Falls, SD 57105 – (605) 339-2999
American Family Insurance – 2101 W 41st St # 42, Sioux Falls, SD 57105 – (605) 338-8123
Larry Jacobson Agency Inc – 1704 S Cleveland Ave # 7, Sioux Falls, SD 57103 – (605) 338-3995

Choosing an provider shouldn’t rely on just the premium amount. These questions are important to ask:

• Are claim adjusters local or do you have to take your car somewhere else?
• Can they provide you with a list of referrals?
• What will you get paid if your car is a total loss? How is that amount determined?
• Do they make recommendations based only on price?
• Is working in the agency their full-time job?

Once you have received acceptable answers to your questions and a good coverage price, chances are good that you have found an insurer that is a good match to service your policy. But remember, you can always terminate coverage any time you want so don’t feel you are locked into any particular company with no way to switch.

The car insurance bait and switch

Consumers can’t get away from ads for cheaper car insurance from companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Progressive. All the ads make an identical promise of big savings if you switch your policy.

How does each company make the same claim?

All companies are able to cherry pick for the type of customer that earns them a profit. For example, a desirable insured could be over the age of 50, has no driving citations, and has a high credit rating. Any driver who matches those parameters will get very good rates and as a result will probably save a lot of money.

Consumers who do not match the requirements will be quoted higher prices and this can result in the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads state “customers who switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that kind of money. That is how companies can make those claims.

This emphasizes why drivers must compare many company’s rates. It’s just too difficult to predict the company that will have the lowest rates.

Parts of your car insurance policy

Knowing the specifics of a car insurance policy can be of help when determining the best coverages and the correct deductibles and limits. Policy terminology can be difficult to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring. These are typical coverages offered by car insurance companies.

Medical costs insurance – Coverage for medical payments and/or PIP kick in for expenses such as nursing services, prosthetic devices and surgery. The coverages can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance program or if there is no health insurance coverage. It covers both the driver and occupants and also covers getting struck while a pedestrian. PIP coverage is not an option in every state but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Collision – This coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage resulting from a collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. A deductible applies then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision coverage protects against things such as crashing into a ditch, rolling your car, scraping a guard rail and driving through your garage door. This coverage can be expensive, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from vehicles that are older. Drivers also have the option to increase the deductible in order to get cheaper collision rates.

UM/UIM Coverage – This coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants from other drivers when they either have no liability insurance or not enough. This coverage pays for hospital bills for your injuries and also any damage incurred to your vehicle.

Due to the fact that many South Dakota drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits (South Dakota limits are 25/50/25), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Normally the UM/UIM limits do not exceed the liability coverage limits.

Liability car insurance – Liability insurance protects you from damages or injuries you inflict on a person or their property that is your fault. Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. As an example, you may have limits of 50/100/50 that translate to a limit of $50,000 per injured person, $100,000 for the entire accident, and property damage coverage for $50,000. Some companies may use one limit called combined single limit (CSL) which limits claims to one amount with no separate limits for injury or property damage.

Liability insurance covers things such as emergency aid, medical services, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, legal defense fees and structural damage. How much liability coverage do you need? That is a personal decision, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as large an amount as possible. South Dakota state minimum liability requirements are 25,000/50,000/25,000 but drivers should carry more liability than the minimum.

Comprehensive or Other Than Collision – Comprehensive insurance pays for damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. A deductible will apply then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive coverage pays for things like fire damage, a broken windshield, damage from a tornado or hurricane, a tree branch falling on your vehicle and vandalism. The most your car insurance company will pay is the ACV or actual cash value, so if it’s not worth much more than your deductible it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.

Much more information about car insurance in South Dakota can be found on the website for the South Dakota Division of Insurance found here. South Dakota consumers can learn about insurance regulations, find disaster information, find a variety of consumer forms, and find out industry alerts.

A tidy conclusion

As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, don’t be tempted to buy lower coverage limits just to save a few bucks. Too many times, an accident victim reduced liability limits or collision coverage and found out when filing a claim that the savings was not a smart move. Your strategy should be to buy enough coverage at the best price.

Cheaper car insurance is available from both online companies in addition to many Sioux Falls insurance agents, so you should compare both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some insurance companies do not provide the ability to get a quote online and many times these regional insurance providers only sell through independent insurance agents.