How to Find the Lowest Price on Buckhannon West Virginia Auto Insurance

Overpriced auto insurance can dwindle your personal savings and make it impossible to make ends meet. Shopping your coverage around is free and is an excellent way to slash your bill and have more diposable income. Big-name insurance companies like Allstate, Progressive and GEICO constantly bombard you with catchy ads and it can be hard to avoid their marketing magic and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

It’s a great practice to check auto insurance prices periodically because rates go up and down regularly. If you had the best rates six months ago a different company probably has better rates today. There is a lot of bad advice regarding auto insurance on the internet, so we’re going to give you a bunch of ideas how to quit paying high auto insurance rates.

Discounts can save BIG

Properly insuring your vehicles can get expensive, but there are discounts available to cut the cost considerably. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied at quote time, but a few must be specially asked for before being credited. If you don’t get every credit you deserve, you’re paying more than you need to.

  • Multiple Policy Discount – When you have multiple policies with the same company you will save at least 10% off all policies.
  • Defensive Driver – Taking part in a driver safety course can save you 5% or more depending on where you live.
  • Save with a New Car – Adding a new car to your policy can save up to 30% compared to insuring an older model.
  • Accident Forgiveness – Some insurance companies permit an accident before hitting you with a surcharge so long as you haven’t had any claims for a particular time prior to the accident.
  • Anti-lock Brake Discount – Vehicles with anti-lock braking systems can avoid accidents and earn discounts up to 10%.
  • Passive Restraints and Air Bags – Factory air bags or automatic seat belts can receive discounts of more than 20%.
  • Anti-theft System – Vehicles equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems help deter theft and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
  • Good Student Discount – Getting good grades can earn a discount of 20% or more. The discount lasts up until you turn 25.
  • Distant Student – Children living away from home attending college without a vehicle on campus may qualify for this discount.
  • Paperless Signup – Certain companies will give a small break simply for signing digitally online.

Drivers should understand that some of the credits will not apply to the entire cost. Most only apply to individual premiums such as collision or personal injury protection. Just because it seems like you could get a free auto insurance policy, companies don’t profit that way. Any amount of discount will reduce your premiums.

For a list of companies with the best auto insurance discounts in Buckhannon, click here.

Quick Buckhannon Auto Insurance Quotes

Lowering your auto insurance rates is actually quite simple. You just need to spend a few minutes comparing price quotes provided by online insurance companies. This can be accomplished in several different ways.

The first (and easiest) way consumers can make multiple comparisons is a comparison rater form click to view form in new window. This type of form prevents you from having to do repetitive form entry for each company. In just a few minutes this one form compares rates .

A less efficient way to compare prices is going to each company website and complete a new quote form. For examples sake, let’s say you want rates from USAA, Liberty Mutual and American Family. You would have to go to every website and enter your information, which is why most consumers use the first method. For a list of links to insurance companies in Buckhannon, click here.

The least recommended method of comparing rate quotes is to waste gas driving to and from local Buckhannon insurance agencies. The internet makes this process obsolete unless you prefer the personal advice that only a license agent can provide. Drivers can find lower rates online but still have the advice of a local agent and we’ll talk about that later.

It doesn’t matter which method you choose, just be sure to compare apples-to-apples deductibles and coverage limits with every price quote. If you use different values for each quote you can’t possibly decipher which rate is best in Buckhannon.Auto insurance in Buckhannon West Virginia

Understand what determines the rate you pay

Smart consumers have a good feel for the rating factors that come into play when calculating the rates you pay for auto insurance. Having a good understanding of what impacts premium levels allows you to make educated decisions that may reward you with better auto insurance rates.

The list below includes a partial list of the pieces companies use to determine rates.

  • The more you drive the more you pay – The more you drive every year the higher your rates will be. Almost all companies apply a rate based on how the vehicle is used. Vehicles used primarily for pleasure use get more affordable rates as compared to vehicles used primarily for driving to work. Double check that your auto insurance policy is showing the correct driver usage.
  • The type of vehicle makes a difference – The performance of the car you are buying insurance for makes a huge difference in how high your rates are. Low performance passenger vehicles receive the most favorable rates, but the cost you end up paying is determined by many additional factors.
  • Your location is important – Choosing to live in small towns and rural areas can save you money when insuring your vehicles. Lower population means a lower chance of having an accident and also fewer theft and vandalism claims. Drivers in populated West Virginia areas regularly have traffic congestion and longer commutes to work. Higher commute times means higher likelihood of an accident.
  • Equipment add-ons that lower auto insurance rates – Driving a car that has an advanced theft prevention system can help lower your rates. Theft prevention devices such as GM’s OnStar, tamper alarm systems and vehicle immobilizers all hinder car theft.
  • Being married is a good thing – Having a wife or husband helps lower the price on your auto insurance policy. Marriage is viewed as being more mature and it’s statistically proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
  • An active claims history can cost you – If you file claims often, you can definitely plan on either higher rates or even cancellation. Insurance companies in West Virginia award lower rates to people who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. Car insurance is intended for major claims that would cause financial hardship.
  • Are you male or female? – Statistics demonstrate women tend to be less risk to insure than men. However, don’t assume that men are WORSE drivers than women. Both sexes tend to get into accidents at about the same rate, but the male of the species cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also tend to have more aggressive citations like reckless driving and DUI.
  • Bundling policies can get discounts – Most insurers provide better rates to policyholders who carry more than one policy such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. This can amount to five, ten or even twenty percent. Even though this discount sounds good, it’s still a good idea to comparison shop to verify if the discount is saving money.

Shop online but buy locally

A small number of people prefer to visit with an insurance agent and that is just fine! Insurance agents can point out coverage gaps and give you peace of mind. One of the best bonuses of comparing insurance prices online is the fact that you can find the best rates but also keep your business local. Supporting local insurance agencies is important particularly in Buckhannon.

For easy comparison, once you complete this short form, your insurance data is emailed to insurance agents in Buckhannon who will return price quotes to get your business. You won’t need to even leave your home as quotes are delivered to the email address you provide. Now that’s easy!

The following is a short list of insurance companies in Buckhannon willing to provide price quotes.

Loudin Insurance – 207 S Kanawha St, Buckhannon, WV 26201 – (304) 472-1532
Brian Taylor Agency – 117 S Kanawha St, Buckhannon, WV 26201 – (304) 472-0223
State Farm Insurance – Route 20 S, Buckhannon, WV 26201 – (304) 472-5390
Cookman Insurance Group – 89 S Kanawha St, Buckhannon, WV 26201 – (304) 472-7000

Picking an provider needs to be determined by more than just the premium amount. Some important questions to ask are:

  • Are they able to influence company decisions when a claim is filed?
  • What are the financial ratings for the companies they represent?
  • How long have they worked with personal auto insurance coverage?
  • If you have an accident, will your rates go up?
  • Do they review policy coverages at every renewal?
  • Did they already check your driving record and credit reports?

Upon receiving good answers to your questions and an affordable coverage quote, most likely you have located an insurance company that will provide auto insurance coverage.

Don’t be fooled by advertising claims

Consumers can’t ignore all the ads for the lowest price auto insurance from companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. They all make an identical promise of big savings if you change your policy.

But how can every company make the same claim? It’s all in the numbers.

Different companies can use profiling for the type of driver they prefer to insure. For example, a profitable customer could be between 25 and 40, insures multiple vehicles, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. A driver that hits that “sweet spot” will get the preferred rates and as a result will probably save quite a bit of money when switching.

Potential insureds who fall outside the requirements will have to pay higher prices which leads to the customer not buying. The ad wording is “customers that switch” but not “drivers who get quotes” save money. That’s why companies can truthfully advertise the savings.

Because of the profiling, drivers should compare many company’s rates. It’s just too difficult to predict which company will give you the biggest savings.

In Summary

Cheap auto insurance can be bought online in addition to many Buckhannon insurance agents, and you should compare price quotes from both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some auto insurance companies do not provide you the ability to get quotes online and usually these regional insurance providers provide coverage only through local independent agents.

We covered many ideas to save on auto insurance. The key thing to remember is the more rate quotes you have, the better your chances of lowering your rates. You may be surprised to find that the lowest rates come from an unexpected company. Smaller companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments compared to the large companies like State Farm and Allstate.

Much more information about auto insurance in West Virginia is located on the website for the West Virginia Insurance Commission found here. West Virginia consumers can learn about specific coverages, file complaints about a company, read industry bulletins, and view agent and company licensing information.

Also read more on FindNewCarInsurance.com and this page on QuoteClickInsure.com.