How to Know You’re Wasting Money for Auto Insurance in Riverside California

Are you confused by the number of auto insurance company choices in Riverside? You’re not the only one! You have so many options that it can turn into a lot of work to find the perfect company for you.

It’s a good habit to check auto insurance prices once or twice a year because prices change quite often. Just because you found the best deal six months ago there is a good chance you can find better rates now. Block out anything you think you know about auto insurance because we’re going to demonstrate the best methods to reduce your cost while improving coverage.

Discounts can save BIG

Companies that sell car insurance do not advertise all available discounts in an easy-to-find place, so the following is a list of some of the more common and also the lesser-known discounts you could be receiving. If they aren’t giving you every credit you qualify for, you are paying more than you should be.

  • Safety Course Discount – Completing a course teaching defensive driving skills could cut 5% off your bill and easily recoup the cost of the course.
  • Payment Method – If you pay your bill all at once instead of paying each month you could save 5% or more.
  • No Charge for an Accident – A few companies allow you one accident before your rates go up so long as you haven’t had any claims for a certain period of time.
  • Auto/Home Discount – When you have multiple policies with the same company you may save up to 20% off your total premium.
  • Resident Student – Any of your kids living away from home attending college and do not have a car may qualify for this discount.

Consumers should know that most of the big mark downs will not be given the the whole policy. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. So even though they make it sound like all those discounts means the company will pay you, companies wouldn’t make money that way.

For a list of insurers who offer auto insurance discounts in California, click here.

Automobile Insurance Quotes in Riverside, CA

All major auto insurance companies allow you to get pricing on their websites. This process is fairly simple as you just type in the amount of coverage you want into a form. Once entered, the company’s rating system makes automated requests for your driving and credit reports and provides a quote. <img class="alignright" style="padding-top:15px" src="https://www.findnewcarinsurance.com/wp-content/uploads/ci175-17.jpg" alt="Auto insurance in Riverside CA” />

This simplifies rate comparisons, but the time required to go to several different sites and complete many quote forms gets old quite quickly. But it is imperative to have as many quotes as possible in order to find better prices.

Quote rates the easy way

The quickest way to lower your rates makes use of a single form to get prices from more than one company. It saves time, requires much less work on your part, and makes price shopping online a lot less work. As soon as the form is sent, your coverage is rated and you can choose any or none of the returned quotes. If a lower price is quoted, you can simply submit the application and buy the new coverage. It takes 15 minutes at the most 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 submit the form. If you currently have coverage, we recommend that you enter the coverage information exactly as shown on your declarations page. This guarantees you will have an apples-to-apples comparison using the exact same coverages.

When might I need an agent?

When buying proper insurance coverage, there is no single plan that fits everyone. Everyone’s situation is a little different.

For instance, these questions may help highlight if you could use an agent’s help.

  • Is my vehicle covered for flood damage?
  • Can I still get insurance after a DUI?
  • How much underlying liability do I need for an umbrella policy?
  • Why does it cost so much to insure a teen driver in Riverside?
  • Is California a no-fault state?
  • How many claims can I have before being cancelled?
  • Does coverage extend to a rental car in a foreign country?
  • How high should my medical payments coverage be?

If it’s difficult to answer those questions but you know they apply to you then you might want to talk to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, fill out this quick form. It only takes a few minutes and can help protect your family.

Auto insurance in Riverside CA

A tidy conclusion

People leave their current company for many reasons like delays in responding to claim requests, lack of trust in their agent, not issuing a premium refund or policy cancellation. Regardless of your reason, switching companies is pretty easy and you might even save some money in the process.

When shopping online for auto insurance, it’s not a good idea to reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are too many instances where drivers have reduced physical damage coverage only to discover later that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your focus should be to get the best coverage possible for the lowest price while not skimping on critical coverages.

We covered many ideas to shop for auto insurance online. The key concept to understand is the more you quote, the better your chances of lowering your rates. You may be surprised to find that the best prices are with a small local company.