Learn How to Lower Your Premiums for Englewood, CO Auto Insurance
Paying for high-priced auto insurance can drain your savings account and force you to make sacrifices. Comparing price quotes is a smart way to help make ends meet. Drivers have so many car insurance companies to purchase coverage from, and although it’s nice to have a selection, it makes it harder to compare rates and find the lowest cost auto insurance.
Buying car insurance in Englewood is easy if you know what you’re doing. If you have insurance now or need new coverage, you can use these tips to find the best rates and possibly find even better coverage. Colorado consumers only need an understanding of the most effective way to shop on the web.
Smart Buyers can Save Money
Smart consumers have a good feel for the rating factors that help determine auto insurance rates. When you know what positively or negatively impacts premium levels enables informed choices that will entitle you to lower auto insurance prices.
- Older drivers pay less – Youthful drivers in Colorado have a tendency to be more careless behind the wheel so auto insurance rates are higher. If you’ve ever had to add a teen driver onto your auto insurance can really hurt. Older drivers are viewed as being more responsible, tend to cause fewer accidents and tend to be better behind the wheel.
- Don’t let your coverage lapse – Driving with no insurance is against the law and as a result your rates will increase for letting your coverage lapse. Not only will rates go up, but not being able to provide proof of insurance may earn you a license revocation or jail time.
- Proper usage rating affects rates – The more you drive every year the higher your rate. Most companies apply a rate determined by how the vehicle is used. Cars and trucks not used for work or commuting receive lower rates compared to those used for work or business. Ask your agent if your auto insurance policy is rated on the correct driver usage, because improper ratings can cost you money.
- Your location is important – Being located in a small town is a positive aspect when talking about auto insurance. Less people living in that area means reduced accidents as well as less vandalism and auto theft. Drivers who live in large Colorado cities have more traffic problems and longer commutes to work. More time commuting means higher likelihood of an accident.
- Marriage pays dividends – Being married can actually save you money when buying auto insurance. Having a spouse usually means you are more mature and it’s statistically proven that drivers who are married are more cautious.
- Little extras can really add up – There are quite a few extra bells and whistles that you can get tricked into buying if you aren’t careful. Things like rental car reimbursement, accidental death and term life insurance may be costing you every month. They may seem good initially, but if they’re wasting money remove them from your policy.
- How credit affects auto insurance rates – A driver’s credit history is a big factor in calculating your auto insurance rates. If your credit history is not that good, you could pay less to insure your by improving your rating. People with good credit tend to be more responsible than drivers who have lower credit scores.
Don’t miss these discounts
Companies don’t always advertise all their discounts very well, so here is a list some of the best known as well as the least known auto insurance savings. If you don’t get every credit possible, you are paying more than you should be.
- Paperless Signup – Certain companies give back up to $50 simply for signing over the internet.
- Accident Free – Drivers with accident-free driving histories pay much less as compared to frequent claim filers.
- Braking Control Discount – Cars that have steering control and anti-lock brakes prevent accidents and earn discounts up to 10%.
- Clubs and Organizations – Participating in a professional or civic organization may earn a discount on auto insurance.
- Seat Belts Save – Drivers who require all occupants to wear their seat belts can save 10% or more on the medical payments or PIP coverage costs.
- Passive Restraints and Air Bags – Vehicles with factory air bags can qualify for discounts of more than 20%.
- Safety Course Discount – Successfully completing a driver safety course could save 5% or more depending on where you live.
It’s important to understand that most discount credits are not given to the overall cost of the policy. Most cut individual premiums such as collision or personal injury protection. Even though it may seem like all the discounts add up to a free policy, it doesn’t quite work that way.
To see a list of providers offering auto insurance discounts in Colorado, click this link.
What happened to insurance agents?
A small number of people just want to get advice from a local agent and that is a personal choice. Agents are trained to spot inefficiencies and help you file claims. The best thing about price shopping on the web is the fact that you can find lower rates but still work with a licensed agent.
For easy comparison, once you complete this short form, your coverage information is immediately sent to local insurance agents who will give you bids for your coverage. There is no need to even leave your home since price quotes are sent immediately to your email address. It doesn’t get any easier!
Selecting an insurance company shouldn’t rely on just the bottom line cost. These are valid questions to ask:
- Does the agency have a good rating with the Better Business Bureau?
- How much can you save by raising your physical damage deductibles?
- Is working in the agency their full-time job?
- Can glass repairs be made at your home?
- Do they feel the quoted coverages are adequate?
- Do clients work directly with the agent or are most inquiries handled by a CSR?
The type of insurance agency you choose is important
When researching a good insurance agency, you must know there are a couple types of agencies that you can select. Agencies in Englewood are classified as either captive or independent. Both write coverage properly, but it’s important to know how they differ because it can impact your agent selection.
Captive Agents
Captive agents have only one company to place business with such as AAA, State Farm, Farmers Insurance and Allstate. These agents are unable to provide prices from multiple companies so keep that in mind. Captive agencies are usually quite knowledgeable on the products they sell which can be an advantage.
Below is a list of captive agents in Englewood willing to provide comparison quotes.
Allstate Insurance – 5150 S Broadway – Englewood, CO 80113 – (303) 783-0900
American Family Insurance – 7887 E Belleview Ave – Englewood, CO 80111 – (303) 228-1614
State Farm Insurance – 4275 S Broadway # 100 – Englewood, CO 80113 – (303) 761-3710
Farmers Insurance Group – 9559 S Kingston Ct – Englewood, CO 80112 – (303) 800-1010
Independent Agents (or Brokers)
Independent insurance agents are not employed by any specific company but instead can place your coverage with multiple insurance companies and potentially find a lower price. If your agent finds better pricing, the agent simply finds a different carrier and that require little work on your part. When comparison shopping, we recommend you include price quotes from multiple independent agents for the best price selection.
Below are independent insurance agents in Englewood that can give you price quote information.
Robert B Weist Agency – 333 W Hampden Ave # 905 – Englewood, CO 80110 – (303) 789-4406
Colorado Insurance Search – 5995 S Kenton St – Englewood, CO 80111 – (303) 290-8942
Martin C Killorin Insurance – 3620 S Galapago St – Englewood, CO 80110 – (303) 806-9908
Strand Agency – 6800 S Dawson Cir # 203 – Englewood, CO 80112 – (303) 680-9017
Stephen C Engler Agency – 9565 S Kingston Ct # 100 – Englewood, CO 80112 – (303) 649-9121
For a complete listing of insurance agents in Englewood, click here to link.
Upon receiving acceptable answers to all your questions and an acceptable price quote, you may have just found a car insurance agent that will provide auto insurance coverage.
Can you really save $490 a year?
Consumers can’t ignore all the ads for the lowest price auto insurance by GEICO, State Farm and Progressive. All the ads have a common claim about savings if you move to their company.
How do they all make the same claim? This is how they do it.
Insurance companies have a certain “appetite” for the driver that is profitable for them. For instance, a profitable customer could possibly be between the ages of 30 and 50, has no driving citations, and has a short commute. A driver that hits that “sweet spot” will get the preferred rates and therefore will save when switching.
Drivers who fall outside this ideal profile will be quoted a more expensive rate which leads to business not being written. Company advertisements say “customers who switch” but not “drivers who get quotes” save that much. That’s the way companies can truthfully advertise the savings. This emphasizes why drivers must quote coverage with many companies. It’s not possible to predict which insurance companies will have the lowest rates.
To learn even more about auto insurance
More tips and info about auto insurance can be read at the Colorado DORA Division of Insurance website. Colorado drivers can read industry bulletins, file complaints about a company, find a variety of consumer forms, and learn about specific coverages.
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A little work can save a LOT of money
We just presented a lot of techniques to lower your auto insurance rates. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. You may even find the lowest priced auto insurance comes from the least-expected company. Regional companies often have lower prices on specific markets than their larger competitors like State Farm and Allstate.
When buying insurance coverage, don’t be tempted to reduce coverage to reduce premium. In too many instances, someone dropped physical damage coverage only to regret at claim time that a couple dollars of savings turned into a financial nightmare. Your aim should be to find the BEST coverage at a price you can afford.