Learn the Secrets to Saving Money on Northport Alabama Car Insurance

Purchasing affordable Northport car insurance over the internet may be challenging for beginners to online price comaprisons. Since there are so many insurance companies available, how can Northport drivers even start to compare every company to locate the best price?

If you have a policy now or need a new policy, you can follow these tips to shop for the lowest rates and possibly find even better coverage. Finding the lowest cost protection in Northport is simple if you know the tricks. Alabama consumers just need to know the best way to compare company rates over the internet.

Comprehensive Car Insurance Comparison in Northport, AL

Most companies provide price estimates on the web. Getting quotes doesn’t take much effort as you just enter the amount of coverage you want into the quote form. Once you submit the form, their system gets your driving and credit reports and returns pricing information determined by many factors.

Quoting online streamlines rate comparisons, but the work required to visit several different sites and complete many quote forms gets old quite quickly. But it is imperative to do this if you are searching for the lowest price.

Compare rates the easy way

The quickest way to find better car insurance pricing uses one simple form that gets price quotes from more than one company. It’s a real time-saver, helps eliminate reptitive entry, and makes online quotes a lot less work. Immediately after submitting the form, it is rated and you can select your choice of the quotes that you receive.

If you find a better price it’s easy to complete the application and purchase coverage. The entire process takes 15 minutes at the most and may save quite a bit of money.

To find out what other companies charge, simply click here to open in new window and enter your information. To compare your current rates, we recommend you type in the limits and deductibles as close as possible to your current policy. Doing this guarantees you will be getting comparison quotes for similar coverage.

Lower rates by qualifying for discounts

Car insurance can cost a lot, but companies offer discounts that you may not know about. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically at the time of quoting, but some must be specifically requested prior to getting the savings. If you’re not getting every credit possible, you’re paying more than you need to.

No Accidents – Good drivers with no accidents can earn big discounts compared to accident-prone drivers.
Military Discounts – Being deployed with a military unit may qualify for rate reductions.
E-sign – A handful of insurance companies will discount your bill up to fifty bucks simply for signing online.
Drive Safe and Save – Drivers who avoid accidents can get discounts for up to 45% lower rates than their less cautious counterparts.
Drive Less and Save – Low mileage vehicles can qualify you for a substantially lower rate.
Discount for New Cars – Putting insurance coverage on a new car is cheaper because new vehicles have to meet stringent safety requirements.

Drivers should understand that some of the credits will not apply to the overall cost of the policy. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like physical damage coverage or medical payments. So even though it sounds like you could get a free car insurance policy, companies don’t profit that way. Any qualifying discounts will bring down your premiums.

To see a list of insurance companies who offer car insurance discounts in Alabama, click here to view.

What about my local Northport agents?

Some people would prefer to sit down with an agent. Professional agents can help determine the best coverages and give you someone to call. The biggest benefit of getting online price quotes is you may find lower rates and still choose a local agent. And supporting local insurance agencies is important particularly in Northport.

Upon completion of this quick form, the quote information gets sent to agents in your area who will compete to get your business. You don’t have to leave your house due to the fact that quote results will go directly to your email. How cool is that?!

The different types of insurance agents

When researching a good Northport insurance agent, you must know there are a couple different types of agents that you can select. Agencies in Northport can either be captive or independent (non-captive). Both insure your vehicles, but it’s good to learn the differences because it can impact your selection of an agent. price insurance in Northport

Independent Agents

These agents do not work for one specific company so they can insure your vehicles with multiple insurance companies depending on which coverage is best. If you are not satisfied with one company, the agent simply finds a different carrier and you don’t have to find a new agent. When searching for an agent, you should always include price quotes from at a minimum one independent agency to get the best comparison. They often place coverage with different regional companies which may provide better rates.

Shown below is a short list of independent agencies in Northport that are able to give price quote information.

Hulsey and Assoc Insurance – 15264 Clearwater Loop – Northport, AL 35475 – (205) 333-8833
Lew Bradley Insurance Inc – 3651 Watermelon Rd – Northport, AL 35473 – (205) 752-2547
Brenda Thomas Agency – 915 Mcfarland Blvd # A – Northport, AL 35476 – (205) 330-0905
Buttram Agency – 1002 Mcfarland Blvd # G – Northport, AL 35476 – (205) 339-8814

Captive Insurance Agents

Captive insurance agents can only write with one company and some examples include Farmers Insurance or State Farm. They generally cannot shop your coverage around so they are skilled at selling on more than just price. Captives are very knowledgeable in insurance sales which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums. Some consumers prefer to choose to use a captive agent mainly due to high brand loyalty and the convenience of having a single billing for all their coverages.

Below is a short list of captive agents in Northport who can help you get price quotes.

Farmers Insurance Group – 917 Mcfarland Blvd # A – Northport, AL 35476 – (205) 330-0900
State Farm Insurance – 2113 Lurleen B Wallace Blvd – Northport, AL 35476 – (205) 339-3707
Allstate Insurance – 5550 Mcfarland Blvd – Northport, AL 35476 – (205) 333-0070

To view a complete directory of captive agents in Northport, please go to this site.

Choosing an insurance agency shouldn’t rely on just a cheap price. Ask your prospective agent these questions:

What are the financial ratings for the companies they represent?
Is vehicle damage repaired with OEM or aftermarket parts?
If you are a high risk driver, do they have special markets for your coverage?
Does the agency provide any after hours assistance?
How much can you save by raising your physical damage deductibles?
What will you get paid if your car is a total loss? How is that amount determined?
Are they full-time agents?

After receiving acceptable answers to all your questions in addition to an acceptable price estimate, you may have just found a car insurance agent that can properly service your car insurance policy.

When might I need an agent?

When buying the right insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a best way to insure your cars. Your needs are not the same as everyone else’s.

For example, these questions may help highlight whether or not you would benefit from professional advice.

When does my teenage driver need to be added to my policy?
Are split liability limits better than a combined single limit?
Should I file a claim if it’s only slightly more than my deductible?
Will my vehicle be repaired with OEM or aftermarket parts?
Is my nanny covered when driving my vehicle?
Does my insurance cover a custom paint job?
What if I total my vehicle and owe more than it’s worth?

If you’re not sure about those questions then you might want to talk to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, take a second and complete this form. It only takes a few minutes and can provide invaluable advice.

What impacts Northport insurance rates?

Consumers need to have an understanding of the rating factors that play a part in calculating the rates you pay for car insurance. Knowing what impacts premium levels allows you to make educated decisions that may reward you with lower car insurance prices.

Policy add-ons can waste money – There are quite a few additional coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren’t careful. Coverages like vanishing deductibles, accidental death and additional equipment coverage may be wasting your money. They may seem like a good idea at first, but now you might not need them so get rid of them and save.
Don’t sacrifice liability coverage – Liability coverage will protect you in the event that you are found liable for damages from an accident. It will provide legal defense up to the limits shown on your policy. Liability is cheap when compared with rates for comp and collision, so do not cut corners here.
Traffic citations inflate rates – A bad driving record impacts your car insurance rates tremendously. Good drivers get better rates than people who have multiple driving citations. Even a single ticket can increase rates forty percent or more. If you have severe violations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions may find they need to file a SR-22 to the state department of motor vehicles in order to drive a vehicle legally.
The type of vehicle makes a difference – The type of vehicle you drive makes a substantial difference in how high your rates are. The most favorable rates tend to be for economy passenger cars, but the final cost of insurance is determined by many other factors.
Do you know you’re credit rating? – Your credit history is a large factor in calculating your car insurance rates. Therefore, if your credit score is not that good, you could potentially save money when insuring your by improving your credit score. Drivers who have excellent credit tend to be better drivers and file fewer claims than drivers with lower credit scores.
Sex matters – The statistics show that women are safer drivers than men. However, this does not mean men are worse drivers. They both tend to get into accidents in similar percentages, but the male of the species have costlier accidents. Men also tend to get more serious tickets such as DWI and reckless driving. Teenage male drivers are several times more likely to be in an accident and therefore are the most expensive to insure.
Please use or commuting – The higher the mileage driven in a year’s time the more you’ll pay to insure your vehicle. Almost all companies apply a rate based upon how you use the vehicle. Vehicles that are left in the garage get more affordable rates than those used for commuting. Verify your car insurance declarations sheet is rated on the correct usage for each vehicle.
Bump up deductibles to save – Your deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay before your car insurance pays a claim. Physical damage insurance, otherwise known as comp (or other than collision) and collision, covers damage that occurs to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered would be colliding with a building, collision with an animal, or theft. The more the insured has to pay upfront, the less your car insurance will be.

Do drivers who switch really save?

Consumers in Alabama get pounded daily by advertisements for the lowest price auto insurance from the likes of 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm. They all make an identical promise about savings if you switch your coverage to them.

How can each company claim to save you money? This is how they do it.

Insurance companies have a certain “appetite” for the right customer that earns them a profit. An example of a profitable customer might be between 30 and 50, insures multiple vehicles, and drives newer vehicles. A propective insured that hits that “sweet spot” will get very good rates and is almost guaranteed to save a lot of money.

Potential customers who do not match these standards will have to pay a more expensive rate which leads to the customer not buying. The ads state “customers who switch” not “people who quote” save money. This is how companies can truthfully advertise the savings.

Because of the profiling, it is so important to get as many comparisons as possible. You cannot predict which company will have the lowest rates.

One last thing about your coverage

Low-cost car insurance is available both online in addition to many Northport insurance agents, so compare prices from both to have the best rate selection. There are still a few companies who do not provide the ability to get a quote online and most of the time these smaller companies sell through independent agents.

While you’re price shopping online, don’t be tempted to sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. In too many instances, someone dropped liability coverage limits to discover at claim time that a couple dollars of savings turned into a financial nightmare. Your focus should be to get the best coverage possible for the lowest price, not the least amount of coverage.

Drivers change insurance companies for any number of reasons including lack of trust in their agent, high prices, questionable increases in premium and even extreme rates for teen drivers. It doesn’t matter why you want to switch finding a new car insurance company can be easier than you think.

To learn more about car insurance in Alabama

More information is available on the Alabama Department of Insurance website found here. Alabama consumers can find out which companies have the most complaints, find disaster information, and file complaints about an insurance agent or broker.