Are you tired of wondering where the money will come from to keep your car insured? You are in the same boat as most other drivers in California.
Regrettably, over 70% of drivers kept their policy with the same company for a minimum of four years, and just short of a majority have never compared rates from other carriers. Most drivers in San Jose can cut their rates by roughly $469 a year just by shopping around, but they don’t know the rate savings if they switched to a cheaper policy. You have so many auto insurance companies to choose from, and even though it’s nice to have multiple companies, lots of choices makes it harder to compare rates and cut insurance costs.
You should make it a habit to check auto insurance prices on a regular basis since prices tend to go up over time. Just because you had the best rates on Ford Freestyle insurance in San Jose a few years ago you can probably find a lower rate today. Forget anything you know (or think you know) about auto insurance because you’re going to get a crash course in the right way to save on auto insurance.
Finding the cheapest car insurance coverage in San Jose can really be easy if you know what you’re doing. If you are insured now or just want cheaper coverage, you will benefit by learning to find better prices without reducing protection. Consumers only need to know the tricks to compare rate quotes online.
Six Tips to Get Cheap San Jose Insurance Prices
Multiple criteria are considered when you get your auto insurance bill. Some are obvious such as traffic violations, but some are not as apparent like where you live or your financial responsibility.
The itemized list below are a few of the things used by companies to determine prices.
Do you work long hours in a demanding occupation? – Occupations like lawyers, police officers, and emergency personnel usually pay the highest rates due to job stress and long work hours. On the other hand, occupations such as farmers, athletes and homemakers have the lowest average rates.
Bundle policies with the same company – Most larger insurers allow lower prices for people who consolidate policies with them in the form of a multi-policy discount. This can amount to ten or even up to twenty percent in some cases. Even though this discount sounds good, it’s always a smart idea to check prices from other companies to ensure the best deal.
Better rates on safer cars – Vehicles with high crash test scores can get you lower premiums. Vehicles engineered for safety help reduce the chance of injuries in an accident and any reduction in injury severity translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims and thus lower rates.
Deter car thieves – Buying a car with anti-theft technology or alarm system can save you some money. Systems that thwart thieves like vehicle immobilizer systems, OnStar, and tracking devices like LoJack all aid in stopping your car from being stolen.
Cautious drivers pay less – How you drive has a huge affect on how much you pay. Having a single chargeable violation may cause rates to rise to the point where it’s not affordable. Attentive drivers get better prices compared to drivers with tickets. Drivers unfortunate enough to have dangerous violations such as DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions are required to submit a SR-22 form with their state motor vehicle department in order to prevent their license from being revoked.
Pay more of a claim out-of-pocket – Your deductibles are the amount of money you are required to spend if a claim is determined to be covered. Protection for physical damage, also known as collision and other-than-collision, covers damage that occurs to your car. Examples of some claims that would be covered are collision with another vehicle, damage caused by hail, or theft of your vehicle. The more expense you are required to pay out-of-pocket, the bigger discount you will receive.
Do you qualify for discounts?
Some companies don’t necessarily list all possible discounts very well, so we took the time to find some of the best known and also the more inconspicuous credits available to you.
- Discount for Good Grades – Maintaining excellent grades can get you a discount of up to 25%. You can use this discount normally well after school through age 25.
- Safety Restraint Discount – Drivers who require all occupants to use a seat belt can save up to 15% on the medical payments or PIP coverage costs.
- College Student Discount – Children who live away from home at college and do not have access to a covered vehicle may qualify for this discount.
- Senior Citizens – Mature drivers may be able to get a slight reduction on a San Jose auto insurance quote.
- Discount for New Cars – Putting coverage on a new Freestyle can get you a discount since new model year vehicles have better safety ratings.
- Government Employees – Federal government employees may reduce rates when you quote San Jose auto insurance with select insurance companies.
A little note about advertised discounts, most discounts do not apply to all coverage premiums. Most only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like liability and collision coverage. So even though it sounds like you could get a free auto insurance policy, auto insurance companies aren’t that generous. Any amount of discount should help lower the cost of coverage.
To locate auto insurance companies that offer the discounts shown above in San Jose, follow this link.
Be persistent and save
We covered a lot of tips how to save on Ford Freestyle insurance in San Jose. The key thing to remember is the more providers you compare, the higher your chance of finding cheaper San Jose auto insurance quotes. Drivers may even discover the best premium rates are with the smaller companies. They may often insure only within specific states and give better rates than their larger competitors like Progressive or GEICO.
Discount Ford Freestyle insurance in San Jose can be found from both online companies and from local agencies, so you should compare both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some insurance companies do not offer online price quotes and many times these regional insurance providers work with independent agents.
When searching for low cost San Jose auto insurance quotes, it’s a bad idea to reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are many occasions where someone dropped full coverage only to regret at claim time that the savings was not a smart move. Your objective should be to buy the best coverage you can find at a price you can afford while still protecting your assets.
How to buy discount Ford Freestyle insurance in San Jose
The best way we recommend to get the cheapest Ford Freestyle insurance is to start comparing prices yearly from insurance carriers who sell auto insurance in San Jose. You can compare prices by completing these steps.
- First, take a few minutes and learn about what is in your policy and the things you can control to lower rates. Many factors that cause rate increases such as accidents, traffic violations, and a less-than-favorable credit history can be rectified by making minor changes in your lifestyle.
- Second, obtain price quotes from direct carriers, independent agents, and exclusive agents. Direct and exclusive agents can provide rates from one company like GEICO or Farmers Insurance, while independent agents can provide prices from multiple sources. Compare rates
- Third, compare the price quotes to your current policy premium to see if you can save by switching companies. If you find a lower rate and change companies, make sure the effective date of the new policy is the same as the expiration date of the old one.
- Fourth, give proper notification to your current agent or company of your intention to cancel your current car insurance policy. Submit the signed application along with the required initial payment to the new company. Once the paperwork is finalized, put the new proof of insurance certificate in your glove compartment.
An important part of this process is to try to compare similar deductibles and liability limits on each price quote and and to get rate quotes from as many different insurance providers as possible. Doing this guarantees a fair rate comparison and a complete price analysis.
To read more, take a look at the resources below:
- Speed and Speed Limit FAQ (iihs.org)
- Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance for Used Cars in San Jose? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance for Teachers in San Jose? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap San Jose Car Insurance Quotes for a Subaru Outback? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest San Jose Auto Insurance for Government Employees? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable San Jose Auto Insurance for Infrequent Drivers? (FAQ)
- Airbag FAQ (iihs.org)
- How to Avoid Common Accidents (State Farm)