It’s hard to fathom, but nearly 70% of consumers have remained with the same insurance company for a minimum of four years, and 38% of drivers have never compared rates with other companies. With the average premium in California being $1,390, drivers can cut their rates by up to 35% a year, but they don’t know the big savings they would realize if they just switched companies.
If you want to find the absolute lowest rates, then the best way to get more affordable car insurance rates is to begin comparing prices regularly from companies who sell insurance in San Jose.
- Spend some time learning about how your policy works and the things you can change to prevent expensive coverage. Many risk factors that result in higher prices such as traffic citations and a substandard credit history can be improved by making lifestyle changes or driving safer. Continue reading for additional tips to prevent high rates and find possible discounts that are available.
- Compare prices from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Exclusive and direct companies can only give prices from a single company like Progressive or State Farm, while independent agencies can provide rate quotes from many different companies.
- Compare the price quotes to your existing coverage to see if you can save by switching companies. If you find better rates and buy the policy, make sure coverage does not lapse between policies.
- Give notification to your agent or company to cancel your current car insurance policy. Submit a completed application and payment to the new insurer. Make sure you keep your new certificate verifying coverage somewhere easily accessible.
A tip to remember is to make sure you’re comparing identical coverages on every quote and and to get prices from every company you can. This ensures an accurate price comparison and the best rate selection.
The companies in the list below have been selected to offer free quotes in San Jose, CA. If the list has multiple companies, we recommend you visit as many as you can in order to find the most competitive rates.
Auto insurance protects more than just your car
Despite the fact that auto insurance is not cheap in San Jose, maintaining insurance may be mandatory for several reasons.
- Almost all states have minimum liability requirements which means you are required to carry specific minimum amounts of liability insurance coverage in order to drive the car. In California these limits are 15/30/5 which means you must have $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $5,000 of property damage coverage.
- If your Chrysler has a lienholder, most lenders will stipulate that you have physical damage coverage to guarantee loan repayment. If you cancel or allow the policy to lapse, the lender will be forced to insure your Chrysler for a much higher rate and force you to pay much more than you were paying before.
- Insurance protects both your assets and your car. It also can pay for most medical and hospital costs for not only you but also any passengers injured in an accident. One of the most valuable coverages, liability insurance, also covers legal expenses if you are sued as the result of your driving. If you receive damage to your vehicle caused by a storm or accident, comprehensive and collision coverage will pay to restore your vehicle to like-new condition.
The benefits of insuring your car definitely exceed the cost, especially when you need to use it. According to a survey of 1,000 drivers, the average driver is currently overpaying as much as $830 a year so compare quotes from several companies each time the policy renews to make sure the price is not too high.
Car insurance discounts are available to cut your rates
Some companies don’t always publicize all discounts in a way that’s easy to find, so we took the time to find some of the more common and also the more inconspicuous ways to save on car insurance.
- New Car Discount – Adding a new car to your policy can be considerably cheaper since newer models have better safety ratings.
- Senior Discount – Drivers over the age of 55 could receive a discount up to 10%.
- Driver Safety – Successfully completing a driver safety course could possibly earn you a 5% discount and easily recoup the cost of the course.
- Organization Discounts – Having an affiliation with a professional or civic organization could qualify you for a break on your next renewal.
- Multiple Policy Discount – If you have multiple policies with one company you could earn a discount of at least 10 to 15 percent or more.
- Use Seat Belts – Drivers who require all vehicle occupants to buckle their seat belts can save 10% or more off the personal injury premium cost.
- Data Collection Discounts – Policyholders that allow their insurance company to study their driving habits by installing a telematics device such as Progressive’s Snapshot may see discounts as long as the data is positive.
- Good Drivers – Safe drivers may save up to 50% more compared to rates paid by drivers with frequent claims.
- Good Student Discount – Maintaining excellent grades can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. The good student discount can last up until you turn 25.
- College Student – Children living away from San Jose attending college without a vehicle on campus may be insured at a cheaper rate.
We need to note that most credits do not apply to your bottom line cost. The majority will only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as medical payments or collision. Despite the fact that it seems like all those discounts means the company will pay you, that’s just not realistic.
A few popular companies and some of the premium reductions they offer are shown below.
- State Farm offers discounts including multiple autos, student away at school, defensive driving training, Drive Safe & Save, good student, safe vehicle, and accident-free.
- Esurance discounts include good student, emergency road assistance, good driver, defensive driver, and online shopper.
- Progressive may include discounts for multi-policy, online quote discount, good student, continuous coverage, online signing, homeowner, and multi-vehicle.
- Liberty Mutual offers discounts for teen driver discount, safety features, newly retired, new vehicle discount, preferred payment discount, new move discount, and multi-car.
- Auto-Owners Insurance policyholders can earn discounts including paperless, anti-theft, teen driver, good student, and safe driver.
- GEICO has discounts for five-year accident-free, anti-theft, anti-lock brakes, driver training, and good student.
Double check with all the companies which discounts they offer. Some discounts may not apply to policies in your state. To see insurers with the best Chrysler Crossfire insurance discounts in California, click here to view.