If saving money is your primary concern, then the best way to save on Nissan Leaf insurance is to do an annual price comparison from insurance carriers who can sell car insurance in San Jose. Price quotes can be compared by following these steps.
- First, spend some time learning about the different coverages in a policy and the measures you can take to keep rates in check. Many things that increase rates such as accidents, careless driving, and a not-so-good credit score can be rectified by being financially responsible and driving safely.
- Second, request rate estimates from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Exclusive agents and direct companies can provide rates from one company like Progressive or Allstate, while independent agencies can give you price quotes from multiple companies.
- Third, compare the price quotes to your current policy premium and see if you can save money. If you can save money and switch companies, make sure there is no coverage gap between policies.
The most important part of shopping around is to try to compare identical coverage information on each price quote and and to get prices from as many car insurance companies as possible. This enables a fair price comparison and a good representation of prices.
It’s safe to conclude that auto insurance companies don’t want you quoting rates from other companies. People who get comparison quotes once a year will presumably switch insurance companies because there is a significant possibility of finding lower rate quotes. A recent survey revealed that consumers who shopped around annually saved an average of $72 a month compared to people who never compared rates.
If finding budget-friendly car insurance in San Jose is the reason you’re here, then learning about how to find and compare car insurance can make shopping around easier.
Companies offering Nissan Leaf insurance in California
The following companies provide free rate quotes in San Jose, CA. If more than one company is shown, it’s a good idea that you click on several of them to get the most affordable price.
Check for these price cutting discounts
Not many people think insurance is cheap, but there could be significant discounts to cut the cost considerably. Certain credits will be shown when you quote, but some discounts are required to be specifically requested before they will apply.
- Good Student – This discount may save you up to 25%. You can use this discount normally until age 25.
- Low Mileage Discounts – Fewer annual miles on your Nissan could qualify for lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
- ABS Brakes – Cars, trucks, and SUVs with ABS and/or traction control can stop better under adverse conditions and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
- Claim Free – Insureds who avoid accidents and claims get the best insurance rates compared to drivers with a long claim history.
- Senior Discount – Drivers that qualify as senior citizens may be able to get a discount up to 10%.
- College Student Discount – College-age children living away from San Jose attending college and won’t have access to an insured vehicle can receive lower rates.
- Bundle and Save – If you have multiple policies and insure them both with the same insurance company you could earn a discount of as much as 10 to 15 percent.
- Government Employee Discount – Active or retired federal employment can save as much as 8% with a few insurance companies.
- Seat Belts Save – Forcing all vehicle occupants to use a seat belt could save 15% off the personal injury premium cost.
Policy discounts save money, but most discounts do not apply to the entire policy premium. Some only apply to individual premiums such as comp or med pay. Even though it appears having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you’re out of luck. Any amount of discount should definitely cut the cost of your policy.
Auto insurance companies that may include some of the above discounts include:
If you need lower rates, check with all the companies which credits you are entitled to. Discounts may not be offered in San Jose. To choose companies with the best Nissan Leaf insurance discounts in San Jose, click here to view.
Components of Your Nissan Leaf Insurance Costs
It’s important that you understand some of the factors that play a part in calculating car insurance rates. When consumers understand what impacts premium levels, this enables informed choices that will entitle you to cheaper rates. Multiple criteria are part of the calculation when you get your auto insurance bill. Some factors are common sense like an MVR report, although some other factors are more transparent like where you live or your financial responsibility.
The itemized list below are a few of the things utilized by car insurance companies to help set prices.
- Females tend to cost less – The statistics show that men are more aggressive behind the wheel. This data doesn’t prove that females are better at driving than males. Males and females are responsible for at-fault accidents at a similar rate, but guys get into accidents with more damage. Men also receive more costly citations such as driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving recklessly.
- Insurance rates are higher for high performance vehicles – The type of car you are buying insurance for makes a significant difference in how high your rates are. Lower cost passenger models receive the most favorable rates, but your final cost has many other factors.
- Don’t buy extra policy coverages that aren’t used – There are a ton of optional add-on coverages that you can get tricked into buying if you aren’t diligent. Insurance for things like rental car coverage, towing, and Farm Bureau memberships are some examples. These may sound like a good investment when talking to your agent, but if you have no use for them get rid of them and save.
- Do you have a stressful vocation? – Did you know your occupation can influence how much you pay for car insurance? Occupational choices like military generals, executives, and financial analysts tend to have higher premiums than the average policyholder due to high stress and long work days. Conversely, jobs such as scientists, students and homemakers generally pay rates lower than average.
- Pay more out-of-pocket – Coverage for physical damage, aka comp and collision, is used to repair damage to your Nissan. Examples of some claims that would be covered could be collision with another vehicle, hail damage, and damage caused by flying debris. Deductibles for physical damage are the amount of money you are required to pay if a covered claim is submitted. The larger the amount you pay before a claim is paid (deductible), the less money you will pay for car insurance.
- Amount of liability protection – Your car insurance policy’s liability coverage kicks in if you are determined to be liable for personal injury or accident damage. This coverage provides legal defense up to the limits shown on your policy. This coverage is very inexpensive as compared to coverage for physical damage, so insureds should have plenty of protection for their assets.
- Long commutes cost more – The higher the miles on your Nissan every year the more you’ll pay to insure your vehicle. Most insurance companies apply a rate determined by how the vehicle is used. Vehicles that sit idle most of the time get more affordable rates than cars that get driven a lot. An incorrectly rated Leaf may be wasting your money. Double check that your vehicle rating properly reflects the right rating data.
- Your car’s features help determine prices – Buying a car with advanced anti-theft systems can help lower your premiums. Anti-theft features such as LoJack tracking devices, vehicle tamper alarm systems or GM’s OnStar system all aid in stopping auto theft.
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Nissan Leaf claim probability – Insurers use data from past claims when setting rates for each model. Vehicles that are shown to have higher losses will cost more for specific coverages. The table shown below demonstrates the compiled insurance loss statistics for Nissan Leaf vehicles.
For each type of coverage, the claim probability for all vehicles, regardless of make, model or trim level, is represented as 100. Values that are below 100 are indicative of better than average losses, while percentage numbers above 100 point to more frequent losses or tendency to have higher losses.
Nissan Leaf Insurance Claim Statistics Specific Nissan Model Collision Property Damage Comp Personal Injury Medical Payment Bodily Injury Nissan Leaf Electric 89 84 45 83 64 76 BETTERAVERAGEWORSEStatistics Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for 2013-2015 Model Years
When to get professional advice
When quoting and comparing coverage online or from an agent for your vehicles, there is no best way to insure your cars. Your needs are unique to you.
Here are some questions about coverages that may help you determine if your situation may require specific advice.
- Do I have any recourse if my insurance company denies a claim?
- Am I covered when driving a rental car?
- What is no-fault insurance?
- Is extra glass coverage worth it?
- Are my friends covered when driving my car?
- Am I covered when driving in Canada or Mexico?
If you’re not sure about those questions but one or more may apply to you, you might consider talking to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, fill out this quick form.
Insurance agents near you
Some people still prefer to buy from a local agent and that is just fine! A good thing about comparing car insurance online is that you can obtain lower rates and still have a local agent. And buying from local agents is especially important in San Jose.
To make it easy to find an agent, after completing this form (opens in new window), the coverage information is transmitted to agents in your area who will give you bids for your coverage. There is no reason to drive around since rate quotes are delivered immediately to your email address. You can find lower rates and work with a local agent. If you have a need to compare prices from one company in particular, just navigate to their website and fill out their quote form.
Types of auto insurance agents in San Jose
When searching for a good insurance agency, you must know there are a couple types of insurance agents and how they differ in how they can insure your vehicles. San Jose agents are categorized either exclusive or independent agents depending on their company appointments.
Independent Car Insurance Agencies or Brokers
Agents that elect to be independent often have many company appointments and that gives them the ability to insure with many different companies depending on which coverage is best. If you are not satisfied with one company, they simply switch companies in-house which makes it simple for you.
When comparing rate quotes, it’s recommended you include price quotes from a few independent agents so that you have a good selection of quotes to compare. Many write coverage with small regional insurance companies that many times have cheaper rates.
Shown below is a partial list of independent agencies in San Jose that may be able to provide free car insurance quotes.
- Sergio Plascencia Insurance Agency
3136 Story Rd – San Jose, CA 95127 – (408) 254-8336 – View Map - Cya Insurance Agency From Sn
1271 Story Rd #50 – San Jose, CA 95122 – (408) 971-4172 – View Map - HealthMarkets Insurance Agency
543 W Capitol Expy – San Jose, CA 95136 – (408) 441-7777 – View Map
Exclusive Car Insurance Agencies
Exclusive agencies can only place business with one company and examples are Farmers Insurance and State Farm. These agents are not able to compare rates from other companies so they really need to provide good service. Exclusive agents are trained well on their products and sales techniques which helps overcome the inability to quote other rates. A lot of people buy insurance from these agents mainly due to the brand and solid financial strength.
Below are exclusive insurance agents in San Jose that can give you rate quotes.
- Kathy Barber – State Farm Insurance Agent
5615 Cottle Rd – San Jose, CA 95123 – (408) 365-7268 – View Map - Farmers Insurance: Jose Manabat
1620 Oakland Rd #D107 – San Jose, CA 95131 – (408) 437-5456 – View Map - Allstate Insurance: David Tofig
6116 Camino Verde Dr Ste 9 – San Jose, CA 95119 – (408) 281-9190 – View Map
Choosing an car insurance agent requires more thought than just a low price. Ask your prospective agent these questions:
- How much will you save each year by using a higher deductible?
- Which family members are covered?
- Are they paid to recommend certain coverages?
- How would your car be valued if totaled?
- How many companies do they write for?
- Do they have any clout with companies to ensure a fair claim settlement?
- How long have they been in business?
- Are there any discounts that you might be missing?
Lower rates by being persistent
People who switch companies do it for many reasons like delays in paying claims, lack of trust in their agent, an unsatisfactory settlement offer and even unfair underwriting practices. It doesn’t matter why you want to switch finding a new auto insurance company can be pretty painless.
As you quote San Jose auto insurance, it’s not a good idea to reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are too many instances where consumers will sacrifice liability limits or collision coverage and learned later that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. The ultimate goal is to buy enough coverage at the lowest possible cost but still have enough coverage for asset protection.
In this article, we presented many ways to compare Nissan Leaf insurance premium rates in San Jose. The most important thing to understand is the more quotes you get, the better chance you’ll have of finding affordable Nissan Leaf insurance quotes. You may even find the most savings is with a lesser-known regional company.
More information is located at these links:
- Understanding your Policy (NAIC.org)
- Who Has Cheap San Jose Car Insurance Quotes for Drivers Over Age 70? (FAQ)
- How Much are Auto Insurance Quotes for a Toyota 4Runner in San Jose? (FAQ)
- What Car Insurance is Cheapest for Inexperienced Drivers in San Jose? (FAQ)
- How Much are Auto Insurance Quotes for Veterans in San Jose? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable Auto Insurance Rates for a Chevrolet Silverado in San Jose? (FAQ)
- Insuring a Leased Car (Insurance Information Institute)
- Auto Insurance 101 (About.com)
- How to Avoid Staged Accidents (State Farm)