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SHOPPING FOR AUTO INSURANCE?
Cost of auto insurance varies significantly among the insurance companies in a highly competitive insurance market. In fact, various studies done by some state insurance departments show that the premiums for a hypothetical drivers can be two or four times higher if purchased from certain insurance companies rather than others. So it pays to shop around and of course the financial strength of the insurance company should also be taken into consideration.
Many factors affect your insurance rate and some factors are not readily within your control, such as your age, gender, marital status, the use of insured vehicle, where you live, where you keep your vehicle, etc.
Yet some factors are under your control but not necessarily at the moment when you purchase your policy. These may include your driving records, the type and the age of your vehicle.
You should keep in mind that even though most companies use these factors to determine premiums, different companies can apply them differently. For example, premiums may be higher if you have a teenager who drives, yet if he is driving the old family van, where many companies rate this vehicle for the teenager. However, some companies assign the teenager to the highest-rated vehicle even though if the teenager is not driving the vehicle.
And many insurance companies give discounts for at least some of the following:
Nonsmoker
Anti-theft device in a vehicle
Driver education course for young drivers
Students with good grades
Air bags
Automatic seat belts
Defensive driving course
Senior citizens (yet the insurance company may require the periodic attendance of a classroom program on driver education)
Other policies with the same company
No accidents for some period of time (for example, 3 years)
There are also other important factors that can affect the premiums such as the coverage selected, limits of your coverage, and your deductible.
