Are you drained from sacrificing to insure your Ford every month? You are in the same boat as millions of other vehicle owners. Many auto insurance companies vie for your hard-earned dollar, and it can be difficult to compare rates to get the cheapest price
If you have a policy now or are looking for a new policy, you can follow these tips to shop for the lowest rates and still get good coverage. Buying car insurance is not that difficult. Consumers only need to know the tricks to get comparison rates on the web.
Lots of things are part of the calculation when you get your auto insurance bill. Most are fairly basic like an MVR report, although some other factors are more obscure such as your credit history or your vehicle rating.
The itemized list below are some of the things that factor into your rate level.
There are several ways you can shop for insurance but some are less labor-intensive and much quicker. You can waste hours talking to insurance companies in your area, or you can utilize the internet to get prices fast.
Many of the larger companies participate in a marketplace where prospective buyers enter their policy data once, and each participating company then gives them pricing. This system prevents you from having to do quote forms for each company you want a rate for. To compare rates now click here (opens in new window).
One minor caviat to getting quotes like this is you don’t know exactly the providers you want to price. So if you prefer to pick individual companies to compare prices, we have a page of insurance companies in your area. Click to view list.
How you compare quotes is your choice, just ensure you’re using exactly the same coverages on every quote. If your comparisons have different values for each quote it will be very difficult to determine the lowest rate for your Ford Escort.
Car insurance companies don’t always list all disounts very clearly, so the list below details a few of the more common as well as the least known credits available to bring down your rates.
Keep in mind that most discount credits are not given to the entire policy premium. Most only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as collision or personal injury protection. So even though they make it sound like it’s possible to get free car insurance, you aren’t that lucky.
Larger insurance coverage companies and a partial list of their discounts are shown below.
When comparing rates, check with every company what discounts are available to you. All car insurance discounts might not be offered on policies in your area.
When it comes to buying the best insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a one size fits all plan. Every insured’s situation is different so this has to be addressed. For example, these questions could help you determine whether or not you might need an agent’s assistance.
If it’s difficult to answer those questions but a few of them apply, you may need to chat with a licensed insurance agent. To find an agent in your area, fill out this quick form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area. It is quick, free and may give you better protection.
Knowing the specifics of your policy helps when choosing the right coverages at the best deductibles and correct limits. Policy terminology can be confusing and coverage can change by endorsement. Shown next are the usual coverages found on the average auto insurance policy.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) – This protects you and your vehicle from other motorists when they either have no liability insurance or not enough. This coverage pays for injuries to you and your family and also any damage incurred to your Ford Escort.
Since many drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits, their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. For this reason, having high UM/UIM coverages is a good idea. Usually the UM/UIM limits are identical to your policy’s liability coverage.
Comprehensive insurance – This coverage will pay to fix damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. You first must pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive insurance covers things such as damage from flooding, hitting a bird and damage from a tornado or hurricane. The most you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the market value of your vehicle, so if it’s not worth much more than your deductible consider dropping full coverage.
Liability insurance – Liability coverage will cover damage that occurs to other’s property or people in an accident. It protects you from legal claims by others, and does not provide coverage for damage to your own property or vehicle.
It consists of three limits, bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. You commonly see liability limits of 50/100/50 that translate to $50,000 bodily injury coverage, a per accident bodily injury limit of $100,000, and property damage coverage for $50,000. Another option is a combined single limit or CSL which limits claims to one amount without having the split limit caps.
Liability coverage protects against things like attorney fees, structural damage and pain and suffering. How much liability coverage do you need? That is your choice, but you should buy higher limits if possible.
Collision – Collision coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage caused by collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. You have to pay a deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision insurance covers things such as sustaining damage from a pot hole, hitting a mailbox and colliding with another moving vehicle. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so consider dropping it from vehicles that are 8 years or older. It’s also possible to choose a higher deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
Med pay and Personal Injury Protection (PIP) – Med pay and PIP coverage reimburse you for immediate expenses for things like funeral costs, prosthetic devices, ambulance fees, doctor visits and EMT expenses. The coverages can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance policy or if you do not have health coverage. Coverage applies to all vehicle occupants as well as if you are hit as a while walking down the street. Personal injury protection coverage is not an option in every state and may carry a deductible
We’ve covered a lot of information how to save on 1990 Ford Escort insurance. The key concept to understand is the more you quote auto insurance, the higher the chance of saving money. You may even find the best premium rates are with a small local company. These smaller insurers may have significantly lower prices on certain market segments as compared to the big name companies such as Allstate or State Farm.
As you shop your coverage around, make sure you don’t buy poor coverage just to save money. There are a lot of situations where someone sacrificed comprehensive coverage or liability limits 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 the lowest possible cost, but don’t skip important coverages to save money.
More detailed insurance coverage information is located by following these links: