Lower Your 1998 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Car Insurance Quotes

If online car insurance comparisons are new to you, you can easily be bewildered by the vast number of local and online companies who claim to have the best car insurance rates.

If you currently have car insurance, you should be able to reduce your rates substantially using this strategy. The purpose of this post is to let you in on how car insurance quotes work and some tricks to saving. Nevertheless, car owners must understand how big insurance companies compete online and take advantage of how the system works.

How to get free car insurance quotes online

To find low cost prices, there are a couple of ways to obtain and compare prices from all the different companies. The recommended way to find competitive 1998 Mercedes-Benz C-Class insurance rates is to jump online and get quotes. This is quite simple and can be completed in a couple of different ways.

  1. The first (and easiest) way to compare a lot of rates at once would be an industry-wide quote request form (click to open form in new window). This style of form keeps you from doing separate forms for every prospective company. A single, simple form will return price quotes instantly. This is perfect if you don’t have a lot of time.
  2. A more time consuming way to analyze rates is to take the time to go to the website of each company and fill out their own quote form. For instance, let’s say you want to get rates from USAA, Geico and Farmers. In order to get each rate, you would have to spend time on each company’s site to enter your coverage information, which is why most consumers use the first method. For a list of links to insurance companies in your area, click here.

It’s up to you which method you use, but do your best to enter apples-to-apples coverage limits for every company. If each company quotes unequal deductibles or liability limits it will be nearly impossible to make a fair rate comparison. Just slight variations in insurance coverages can result in a big premium difference. Just remember that comparing more rates from different companies increases the change that you will find a lower rate than you’re paying now.

Advertising myths

Well-known insurance coverage companies like Geico, State Farm and Progressive endlessly run ads in print and on television. They all seem to advertise claims that people will save just by moving your policy. How does every insurance coverage company charge you less for car insurance? This is the trick they use.

Companies provide the lowest rates for the type of driver that will not have excessive claims. For example, this type of driver could possibly be a mature driver, has no driving citations, and has great credit. Any customer who matches that profile will get very good premium rates and is almost guaranteed to cut their rates if they switch.

Potential customers who are not a match for this stringent profile will probably have to pay higher premiums which results in business not being written. The wording the ads use say “people who switch” not “everyone who quotes” save that much. That is how companies can claim big savings.

This emphasizes why drivers should get insurance coverage quotes from several different companies. It’s just not possible to know with any certainty which company will give you the biggest savings.

Get lower rates by taking advantage of discounts

Buying insurance is not cheap, but there’s a good chance there are discounts that can drop the cost substantially. Certain reductions will be credited at the time of quoting, but a few must be manually applied before they will apply. If you aren’t receiving every discount you qualify for, it’s possible you qualify for a lower rate.

  • Onboard Data Collection – Drivers who agree to allow companies to analyze where and when they drive remotely such as Snapshot from Progressive or Drivewise from Allstate could possibly reduce rates if they exhibit good driving behavior.
  • Safety Course Discount – Taking time to complete a driver safety course could earn you a small percentage discount depending on where you live.
  • Professional Organizations – Having an affiliation with certain professional organizations could trigger savings on your policy.
  • Safe Driver Discounts – Safe drivers can save up to 40% or more on their insurance coverage quote on C-Class coverage than drivers with accident claims.
  • Payment Discounts – If you pay your entire premium ahead of time as opposed to paying monthly you may have a lower total premium amount.
  • Claim-Free Discount – Insureds who avoid accidents and claims are rewarded with significantly better rates on insurance coverage quote in comparison with frequent claim filers.
  • Senior Citizens – If you’re over the age of 55, you could receive a slight reduction on a insurance coverage quote on C-Class coverage.
  • Drivers Education – Teen drivers should participate in a local driver’s education class in school.
  • Low Miles Discount – Low mileage vehicles may allow you to get discounted prices on garaged vehicles.
  • Student in College – Kids who attend college more than 100 miles from home and do not take a car to college may be insured at a cheaper rate.

A quick disclaimer, many deductions do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. The majority will only reduce individual premiums such as comprehensive or collision. Despite the fact that it seems like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you’re out of luck.

A list of companies and their offered discounts are included below.

  • State Farm offers premium reductions for anti-theft, multiple policy, good student, Steer Clear safe driver discount, safe vehicle, and student away at school.
  • Geico may include discounts for good student, military active duty, daytime running lights, anti-lock brakes, and air bags.
  • SAFECO discounts include drive less, teen safe driver, safe driver, teen safety rewards, and anti-theft.
  • Farmers Insurance offers discounts for mature driver, electronic funds transfer, alternative fuel, good student, teen driver, and multi-car.
  • AAA has discounts for multi-car, good student, education and occupation, AAA membership discount, good driver, and multi-policy.
  • USAA includes discounts for driver training, good student, loyalty savings, military installation, new vehicle, and family discount.

When getting free insurance coverage quotes, it’s a good idea to each company or agent what discounts are available to you. Some of the discounts discussed earlier might not be offered on policies in your state. To locate providers with the best discounts, click here.

How much insurance coverage do I need?

When choosing coverage, there really is no “perfect” insurance plan. Everyone’s situation is unique.

Here are some questions about coverages that can aid in determining if your situation will benefit from professional help.

  • Do I need roadside assistance coverage?
  • Do I need replacement cost coverage on my 1998 Mercedes-Benz C-Class?
  • Can I rate high risk drivers on liability-only vehicles?
  • Am I covered if I hit a deer?
  • Will my rates increase for filing one claim?
  • Am I insured when driving a different vehicle?
  • What is high-risk coverage and where do I buy it?
  • Do I need higher collision deductibles?
  • When should I buy a commercial auto policy?

If you can’t answer these questions but you know they apply to you, you might consider talking to a licensed agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, take a second and complete this form.

Coverage specifics

Understanding the coverages of your policy aids in choosing the right coverages and the correct deductibles and limits. Car insurance terms can be ambiguous and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording.

Liability coverage

Liability insurance protects you from injuries or damage you cause to people or other property that is your fault. It protects YOU against other people’s claims, and does not provide coverage for damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.

Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. You might see limits of 50/100/50 which means $50,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a total of $100,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and a total limit of $50,000 for damage to vehicles and property. Some companies may use a combined single limit or CSL that pays claims from the same limit with no separate limits for injury or property damage.

Liability can pay for claims such as medical expenses, loss of income and court costs. How much liability coverage do you need? That is your choice, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as large an amount as possible.

Auto collision coverage

This coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage resulting from colliding with an object or car. You will need to pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision insurance covers things such as colliding with another moving vehicle, colliding with a tree, sideswiping another vehicle, driving through your garage door and scraping a guard rail. This coverage can be expensive, so you might think about dropping it from lower value vehicles. Another option is to raise the deductible to save money on collision insurance.

Comprehensive car insurance

Comprehensive insurance will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. A deductible will apply then your comprehensive coverage will pay.

Comprehensive insurance covers claims like fire damage, damage from getting keyed, theft and falling objects. The maximum payout your car insurance company will pay is the market value of your vehicle, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value consider removing comprehensive coverage.

Coverage for medical expenses

Med pay and PIP coverage provide coverage for short-term medical expenses for things like chiropractic care, doctor visits and surgery. The coverages can be used in conjunction with a health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. Coverage applies to you and your occupants in addition to any family member struck as a pedestrian. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available and may carry a deductible

Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers

Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage protects you and your vehicle when the “other guys” do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered losses include injuries to you and your family and damage to your Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

Due to the fact that many drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. So UM/UIM coverage is very important. Most of the time these limits are identical to your policy’s liability coverage.

Save your cold hard cash

Cheaper 1998 Mercedes-Benz C-Class insurance is available both online as well as from insurance agents, and you should compare price quotes from both to get a complete price analysis. There are still a few companies who may not have online price quotes and many times these regional insurance providers work with independent agents.

In this article, we presented a lot of tips how to shop for 1998 Mercedes-Benz C-Class insurance online. It’s most important to understand that the more rate comparisons you have, the better chance you’ll have of finding affordable insurance coverage. You may even discover the most savings is with some of the lesser-known companies.

Consumers leave their current company for any number of reasons including delays in paying claims, policy non-renewal, unfair underwriting practices or even being labeled a high risk driver. Regardless of your reason, choosing a new company is not as hard as you think.

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