Lower Your 1998 Toyota Tacoma Insurance Rates

Trying to find the cheapest auto insurance rates for your Toyota Tacoma? Do you get exhausted from trying to scrape together enough money each month for auto insurance? Your situation is no different than the majority of other consumers.

Because there are so many choices, it is hard for the average consumer to choose a lower cost insurance company.

It’s a good idea to compare prices before your next renewal because insurance rates go up and down regularly. Even if you got the best premium rates on Tacoma coverage on your last policy there may be better deals available now. Forget anything you know (or think you know) about auto insurance because you’re about to find out the proper way to find great coverage at a great price.

Choosing the best insurance company for you is easy if you know what you’re doing. If you have car insurance now, you will be able to save some money using this strategy. But car owners should learn how companies market insurance on the web because it can help you find the best coverage.

Double check you’re getting these discounts

Some companies don’t always publicize the complete list of policy discounts in a way that’s easy to find, so below is a list some of the best known as well as the least known credits that you can use to lower your rates. If you are not receiving all the discounts possible, you’re paying more than you need to.

  • Full Payment Discount – If paying your policy premium upfront rather than paying in monthly installments you can avoid the installment charge.
  • No Charge for an Accident – but a few companies such as Libery Mutual, Geico and Allstate will forgive one accident before raising your premiums with the catch being you have to be claim-free prior to the accident.
  • Driving Data Discount – People who choose to allow their insurance company to look at driving manner through the use of a telematics system such as Progressive’s Snapshot might see lower rates if they are good drivers.
  • Discount for Multiple Policies – If you insure your home and vehicles with the same company they may give you a discount of at least 10 to 15 percent or more.
  • Passenger Safety Discount – Factory air bags and/or automatic seat belt systems can qualify for discounts up to 30%.
  • Professional Organizations – Being in certain professional organizations is a good way to get lower rates on your next renewal.
  • Claim-Free Discount – Good drivers with no accidents have much lower rates in comparison to policyholders that have many claims.
  • Own a Home – Simply owning a home can get you a discount since home ownership demonstrates responsibility.
  • Active Military Service – Being on active deployment in the military may qualify for rate reductions.

While discounts sound great, it’s important to understand that some of the credits will not apply to the entire policy premium. The majority will only reduce specific coverage prices like medical payments or collision. Even though the math looks like you can get free auto insurance, you’re out of luck.

Larger insurance coverage companies and their possible discounts are shown below.

  • State Farm offers discounts including driver’s education, passive restraint, Steer Clear safe driver discount, defensive driving training, anti-theft, multiple autos, and accident-free.
  • Geico may have discounts that include military active duty, anti-lock brakes, air bags, anti-theft, and good student.
  • Progressive offers premium reductions for multi-policy, good student, online quote discount, continuous coverage, homeowner, and multi-vehicle.
  • 21st Century has savings for anti-lock brakes, theft prevention, student driver, automatic seat belts, and defensive driver.
  • American Family includes discounts for air bags, multi-vehicle, mySafetyValet, good driver, Steer into Savings, and early bird.
  • The Hartford may include discounts for defensive driver, air bag, anti-theft, good student, driver training, bundle, and vehicle fuel type.
  • AAA has discounts for pay-in-full, education and occupation, good driver, AAA membership discount, multi-car, good student, and multi-policy.

It’s a good idea to ask each company to apply every possible discount. Discounts may not apply in your area. To see companies offering insurance coverage discounts, follow this link.

The Toyota Tacoma insurance price equation

Lots of things are used when you quote your car insurance policy. Some are obvious such as traffic violations, but other criteria are less obvious like where you live or how financially stable you are.It’s important that you understand the factors that aid in calculating your car insurance rates. If you have some idea of what controls the rates you pay, this allows you to make good choices that could result in lower rates.

  • Safer vehicles means better car insurance rates – Vehicles that have high safety ratings tend to have lower insurance rates. Safer cars help reduce the chance of injuries in an accident and lower rates of occupant injuries translates into fewer and smaller insurance claims and more competitive rates for policyholders.
  • Theft deterrents save – Choosing to buy a car with a theft deterrent system can help bring down rates. Systems that thwart theives like LoJack tracking devices, vehicle tamper alarm systems or GM’s OnStar system all help stop your vehicle from being stolen.
  • Where you call home plays a part – Having an address in a small town may provide you with better prices when trying to find low car insurance rates. Fewer people means a lower chance of having an accident and lower theft and vandalism rates. People in densly populated areas tend to have more auto accidents and a longer drive to work. The longer drive time can result in more accidents.
  • Little extras can really add up – Insurance companies have many additional extra coverages that you can get tricked into buying but may not be useful. Insurance for roadside assistance, high-cost glass coverage, and term life insurance may be costing you every month. The coverages may be enticing at first, but if you’ve never needed them in the past remove them and pocket the money.
  • Bad credit will cost you – A driver’s credit history is likely to be a major factor in determining what you pay for car insurance. Therefore, if your credit is not that good, you could potentially save money when insuring your 1998 Toyota Tacoma by improving your rating. Drivers who have high credit ratings tend to be less risk to insure as compared to drivers with poor credit.
  • Costs also based on gender – Over the last 30 years, statistics show women are more cautious behind the wheel. Now that doesn’t mean men are worse drivers. Both genders cause at-fault accidents at a similar rate, but males tend to have more serious accidents. They also get more serious tickets like reckless driving and DUI. Male drivers age 16 to 19 are most likely to cause an accident so it costs more to insure them.

Special considerations

When it comes to choosing adequate coverage, there really is no single plan that fits everyone. Your needs are not the same as everyone else’s and your policy should reflect that. Here are some questions about coverages that might point out if your situation might need professional guidance.

  • How do I buy GAP insurance?
  • Does my policy cover me when driving someone else’s vehicle?
  • Are my tools covered if they get stolen from my vehicle?
  • Can I afford low physical damage deductibles?
  • Is my vehicle covered by my employer’s policy when using it for work?
  • Does my insurance cover a custom paint job?

If you can’t answer these questions but you know they apply to you then you might want to talk to an insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies.

Do car insurance companies bend the truth?

Car insurance companies such as Progressive, Allstate and Geico endlessly run ads on TV and radio. All the companies convey the message about savings if you just switch to them. That’s great but how can every company charge you a lower premium? It’s all in the words they use.

Many companies look for specific characteristics for the type of customer that will generate a profit. An example of a desirable risk could be between 25 and 40, has no tickets, and drives newer vehicles. Any person who matches that profile will get the preferred premium rates and is almost guaranteed to save if they switch.

Consumers who do not match these criteria will have to pay a higher rate which usually ends up with the customer buying from a different company. If you listen closely, the ads state “drivers that switch” not “all people who quote” save that kind of money. That’s why insurance companies can confidently make it sound like they have such great rates. Different companies use different criteria so you really need to compare free insurance coverage quotes often. It’s just not possible to know with any certainty which company will have the lowest rate quotes.

Auto insurance coverage breakdown

Knowing the specifics of your auto insurance policy helps when choosing the best coverages for your vehicles. Policy terminology can be impossible to understand and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Shown next are typical coverage types available from auto insurance companies.

Medical costs insurance

Med pay and PIP coverage pay for immediate expenses like X-ray expenses, funeral costs and hospital visits. They are used in conjunction with a health insurance policy or if you lack health insurance entirely. Medical payments and PIP cover all vehicle occupants in addition to any family member struck as a pedestrian. Personal Injury Protection is not universally available and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay

Comprehensive or Other Than Collision

This pays to fix your vehicle from damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. A deductible will apply and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.

Comprehensive coverage protects against claims such as hitting a deer, fire damage, a broken windshield, vandalism and a tree branch falling on your vehicle. The most you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle is not worth much it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.

UM/UIM Coverage

Your UM/UIM coverage protects you and your vehicle’s occupants from other motorists when they are uninsured or don’t have enough coverage. Covered claims include injuries to you and your family and damage to your Toyota Tacoma.

Due to the fact that many drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. So UM/UIM coverage is important protection for you and your family.

Auto liability insurance

This coverage protects you from damages or injuries you inflict on other’s property or people in an accident. It protects YOU against other people’s claims, and doesn’t cover damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.

Liability coverage has three limits: per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. You commonly see liability limits of 100/300/100 which means $100,000 bodily injury coverage, a limit of $300,000 in injury protection per accident, and $100,000 of coverage for damaged propery.

Liability coverage pays for claims such as repair costs for stationary objects, structural damage, funeral expenses, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and attorney fees. How much liability coverage do you need? That is up to you, but buy as large an amount as possible.

Collision insurance

Collision insurance pays to fix your vehicle from damage resulting from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision coverage protects against claims like driving through your garage door, crashing into a building, damaging your car on a curb, hitting a parking meter and sideswiping another vehicle. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so consider dropping it from older vehicles. Drivers also have the option to choose a higher deductible to bring the cost down.

Shop Smart and Save

Some insurance providers may not offer price quotes online and many times these smaller companies prefer to sell through independent agencies. The cheapest 1998 Toyota Tacoma insurance can be bought on the web and with local insurance agents, and you should compare rates from both in order to have the best chance of saving money.

When buying insurance coverage, it’s not a good idea to sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. In too many instances, an accident victim reduced full coverage and learned later that it was a big error on their part. The ultimate goal is to buy enough coverage at the lowest possible cost while not skimping on critical coverages.

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