Pretty sure you bought an expensive auto insurance policy? You’re preaching to the choir because many drivers feel the same as you.
Consumers have multiple car insurance companies to choose from, and although it’s a good thing to have a selection, it makes it harder to find the lowest cost provider.
Consumers need to do rate comparisons once or twice a year since rates are constantly changing. Even if you think you had the best deal on IS 350 coverage a few years ago you can probably find a lower rate today. Ignore everything you know about auto insurance because you’re about to learn the best methods to reduce your cost while improving coverage.
The cost of insuring your cars can be expensive, but you can get discounts that can help lower your rates. Certain discounts will be applied at quote time, but a few must be requested specifically before you will receive the discount.
Keep in mind that most of the big mark downs will not be given the the whole policy. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like comprehensive or collision. If you do the math and it seems like all the discounts add up to a free policy, that’s just not realistic.
Some of the insurance companies that possibly offer most of these discounts possibly include:
It’s a good idea to ask every insurance company to apply every possible discount. All car insurance discounts may not apply in your state.
When choosing the best car insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a “perfect” insurance plan. Your needs are not the same as everyone else’s so your insurance needs to address that. For example, these questions might point out whether you will benefit from professional help.
If you can’t answer these questions but you know they apply to you then you might want to talk to an agent. To find lower rates from a local agent, take a second and complete this form or click here for a list of car insurance companies in your area.
Learning about specific coverages of your policy aids in choosing the best coverages and proper limits and deductibles. Insurance terms can be confusing and reading a policy is terribly boring. Shown next are the usual coverages found on most insurance policies.
Coverage for liability – Liability insurance can cover damage or injury you incur to a person or their property in an accident. It protects you from claims by other people. It does not cover your own vehicle damage or injuries.
Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You might see values of 25/50/25 which stand for $25,000 bodily injury coverage, $50,000 for the entire accident, and $25,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Some companies may use one number which is a combined single limit which provides one coverage limit with no separate limits for injury or property damage.
Liability coverage protects against claims like court costs, emergency aid, attorney fees, funeral expenses and legal defense fees. How much liability coverage do you need? That is a decision to put some thought into, but you should buy as large an amount as possible.
Medical payments coverage and PIP – Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage kick in for bills like ambulance fees, chiropractic care and hospital visits. They can be used to fill the gap from your health insurance policy or if you do not have health coverage. Medical payments and PIP cover all vehicle occupants and will also cover being hit by a car walking across the street. PIP coverage is not available in all states and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage – Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage protects you and your vehicle from other drivers when they either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. Covered claims include hospital bills for your injuries as well as your vehicle’s damage.
Since many drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage should not be overlooked. Usually the UM/UIM limits do not exceed the liability coverage limits.
Comprehensive coverage – Comprehensive insurance covers 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 can pay for things like fire damage, falling objects and theft. The maximum payout a insurance company will pay at claim time is the market value of your vehicle, so if the vehicle is not worth much it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.
Collision – This pays for damage to your IS 350 caused by collision with another car or object. You will need to pay your deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.
Collision can pay for things like crashing into a ditch, sustaining damage from a pot hole, driving through your garage door and colliding with a tree. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from lower value vehicles. You can also raise the deductible in order to get cheaper collision rates.
We covered many tips how you can reduce 2013 Lexus IS 350 insurance premium rates online. The key thing to remember is the more times you quote, the higher your chance of finding cheaper insurance. You may be surprised to find that the best premium rates are with the least-expected company. They can often insure niche markets at a lower cost than the large multi-state companies such as Geico and State Farm.
When you buy insurance online, it’s very important that you do not buy less coverage just to save a little money. In too many instances, an insured dropped uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret at claim time that the few dollars in savings costed them thousands. The aim is to buy enough coverage at a price you can afford, but do not sacrifice coverage to save money.
To learn more, take a look at the resources below: