Free Guide to Saving Money on Sanford, ME Car Insurance Online

I can’t think of a single person who likes paying for car insurance, especially knowing the price is too high.

Insurance companies such as Allstate and Progressive all claim big savings with TV and radio ads and consumers find it hard to ignore the flying pigs and cute green geckos and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

You probably qualify for some discounts

Companies don’t always publicize all their discounts very clearly, so we break down both well-publicized as well as the least known ways to save on car insurance.

Good Students Pay Less – A discount for being a good student can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. The good student discount can last well after school through age 25.
Accident Forgiveness – A handful of insurance companies permit an accident before your rates go up if your claims history is clear prior to the accident.
Fewer Miles Equal More Savings – Fewer annual miles could qualify for discounted rates on garaged vehicles.
Air Bag Discount – Vehicles equipped with air bags or motorized seat belts can get savings of 20% or more.
Homeowners Discount – Being a homeowner may trigger a car insurance policy discount because owning a home is proof that your finances are in order.
Military Rewards – Being on active duty in the military can result in better rates.
Government Employees – Active or retired federal employment can earn a discount up to 10% with certain companies.
Defensive Driver – Completing a driver safety course could save 5% or more depending on where you live.

A little note about advertised discounts, most discount credits are not given to the overall cost of the policy. Most only cut specific coverage prices like liability, collision or medical payments. So even though they make it sound like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you won’t be that lucky.

To see a list of insurers who offer car insurance discounts in Maine, follow this link.

Free Sanford Car Insurance Quotes

All major car insurance companies such as State Farm, Allstate and GEICO give coverage prices online. Getting quotes doesn’t take much effort as you simply enter your coverage preferences into the quote form. Once you submit the form, the company’s rating system makes automated requests for your driving record and credit report and generates a price based on these factors. This streamlines rate comparisons, but the time required to go to different websites and enter the same data into a form is not the best way to spend an afternoon. But it is imperative to have as many quotes as possible if you are searching for a better rate.

The easiest way to get multiple rate quotes uses one form that analyzes rates from more than one company. The form is fast, eliminates repetitive work, and makes rate comparisons much easier to do. Immediately after you send the form, it is rated and you are able to buy your choice of the quotes that you receive. If the quotes result in lower rates, you simply finish the application and purchase the new policy. This process only takes a few minutes and you will know how your current rates stack up.

In order to compare rates now, simply click here to open in new window and enter your vehicle and coverage information. To compare your current rates, we recommend you enter deductibles and limits as shown on your current policy. Doing this guarantees you will have an apples-to-apples comparison based on similar coverages.

Tips to Get Lower Sanford Rates

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the factors that go into determining the rates you pay for car insurance. Having a good understanding of what influences your rates empowers consumers to make smart changes that will entitle you to much lower annual insurance costs. price insurance in Sanford ME

Listed below are a few of the “ingredients” used by your company to calculate prices.

Performance makes a difference – The performance of the car you are buying insurance for makes a substantial difference in how high your rates are. Small economy passenger vehicles receive the most favorable rates, but the cost you end up paying is determined by many additional factors.
Never go without insurance – Letting your insurance expire will be a quick way to increase your car insurance rates. Not only will rates go up, but being ticketed for driving with no insurance will get you a steep fine or even jail time.
With age comes lower rates – Young drivers in Maine have a tendency to get distracted easily in a vehicle so car insurance rates are higher. Mature drivers are more responsible, file fewer claims and are safer drivers.
High crash test scores lower rates – Vehicles with good safety scores are cheaper to insure. Safe vehicles have better occupant injury protection and fewer injuries means less money paid by your insurance company passed on to you as lower rates.
Where you live – Choosing to live in small towns and rural areas has it’s advantages when buying car insurance. Urban drivers have to deal with congested traffic and longer commutes to work. Fewer drivers translates into fewer accidents and also fewer theft and vandalism claims.

But I want to work with a local agent

Certain consumers prefer to visit with an insurance agent and that is just fine! One of the great benefits of price shopping on the web is you may find the lowest rates and still have an agent to talk to.

Once you complete this short form, the coverage information is immediately sent to local insurance agents who will battle for your business. There is no need to drive around as quotes are delivered straight to your inbox. It doesn’t get any easier! Get lower rates and a licensed agent to work with.

Choosing an insurer requires more thought than just a low price. These are valid questions to ask:

Do they specialize in personal lines coverage?
Are glass claims handled on-site or do you have to take your vehicle to a repair shop?
What insurance company do they write the most business with?
How many years of experience in personal lines insurance coverages do they have?
Do they assist clients in filing claims?
If they are an independent agency, which companies do they recommend?
Are they full-time agents?
Are there any hidden costs in their price quote and does it include driving and credit history?

Not all car insurance agents are the same

When researching a reputable insurance agent or broker, there are a couple of different agency structures from which to choose. Agencies in Sanford are classified as either captive or independent (non-captive).

Agency Captives

Captive insurance agents have only one company to place business with like AAA, Allstate, State Farm, Farmers Insurance or Liberty Mutual. They are unable to shop your coverage around so it’s a take it or leave it situation. Captives are usually quite knowledgeable on their company’s products which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums.

Independent Agents

Independent agents are not required to write business for one company but rather can write business amongst many companies and possibly get better coverage at lower prices. To move your coverage to a new company, an independent agent can move your coverage and you don’t have to find a new agent. When comparing rates, it’s a good idea to include multiple independent agents to ensure the widest selection of prices.

Listed below is a short list of independent insurance agencies in Sanford who can help you get price quote information.

Garnsey Brothers Insurance – 909 Main St # C – Sanford, ME 04073 – (207) 324-5000
Batchelder Brothers Insurance – 851 Main St – Sanford, ME 04073 – (207) 324-2060
Batal Agency – 985 Main St – Sanford, ME 04073 – (207) 324-8326

For a complete listing of licensed insurance agents in Sanford, click here to link.

Upon getting good answers to your questions and locked in a price quote, you may have just found an insurance agent that is a good match to adequately provide car insurance.

Keep this in mind

We’ve covered a lot of techniques to save on car insurance. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the better your chances of lowering your rates. Drivers may discover the most savings is with a small local company. Some small companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments than the large multi-state companies such as Progressive and GEICO.

Lower-priced car insurance is available both online and also from your neighborhood Sanford agents, and you should compare price quotes from both in order to have the best chance of saving money. Some car insurance companies may not provide you the ability to get quotes online and usually these small insurance companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.

When trying to cut insurance costs, don’t be tempted to reduce coverage to reduce premium. There are many occasions where someone dropped collision coverage only to regret at claim time that it was a big error on their part. Your strategy should be to buy a smart amount of coverage at the best price.

To learn more about car insurance in Maine

Additional detailed information can be found at the Maine Bureau of Insurance website. Visitors are able to read state legal mandates and laws, learn about insurance regulations, and learn about specific coverages.