Easy Five Minute Guide to Comparing Dodge Ram 3500 Pickup Insurance

Nobody looks forward to paying for car insurance, in particular when they are paying too much. Numerous insurance companies battle for your business, so it can be very hard to choose a insurer to find the lowest rate

If you are insured now or need a new policy, you can use these tips to get lower rates while maximizing coverage. Finding affordable coverage is not rocket science. Consumers just need to know the most effective way to find the lowest price online.

These discounts can slash car insurance rates

Properly insuring your vehicles can get expensive, but there could be available discounts to help bring down the price. Some discounts apply automatically when you get a quote, but some may not be applied and must be asked about prior to receiving the credit. If you aren’t receiving every discount you deserve, you are throwing money away.

Multiple Policy Discount – If you insure your home and vehicles with one company you could get a discount of approximately 10% to 15%.
No Accidents – Claim-free drivers can earn big discounts as compared to accident-prone drivers.
One Accident Forgiven – Certain companies will forgive one accident before raising your premiums as long as you don’t have any claims prior to the accident.
Seat Belt Usage – Using a seat belt and requiring all passengers to wear their seat belts can save up to 15% off your medical payments premium.
Discount for Swiching Early – A few companies offer discounts for buying a policy before your current expiration date. The savings is around 10%.
55 and Retired – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you can possibly qualify for a discount up to 10% on Ram pickup insurance.
Theft Prevention System – Vehicles equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems are stolen less frequently and therefore earn up to a 10% discount.
Driver’s Ed – Make teen driver coverage more affordable by requiring them to take driver’s ed class in high school.
Drive Less and Save – Keeping the miles down on your Dodge could be rewarded with better rates on cars that stay parked.
Military Discounts – Having a family member in the military could mean lower rates.

Consumers should know that most of the big mark downs will not be given to all coverage premiums. Most only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. So when the math indicates having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, car insurance companies aren’t that generous. But all discounts will reduce the cost of coverage.

To see a list of insurance companies who offer car insurance discounts, click here.

How to Compare Car Insurance Rates

Lowering your Dodge Ram 3500 Pickup car insurance rates is not a difficult process. The only thing you need to do is take the time to compare rate quotes online with multiple companies. It is quite easy and can be accomplished in just a few minutes using one of these methods.

The single most time-saving way to get quotes for comparison would be an industry-wide quote request form like this one (opens in new window). This form prevents you from having to do a different quote for every car insurance company. Completing one form compares rates .
A less efficient way to compare rate quotes is spending the time to visit each company’s website to complete their respective quote request forms. For example, let’s assume you want to compare rates from State Farm, Farmers and GMAC. To get rate quotes you would need to go to every website and enter your information, which is why the first method is quicker. For a handy list of car insurance company links in your area, click here.
The least recommended method to compare rates is to waste gas driving to local insurance agencies. Buying insurance online eliminates the need for an insurance agent unless you have a need for the trained guidance that only a license agent can provide. Drivers can comparison shop your insurance online but still have the advice of a local agent and we’ll cover that in a bit.

Which method you use is up to you, but compare exactly the same coverage limits with every price quote. If you enter different limits and deductibles on each one it will be very difficult to determine which rate is truly the best.

What determines your Dodge Ram 3500 Pickup insurance premium

An important part of buying insurance is that you know some of the elements that play a part in calculating the price you pay for car insurance. Having a good understanding of what controls the rates you pay allows you to make educated decisions that could result in much lower annual insurance costs.

Shown below are some of the factors companies use to determine premiums.

Older drivers save more – Older insureds tend to be more responsible, tend to cause fewer accidents and tend to be better behind the wheel. Teenage drivers are statistically proven to get distracted easily when behind the wheel and because of this, their car insurance rates are much higher.
Multiple policies with one company can save – Some companies will give a discount to policyholders who carry more than one policy. It’s known as a multi-policy discount. Discounts can add up to anywhere from five to ten percent in most cases. Even though this discount sounds good, it’s still a good idea to shop around to ensure the best deal.
Rate your vehicle for proper use – The higher the mileage driven in a year the higher your rates will be. Most insurance companies rate vehicles determined by how the vehicle is used. Autos not used for work or commuting can get a lower rate than those used for commuting. An improperly rated Ram 3500 Pickup can result in significantly higher rates. Ask your agent if your car insurance declarations sheet is rated on the correct usage for each vehicle, because it can save money.
Liability insurance protects assets – Liability insurance is the protection if you are found to be at fault for damages from an accident. Liability provides you with a defense in court which can be incredibly expensive. Carrying liability coverage is mandatory and cheap compared to physical damage coverage, so do not skimp.
High numbers of claims are not good – Car insurance companies award better rates to policyholders who do not file claims often. If you file claims often, you can expect either higher rates or even cancellation. Your insurance policy is designed for major claims that would cause financial hardship.

Don’t I need to talk to an agent?

A small number of people would rather talk to a local agent and that is a personal choice. Insurance agents can point out coverage gaps and help you file claims. One of the best bonuses of comparing rates online is you may find the best rates and still have an agent to talk to. Buying from local insurance agencies is important especially if you live in a smaller city or town. insurance banner

To make it easy to find an agent, after completing this form (opens in new window), your insurance coverage information gets sent to insurance agents who will battle for your coverage. You won’t need to leave your computer due to the fact that quote results will go directly to your email. How cool is that?!

Two different types of auto insurance agents

When researching local agents, you need to know there are two different agency structures that you can select. agents are either captive or independent. Either one can write coverage properly, but it’s good to learn the difference between them since it may influence your selection of an agent.

Independent Agents

Independent agencies do not work for one specific company so they can insure your vehicles with lots of companies and possibly get better coverage at lower prices. If your agent finds better pricing, the agent simply finds a different carrier without you having to go to a different agency. When comparing rates, it’s recommended you include multiple independent agents to ensure the widest selection of prices.

Captive Insurance Agents

These agents work for only one company and some examples include AAA, Allstate and State Farm. They are unable to shop your coverage around so it’s a take it or leave it situation. Captives are very knowledgeable on their products and sales techniques which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums.

To view a full list of agencies, visit this site.

Choosing an insurance agency should depend on more than just the bottom line cost. Any agent should have no problem answering these questions:

Will your rates increase after a single accident?
Do they carry Errors and Omissions coverage?
Do they assist clients in filing claims?
Do they have any clout with companies to ensure a fair claim settlement?
Does the agency provide any after hours assistance?
Will their companies depreciate repairs to your car based on the mileage?
Does the agent have professional designations like CIC, CPCU or AIC?

Upon receiving answers to your satisfaction to any questions you have and a good coverage price, it’s possible that you found an auto insurance agent that meets your needs to provide car insurance coverage.

Are you falling for claims of savings?

Consumers get pounded daily by advertisements for car insurance savings by companies like Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. They all seem to have a common claim of big savings after switching to them.

How do they all make the same claim? This is how they do it.

All companies are able to cherry pick for the driver that earns them a profit. A good example of a driver they prefer might be a mature driver, insures multiple vehicles, and drives newer vehicles. A propective insured who matches those parameters gets the lowest rates and therefore will save quite a bit of money when switching.

Potential insureds who don’t measure up to the requirements must pay more money which usually ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads state “customers who switch” not “people who quote” save money. That’s why companies can state the savings.

This illustrates why you need to get as many comparisons as possible. Because you never know which company will have the lowest rates.

More comparisons equals lower rates

Throughout this article, we presented some good ideas how you can reduce Dodge Ram 3500 Pickup insurance prices online. The key thing to remember is the more you quote, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. You may be surprised to find that the best prices are with an unexpected company. They may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments compared to the large companies like Progressive and GEICO.

Low-cost Dodge Ram 3500 Pickup insurance can be found on the web and also from your neighborhood agents, and you need to comparison shop both to get a complete price analysis. Some companies may not provide online price quotes and many times these small insurance companies only sell through independent insurance agents.