Things You Must Know Before Buying Indianapolis, IN Auto Insurance Online

If you are a novice to online auto insurance shopping, you may be overwhelmed by the large number of online companies selling insurance in Indianapolis.

You should make it a habit to do rate comparisons once or twice a year due to the fact that insurance rates are variable and change quite frequently. Even if you got the lowest price last year there may be better deals available now. Forget all the misinformation about auto insurance because you’re about to learn how to use online quotes to get good coverage at a lower rate.

Good Decisions Result in Lower Rates

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the different types of things that play a part in calculating the price you pay for auto insurance. When you know what positively or negatively impacts premium levels helps enable you to make changes that can help you get big savings.

• Small claims can cost you – Insurance companies in Indiana provide cheaper rates to insureds who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you are a frequent claim filer, you can pretty much guarantee higher rates. Your insurance policy is designed for larger claims.
• High performance equals high price – The type of vehicle you own makes a big difference in the rate you pay. Low performance passenger cars generally have the cheapest insurance rates, but there are many factors that impact the final cost.
• Poor driving leads to higher costs – A bad driving record has a big impact on rates. Even one speeding ticket can increase rates by as much as thirty percent. Good drivers have lower premiums than people who have multiple driving citations. If you have severe violations such as DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions may find they need to submit a SR-22 form with their state DMV in order to drive a vehicle legally.
• Do you have enough liability coverage? – Your policy’s liability coverage is the protection in the event that a jury decides you are liable for damages from an accident. Liability insurance provides you with a defense in court which can cost thousands of dollars. Liability is cheap as compared to coverage for physical damage, so do not skimp.
• Little extras can really add up – There are a lot of additional coverages that you can get tricked into buying on your auto insurance policy. Insurance for personal injury protection, accidental death and additional equipment coverage may be costing you every month. They may seem like a good idea at first, but now you might not need them so eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
• Low deductibles can be expensive – Physical damage deductibles define the amount you are willing to pay out-of-pocket in the event of a claim. Insurance for physical damage to your car, termed comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, covers damage that occurs to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered are running into the backend of another car, damage from fire, and rolling your vehicle. The more expense the insured has to pay upfront, the less your company will charge you for insurance.
• Proper usage rating affects rates – The higher the mileage driven in a year’s time the more you’ll pay to insure your vehicle. The majority of insurers rate vehicles based on their usage. Cars and trucks that are left in the garage receive lower rates than vehicles that are driven to work every day. Verify your auto insurance declarations sheet properly reflects the correct usage for each vehicle, because improper ratings can cost you money.

Compare the Market for Auto Insurance in Indianapolis, Indiana

All the larger auto insurance companies provide price estimates on the web. Getting online rates is pretty easy as you just enter the amount of coverage you want as requested by the quote form. Once entered, the system automatically retrieves your driving record and credit report and gives you a price quote.

Online quotes helps simplify price comparisons, but the process of having to visit different websites and type in the same information can be a bit tiresome and repetitive. But it’s very important to do this if you are searching for better auto insurance pricing.

Quote rates the easy way

An easier way to compare rates uses one form that analyzes rates from a lot of companies. This type of form saves time, eliminates form submissions, and makes quoting online a lot less work. As soon as the form is sent, your coverage is rated and you can choose any of the resulting price quotes.

If the quotes result in lower rates, you can click and sign and buy the policy. It can be completed in a matter of minutes and may result in a nice savings.

To compare pricing, click here to open in new window and submit the form. To compare your current rates, we recommend that you enter your coverages just like they are on your policy. Doing this guarantees you will be getting rate comparison quotes for similar insurance coverage.

Don’t listen to company ads

Consumers constantly see and hear ads that promise big savings from the likes of Allstate and Progressive. They all make the same claim about savings after switching your coverage to them.

How does each company make the same claim? This is how they do it.

Different companies can use profiling for the type of driver that makes them money. For example, a preferred risk could be over the age of 40, has no prior claims, and drives less than 7,500 miles a year. Any driver who matches those parameters will get very good rates and therefore will save when they switch companies.

Consumers who don’t measure up to this ideal profile will be charged higher premiums and ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads state “customers who switch” not “people who quote” save that kind of money. That is how companies can truthfully advertise the savings.

That is why you need to get as many quotes as possible. Because you never know the company that will have the lowest rates.

Save money by taking advantage of these discounts

Car insurance can cost a lot, but companies offer discounts to help offset the cost. Certain discounts will be applied at the time you complete a quote, but less common discounts must be asked about prior to getting the savings. If you’re not getting every credit you qualify for, you are paying more than you should be.

• Claim Free – Drivers with accident-free driving histories pay less compared to frequent claim filers.
• Life Insurance – Companies who offer life insurance give better rates if you take out life insurance.
• Multi-car Discount – Insuring more than one vehicle with the same company qualifies for this discount.
• Military Discounts – Having a deployed family member can result in better rates.
• Drive Less and Save – Keeping the miles down can earn lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
• Multi-policy Discount – When you have multiple policies with one company you may earn 10% to 20% off each policy.

It’s important to note that most discount credits are not given to the entire policy premium. The majority will only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like physical damage coverage or medical payments. Just because you may think it’s possible to get free car insurance, you won’t be that lucky. But any discount will reduce the cost of coverage.

For a list of insurance companies with discount auto insurance rates in Indianapolis, click here.

Are insurance agents obsolete?

A small number of people just want to visit with an insurance agent and that is OK! Educated insurance agents can help determine the best coverages and help you file claims. One of the great benefits of getting online price quotes is that you can obtain lower rates and still choose a local agent. Buying from small agencies is important especially in Indianapolis.

To find an agent, once you fill out this form (opens in new window), the coverage information is immediately sent to participating agents in Indianapolis who will return price quotes to get your business. There is no need to drive around due to the fact that quote results will go directly to your email. How’s that for easy!

Shown below are agents in Indianapolis that can give you price quote information.

• Farmers Insurance Group – 6345 Rockville Rd, Indianapolis, IN 46214 – (317) 247-1156
• Liberty Mutual – 8440 Woodfield Crossing Blvd, Indianapolis, IN 46240 – (317) 469-0748
• Allstate Insurance – 8515 Cedar Place Dr # 103a, Indianapolis, IN 46240 – (317) 465-0806
• Pekin Insurance Svc Office – 2611 Waterfront Pkwy E Dr #365, Indianapolis, IN 46214 – (317) 291-1990
• National Conference-Insurance – 10 W Market St, Indianapolis, IN 46204 – (317) 464-8199
• Indiana Farm Bureau Inc – 225 S East St, Indianapolis, IN 46202 – (317) 692-7200
• State Farm Insurance – 135 N Pennsylvania St # 850, Indianapolis, IN 46204 – (317) 684-6161
• Timothy Logan Agency – 3901 W 86th St # 350, Indianapolis, IN 46268 – (317) 871-2148

For a complete listing of Indianapolis insurance agents, visit this site.

Picking a company requires more thought than just the price. Any agent should have no problem answering these questions:

• Do clients work directly with the agent or are most inquiries handled by a CSR?
• If they are an independent agency, which companies do they recommend?
• If you are a high risk driver, do they have special markets for your coverage?
• Who is covered by the car insurance policy?
• Which company do they place the most coverage with?

Once you have received answers to your satisfaction to any questions you have and an affordable coverage quote, you may have just found an insurance company that can properly insure your vehicles.

Much more information about auto insurance in Indiana can be found on the Indiana Department of Insurance website located here. Visitors are able to file complaints about an insurance agent or broker, find out which companies have the most complaints, and read enforcement actions against agents and companies.

Best coverage at the best price

You just learned many ways to get a better price on auto insurance. It’s most important to understand that the more rate quotes you have, the better likelihood of reducing your rate. You may be surprised to find that the lowest rates come from the least-expected company.

When shopping online for auto insurance, do not reduce needed coverages to save money. Too many times, someone dropped uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your focus should be to get the best coverage possible at an affordable rate while not skimping on critical coverages.

Drivers leave their current company for many reasons like unfair underwriting practices, denial of a claim, policy non-renewal or extreme rates for teen drivers. Regardless of your reason, switching auto insurance companies can be less work than you think.