The most effective way to find affordable car insurance rates is to compare quotes once a year from providers in Scottsdale. Rates can be compared by following these guidelines.
Step 1: It will benefit you to learn about how insurance works and the factors you can control to prevent rate increases. Many things that increase rates such as getting speeding tickets and a bad credit score can be improved by making minor changes in your lifestyle.
Step 2: Compare rates from independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct companies. Exclusive agents and direct companies can only give rate quotes from a single company like Progressive and State Farm, while agents who are independent can provide prices from multiple sources.
Step 3: Compare the new rates to your existing policy to see if cheaper Five Hundred coverage is available. If you find a lower rate, make sure there is no coverage gap between policies.
Step 4: Give notification to your agent or company of your intention to cancel the current policy and submit any necessary down payment along with the completed application for your new coverage. Once the paperwork is finalized, keep your new certificate verifying proof of insurance with your registration paperwork.
The key aspect of shopping around is to use similar coverage information on every quote request and and to get quotes from as many companies as feasibly possible. This provides the most accurate price comparison and maximum price selection.
Astonishing but true, almost 70% of drivers in Arizona kept their coverage with the same auto insurance company for a minimum of four years, and practically 40% of auto insurance customers have never shopped around. U.S. insurance shoppers could save $859 a year just by shopping around, but most just don’t grasp the amount of savings they would get if they switch to a new company.
Smart Buyers Know How to Quote Insurance at a Discount
Multiple criteria are used in the calculation when you quote your car insurance policy. Some of the criteria are obvious like an MVR report, but other criteria are less apparent such as your credit history or how safe your car is.
Defend yourself with liability protection – The liability coverage on your policy will protect you if ever a court rules you are at fault for causing damage or personal injury in an accident. Your policy’s liability insurance provides legal defense to attempt to prove you were not liable. This coverage is relatively inexpensive compared to other policy coverages, so insureds should have plenty of protection for their assets.
What are your comp and collision deductibles? – Protection for physical damage, also known as collision and other-than-collision, is used to repair damage to your Ford. Examples of covered claims are running into the backend of another car, damage caused by hail, and rolling your vehicle. Physical damage deductibles represent how much money you are required to spend out-of-pocket if you file a covered claim. The more damage repair cost you are required to pay out-of-pocket, the bigger discount you will receive.
Excellent credit scores equal low premiums – Having a bad credit score factor in determining what you pay for insurance. People with very good credit scores tend to be less risk to insure than those with bad credit. If your credit can be improved, you could pay less to insure your Ford Five Hundred by repairing your credit.
A coverage lapse is a bad thing – Driving any period of time without insurance is illegal and companies may charge more for letting your insurance expire. In addition to paying higher rates, failure to provide proof of insurance might get you a steep fine or even jail time.
Small coverages can add up – Insurance policies have a lot of optional add-on coverages that you can get tricked into buying on your Five Hundred policy. Coverages like personal injury protection, accident forgiveness, and membership fees are examples of these. They may seem like a good idea when deciding what coverages you need, but your money might be better spent on other coverage so remove them from your policy.
With age comes responsibility – Young drivers in Arizona are statistically proven to be inattentive when at the wheel of a vehicle and because of this, their insurance rates are much higher. More experienced drivers tend to be more responsible, cause fewer claims and accidents, and receive fewer citations.
Lower rates by qualifying for discounts
Car insurance is neither fun to buy or cheap, but you may be missing some discounts that could drop your premiums quite a bit. Certain credits will be shown at the time you complete a quote, but some may not be applied and must be specially asked for prior to getting the savings.
- Savings for New Vehicles – Buying a new car instead of a used Five Hundred can get you a discount since new vehicles are generally safer.
- Anti-lock Brakes – Vehicles that have anti-lock braking systems prevent accidents so you can save 10 percent or more.
- Driver Training Discounts – Taking part in a course teaching driver safety skills can save you 5% or more if your company offers it.
- Seat Belts Save – Using a seat belt and requiring all passengers to use a seat belt may be able to save a few bucks on the medical payments or PIP coverage costs.
- Discount for Low Mileage – Keeping the miles down on your Ford can earn slightly better rates than normal.
- Distant College Student Discount – Kids who are attending college and leave their car at home may be able to be covered for less.
- No Claims – Insureds with no claims or accidents can earn big discounts when compared to drivers who are more careless.
Please keep in mind that some of the credits will not apply to the whole policy. A few only apply to specific coverage prices like liability and collision coverage. So when the math indicates you could get a free car insurance policy, that’s just not realistic.
The best car insurance companies and a partial list of their discounts are shown below.
- State Farm may include discounts for driver’s education, accident-free, safe vehicle, Drive Safe & Save, and good driver.
- Progressive offers discounts including multi-policy, online signing, multi-vehicle, good student, homeowner, and online quote discount.
- Progressive may offer discounts for multi-policy, multi-vehicle, online quote discount, good student, continuous coverage, online signing, and homeowner.
- MetLife discounts include claim-free, accident-free, multi-policy, good student, good driver, and defensive driver.
- Farm Bureau policyholders can earn discounts including good student, multi-policy, youthful driver, multi-vehicle, and safe driver.
- GEICO offers premium reductions for federal employee, membership and employees, driver training, anti-lock brakes, and air bags.
- SAFECO has discounts for teen safety rewards, homeowner, multi-car, drive less, teen safe driver, and accident prevention training.
Before you buy a policy, ask each insurance company which discounts can lower your rates. Some discounts listed above may not apply everywhere. To choose insurance companies who offer online Ford Five Hundred insurance quotes in Arizona, click this link.
Final considerations
As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, you should never skimp on coverage in order to save money. There have been many situations where an insured cut collision coverage only to discover later that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your aim should be to find the BEST coverage at the best cost, but don’t skip important coverages to save money.
Lower-priced auto insurance in Scottsdale can be sourced from both online companies and from local insurance agents, and you should compare rates from both to get a complete price analysis. Some insurance providers may not provide rates over the internet and most of the time these small insurance companies only sell coverage through independent agents.
In this article, we presented quite a bit of information on how to lower your Ford Five Hundred insurance premium rates in Scottsdale. The most important thing to understand is the more you quote Scottsdale car insurance, the higher your chance of finding affordable Ford Five Hundred insurance quotes. You may even discover the best price on auto insurance is with some of the smallest insurance companies. These companies can often insure niche markets at a lower cost compared to the large companies like Allstate, GEICO and Progressive.
More resources
- Information for Teen Drivers (GEICO)
- What Insurance is Cheapest for 16 Year Olds in Scottsdale? (FAQ)
- What Insurance is Cheapest for Postal Workers in Scottsdale? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable Car Insurance Rates for Inexperienced Drivers in Scottsdale? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable Auto Insurance for Uninsured Drivers in Scottsdale? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Rates for Drivers with Bad Credit in Scottsdale? (FAQ)
- How Does Hitting a Deer Impact Insurance Rates? (Allstate)
- Understanding your Policy (NAIC.org)
- Credit Impacts Car Insurance Rates (State Farm)
- Electronic Stability Control FAQ (iihs.org)