Car Insurance Discounts: How to Get Them & How Much

It is always best to refresh your knowledge on the latest vehicle insurance discounts available and the amount of possible savings. Many motorists may believe that they can only get low rates if they have good driving history, no claim, live in a safe neighborhood, drive less and have a safer automobile. So, they keep struggling with high premiums. They would be happy to know that there are many unexpected deals available if you know where to look and how to ask for them.

Vehicle owners can get lower quotes for various reasons and each company decides its rates independently. One of the clearer ways of showing how motorists get auto insurance discounts is to group them based on why they are offered. While some people face surcharges others are rewarded with affordable premiums so they must be doing something right. We can learn what it is that they are doing right and just copy it to enjoy affordable premiums ourselves as well.

Savings with No Qualification Requirements

While usually there are good reasons for them, there are car insurance savings you can get with hardly any qualification requirements and with immediate effect. Here are some of those easy ways of reducing premiums right now and the possible amounts;

Discount for Full Premium Payment

Simply pay it in full at the start. Most credit cards don’t charge any interest for up to 60 days if you pay back at the end of this period. Get credit from a credit card instead of a carrier or its finance partner.

Some companies are keener to get the money quickly than others and they can reduce premiums as much as 5% for immediate payment.

Online Purchase

Get quotes and buy your automobile insurance online. It is that simple. It is widely available. Many companies offer their best rates online because they save money themselves when the customer comes to them directly and do all the work to sign up for a policy.

Multiple Policy Savings

There are several ways of qualifying for it. Normally, you get it if you buy another policy from the current insurer. Even teenagers can benefit from this special offer. If they live with parents, their parents’ carrier generally gives preferential treatment to children.

Also, there are multi-car policies that are designed for including several vehicles on one.

The amount would change according to the company and additional policies bought. And the good thing is that you will probably see reductions on both, the current one and the new one you just bought. You can expect to save on auto insurance around 10%. It can be a little bit more with a multiple cars policy and you can still get more for buying further protection.

Switch and Save

It is actually a trademark of Esurance. However, many companies offer it to new customers to entice them to switch. You will have to say goodbye to the current insurer and move to a new one. With Esurance you can get this for the first policy on your name or the first after coming back to the U.S. from overseas services.

They are between 5 and 10%.

Homeowners Savings

Usually owning a home (or it is owned by your spouse) is enough to get a premium reduction. This is different from combining auto and home, which is covered above under multiple policies. Occasionally you may need to provide proof of ownership, which can be done in several ways. Most mobile homes may not qualify or have harder qualification requirements.

It varies a lot depending on the state, company and motorists. Some may give lower rates without naming it that would deliver the same outcome.

Roadside Recovery Membership

Membership to a roadside assistance service (from AAA or the National Automobile Club) can qualify you for about 5% better prices.

Education and Profession Based Discounts

Several companies give better rates to people with university degrees or respectable professions. For example, USAA always is preferential towards military personnel and GEICO takes care of the members of various professions and associations.

They can start from the moment you join the university. For example, Esurance offers automobile insurance discounts to people attend or graduated from these universities; University of Arizona, Arizona State University, University of California at Berkeley, University of Colorado Boulder, University of Oregon, Oregon State University, Stanford University, University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), University of Southern California (USC), University of Utah, University of Washington, Washington State University.

Usually they are between 5 to 10%.

Auto Insurance Discounts for Drivers

Driving record is one of the key factors. A good record that shows you are cautious and reliable goes a long way. Here are some of the deals to reward good drivers.

No Claim Discount

You just need to be a careful motorist with no at-fault claims for a certain period of time. Amounts and qualification requirements vary depending on the provider. Most vehicle insurance companies cut their rates a lot with no claim in the last 3 years and some after 5 years. You start getting them after the first year but you get the maximum after a long period of proven records. Some mainly look at the policyholder and others look at other listed drivers as well. Also, none of the listed drivers should have DUI/DWI conviction.

Furthermore, some carriers may overlook glass and comprehensive claims under $1,000. They may also overlook some no fault claims depending on the circumstances. And these records are usually transferable. In other words, you don’t have to stay with the same carrier in these periods. You may need proof.

Auto insurance discounts for having no claim are usually large starting from 10% all the way up to 30%.

Good Drivers Are Always Favored

When you have had the license for at least 3 years and you have no penalty points on record you can start to get great rates. Some carriers may overlook one point.

Total figure can be between 20 and 30% that makes this one of the biggest car insurance savings you can qualify for.

Defensive Driver Discount

This is awarded to people who completed an improvement or defensive driving class. Usually these are offered to mature people (of 50, 55, 60 and older depending on the state). In New York, New Jersey, Georgia and Oklahoma they are available to all regardless of age. In South Carolina, the minimum age requirement is 25.

You may not be able to claim them if you are taking the course because you are forced by a court order. It can be cancelled if you have an at-fault accident or serious moving violation.

This could be up to 10% for certain coverage types. And they may be offered for three years from the date of safety course in some states.

Good Student Discount

Full time students under the age of 25 with above average grades can get cheap teenage car insurance. Most companies see a correlation between being a good student and a driver.

It is about 10%, which is a lot of dollars for a teenager.

Discounts for Low Risk Automobiles

Helpful accident, injury and auto theft prevention features are recognized and rewarded. Safer automobiles help motorists in many ways. They prevent accidents and when it happens they protect passengers better. They also deter thieves thanks to their security features.

These are factors that reduce the number of claims, injury and property damages providers have to pay for. When they see something that mitigates risks they usually reward it with rebates.

Anti-Theft Solutions

Insuring a vehicle that has approved theft prevention devices will be cheaper. This could be a car alarm in some states while in others it would mean a vehicle recovery system like Onstar or LoJack.

Depending on what type of anti-theft devices you have and where you live, you can save between 5 and 25% on Comprehensive Coverage.

Safety Devices

Cars with manufacturer-installed airbags and automatic seat belts would be received favorably.

This will depend on the state and number and quality of safety features. Typically you would receive between 5 and 30% off Personal Injury Protection Coverage.

Antilock Brakes and Other Safety Features

Insuring a car with antilock brakes and other safety features will be 5 – 10% cheaper.

Get Quotations

Prices will vary considerably depending on which source you get quotations from. The best thing to do is to get several quotes and see who has the cheapest vehicle insurance. When you see an attractive quote from a reputable name you may not care how you got it. But knowing these details help you cut costs.

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