Smart Auto Insurance Blog

Delaware auto insurance rates are going up for State Farm customers in that state.  According to Online Auto Insurance News’ John Pirro, “State Farm car insurance rates to rise for Delaware policyholders.”  Starting today, rates will be increasing around 1.9% in Delaware.  State Farm is the second biggest auto insurance company in Delaware behind Nationwide.  Their market share is 22 percent and they say that they’re raising rates so they can keep the financial promises they have made to those customers.

Many factors will determine the amount of individual policyholder increases, including their particular coverage and any discounts they maintain.  All liability and personal injury protection coverage will be increasing.  Collision and comprehensive costs, however, will be increasing for some but decreasing for others.  From 2006 to 2008, PIP claims increased 10% and property liability claims increased 4.5%.  State Farm is also raising Michigan and Wisconsin auto insurance rates, while they are decreasing Illinois, Alabama, and Georgia auto insurance rates.

Some basic tips for understanding auto insurance and choosing auto insurance companies are available on CNN’s website through a collaboration with Fortune and Money.  They first want you to know that you are often a statistic, rather than a person.  Auto insurance companies tend to see you as a risk based on certain risk factors like your job and where you live.

Even if the coverage appears the same, prices are always different through different auto insurance companies.  Shopping around is one of the best tips related to finding the best auto insurance premiums.  Don’t shop only on price though.  Just because a company has the cheapest price, it doesn’t mean that they have quick and reliable customer service.  Those are very important as well.

It’s smart to get more than the minimum coverage required in your state because most state requirements are really just the bare minimum.  Always ask your insurer for discounts.  They are available and most companies will lower your auto insurance rates if you have a good driving record and you simply ask.

Some auto insurance companies force you to use replacement parts that are not made by the original equipment manufacturers.  This can cause problems in your vehicle, so make sure that your insurer will cover original parts.  The article reminds the reader that while the insurance company does want you to recoup your financial losses, you may not have the same ideas of what is fair compensation.  Make sure that your plan is updated and that you know all of the details before filing a claim.

The New York Times just published an article listing the cheapest and most expensive cars to insure this year.  In Ann Carrns’ article, “The most (and least) expensive cars to insure in 2012,” we learn that Insure.com made a list of the 20 most and least expensive cars to insure.

The least expensive car to insure is the Toyota Sienna LE minivan.  Average auto insurance rates in the U.S. are $1,100.  All of the other cars in the top 20 also had auto insurance rates under $1,200 and many others on the list were also minivans.  Individual vehicle’s rates are determined by how often the vehicle is involved in crashes, how much it costs to fix, and how much insurers have to pay out in total losses.

On the flip side, the most expensive car to insure is the Audi R8 Spyder Quattro.  This two-seater convertible costs $3,400 to insure this year.  It’s joined on the list of most expensive cars to insure by Mercedes, BMWs, and Porsches.  The list was determined by taking average rates for six different auto insurance companies, using ten zip codes per state, and the average coverage amounts for a 2012 vehicle.

The day after the Super Bowl is typically all about the commercials.  Today is no different.  While I didn’t notice any commercials from auto insurance companies, I sure did notice a lot of them from the auto companies themselves.  I guess it’s nice that your auto insurance company isn’t spending millions of dollars to advertise during a 30 second spot, maybe to help keep your auto insurance rates lower.

Some of the auto manufacturers who ran Super Bowl commercials succeeded with the most talked about ads.  Volkswagen had to compete with their much loved Darth Vader commercial from last year and they used a dog to fill that void.  Chrysler’s Halftime in America spot with Clint Eastwood had people crying, thinking, and hoping for America.  Toyota, Cadillac, Audi, and Hyundai ran some of the other memorable ads from auto companies.

With all of the money spent on these ads, I wonder if auto manufacturers will see a large increase in sales.  If so, that could mean big business for auto insurance companies including an influx of new quotes on auto insurance.  More demand or changing demand for auto insurance could mean more competition from insurers and better rates for consumers.  So while auto insurance companies weren’t spending big money on Super Bowl commercials, that doesn’t mean that they won’t be affected by auto companies’ commercials.