Smart Auto Insurance Blog

In today’s economy more and more people are interested in saving money in unlikely places.  Many people don’t realize that it can be easy to save on your auto insurance quotes.  The article “Eight Tips for Saving on Your Car Insurance Rates” by Steve Cypher on autocreditexpress.com highlights the top 8 ways to save.

The first and easiest is to shop around and compare auto insurance.  This may seem obvious, but many don’t realize that they are paying too much for their auto insurance so don’t bother shopping around.  Another tip is to combine your policies for possible discounts.  Repair your credit before you shop around to get a lower quote.

Be sure to check and see if any professional associations you are part of earn you discounts.  AARP, certain university alums, and military groups are just a few examples.  Students often earn discounts as do certain cars and low mileage.  Another way to earn discounts that many don’t realize is to go paperless with your bill and payment options.

Insurance.com published a neat report in the 3rd quarter of 2008, which tracked auto insurance rate trends across the country.  The report can be found here (http://www.insurance.com/ratewatch/default.aspx)

Highlights of the report were as follows:

• Auto insurance quotes rose the 3rd consecutive quarter, reversing the trend in 2007
• The largest average auto insurance rate increases in 3q were found in: District of Columbia (8.3%), Nebraska (8.0%), Rhode Island (7.4%), Kansas (6.6%), Florida (4.9%)
• The largest rate decreases were found in: North Dakota (7.8%), West Virginia (7.0%), and Wyoming (4.5%)
• Shopping for a new auto insurance policy can yield huge savings.  Of more than 5,000 drivers surveyed, nearly 60% saved over $400 per year, and 25% saved over $800.