Everything About Car Insurance

Good drivers covered by high-risk automobile insurers may find it hard to overcome that stigma when seeking new coverage from a standard insurer, a new analysis suggests. Drivers who switch from a high-risk or “nonstandard” auto insurer to a large standard insurer may be quoted higher rates, even if they have safe driving records, according to the analysis by the Consumer Federation of America. Three major mainstream insurers often quote such drivers significantly higher premiums, compared with quotes for drivers who were previously insured by large standard insurers, the analysis found. The practice may particularly harm drivers in low- and moderate-income communities, making it difficult for them to find affordable insurance rates, said Douglas Heller, an insurance consultant who conducted the study for the federation. Often, he said, drivers in low-income or underserved areas have few options other than nonstandard insurers, even if they themselves have clean driving record...

The financial shock of adding a teenager to a family auto insurance policy is getting less shocking — at least somewhat. An annual analysis by insuranceQuotes.com, a rate comparison site, found that adding a teenager still increased annual premiums substantially, but the magnitude of the increase has been falling over the past few years. Adding a single teenager to a policy caused annual premiums to increase an average of 78 percent, or $671. But rate increases have been decreasing since 2013, when the average increase was 85 percent. Laura Adams, senior insurance analyst with insuranceQuotes, said that factors in the trend may include safer automobile technology, a dip in the number of teenagers getting driver’s licenses and the continued impact of “graduated” driving programs, which place restrictions on new drivers until they gain more experience on the road. But the impact of adding teenagers to a policy is still a jolt to families, especially those adding boys. Putting ...

Auto insurers were already bracing for another bad year when the downpour started in Texas, producing potentially hundreds of thousands of new claims. “We do know that approximately 100,000 claims have come in” as of Thursday, said Matt Stillwell, manager of governmental and regulatory communications at the Insurance Council of Texas, a trade association. He said the number was expected to climb as high as 500,000. “It is looking to be a huge impact on the auto insurance market,” he said. While homeowners’ insurance policies almost always exclude flood damage, comprehensive auto policies do cover flooding. The typical household in Houston has two cars, and Mayor Sylvester Turner urged residents to “hunker down” as Hurricane Harvey made landfall, hoping to avoid a replay of the tie-ups and crashes that killed about 100 people fleeing Hurricane Rita in 2005. That means few people moved their cars out of harm’s way before the flooding started. Texas drivers are not required to ...

Car insurance prices are on the rise, but why? Robert McEvoy, Head of Allianz Ireland’s Direct business provides his insight on increasing insurance premiums and why the relationship between insurers and their customers needs to be repaired. With the close of the first half of 2015 it appears that car insurance customers have been roused into action! So far this year in Allianz Direct we’ve experienced a surge in customer contact both over the phone and via Allianz.ie, with many consumers shopping around for a more competitive quote than their present insurer. So what’s caused this? The first major reason has been well publicised. Insurance premiums have been subject to many years of under-pricing in the Republic of Ireland and this is the reason why many motor insurers in Ireland have reported losses on their motor insurance businesses in 2014. Ireland’s return to economic growth and a greater number of road users has also increased the number of claims in the motor insuranc...

1. You can only shop for car insurance when your current policy expires. Many consumers don’t realize that they aren’t bound to their auto insurance coverage for the full term (ie – 6/12 months). The insured can cancel at anytime, subject to fees that vary by carrier. In many cases the carrier will charge a 10% fee on any unused premium. As a simple example, if you cancel after 3 months of coverage on a $600, 6-month car insurance policy, then you may be subject to a $30 fee. You should compare any fees with the potential savings you could get by switching your auto insurance coverage. 2. Working with a direct company is always cheaper than going through a local agent. While it’s true that direct companies save money on costs by not incurring agent commission fees, this does not necessarily mean the savings will be passed on to you. Many direct auto insurance carriers will use those savings to spend more on marketing their brand and product. Without the benefit of local agents...

When you're shopping for affordable car insurance, it's a good idea to find out if you qualify for any discounts. Insurance companies offer different discounts as a way to attract and keep customers. There are a lot of ways to get discounts on car insurance. That's why it's good to compare car insurance quotes from several insurers. Common car insurance discounts Multi-policy discount: If you have homeowners, renters, motorcycle or life insurance policy, bundling them with your car insurance is one of the most common car insurance discounts. Bundling auto and home insurance is often one of the bigger discounts you can snag. You can save up to $235 per year, according to Consumer Reports. Multi-car discount: If you're insuring more than one vehicle, most insurance companies will offer a discount. Pay in full discount: Some insurers offer a discount if you pay for the full term up-front. If you can't afford to pay it all at once, some insurers offer disc...

A Honda CR-V, Toyota Tacoma or Toyota Prius will help keep your car insurance bill low. These are among the cheapest cars to insure, based on premiums reported by EverQuote users. We looked at rates paid by users insuring cars newer than the 2010 model year and buying full coverage car insurance. Here are the annual average insurance expenditures for popular models. Make and model Annual premium paid HONDA CR-V $1,620 TOYOTA TACOMA $1,620 TOYOTA PRIUS $1,656 KIA SOUL $1,680 FORD ESCAPE $1,716 HYUNDAI SANTA FE $1,740 KIA SORENTO $1,740 JEEP WRANGLER $1,752 TOYOTA RAV4 $1,752 FORD F-150 $1,752 FORD EDGE $1,764 GMC TERRAIN $1,764 CHEVROLET EQUINOX $1,764 JEEP CHEROKEE $1,788 JEEP PATRIOT $1,788 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE $1,800 NISSAN ROGUE $1,824 HONDA ACCORD $1,836 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT $1,836 HONDA CIVIC $1,836 TOYOTA CAMRY $1,848 FORD FIESTA $1,848 CHEVROLET SONIC $1,848 FORD FOCUS $1,848 CHEVROLET SILVERADO $1,860 NISSAN VERSA $1,860 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA $1,884 DO...