Lowering Car Insurance

Off Topic
21

[quote]Vegita wrote:

[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Some little lizard dude with a funny accent tried to sell me car insurance once.
I didn’t trust him… you know, him being a relative of snakes and shit. [/quote]

GEICO is bullshit. They don’t run your MVR or clue or credit, they also offer you the lowest policy limits that are legal in any given state unless you ask for specific limits. So they give you an artificially low price over the phone, then they run all your information after you commit to the policy. If you have a ticket, it goes up, if your credit is bad, it goes up, if you have accidents, it goes up. And unless you are a little saavy and know all the coverages you need and ask for them, you will get a shit policy to boot.

V[/quote]

X2…and thats why my wife hates those commercials and the horseshit they spread. It drives her nuts at work. Figuring out a quote and due diligence takes longer than fifteen minutes generally.

This is just my opinion but if you keep changing companies every year how do you ever build up a history?. If shit happens and I need help right now, that day, I got to believe the rep I’ve been talking to for years and know him/her by first names will go to bat for me alot faster than someone that doesen’t know me from Adam. I dought anonomous reps will not stop by on their way home from work to drop off a check. My wife does this for old folks quite frequently. My 2c.

22

[quote]bond james bond wrote:

[quote]Vegita wrote:

[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:

This is just my opinion but if you keep changing companies every year how do you ever build up a history?. If shit happens and I need help right now, that day, I got to believe the rep I’ve been talking to for years and know him/her by first names will go to bat for me alot faster than someone that doesen’t know me from Adam. I dought anonomous reps will not stop by on their way home from work to drop off a check. My wife does this for old folks quite frequently. My 2c.

[/quote]

All depends on the all mighty dollar to be honest. Its a fact that over 80% of people (in canada, in 2008) will sign on the dotted line when they get their mortgage renewal from their bank, regardless of the rate. I literally balk at some of my clients who are simply too lazy to pick up a phone and shop around when they are up for renewal, potentially saving themselves tens of thousands.

Point is, alot of companies bank (pardon the pun) on this, whether it be banks, insurance companies, cell phone companies, etc. I loved my first insurance company (Allstate), the ladies were great, friendly, you didnt have to play phone tag all day. But when they told me my insurance was almost doubling, when I bought my last truck you best believe i told them to pound sand.

Its nice to have a good “relationship” with a bank/company, but imho, you gotta look out for yourself first. In a perfect world you get the best rates and the best customer service in the same place, but unfortunately, the two are becoming ever more mutually exclusive.

Its inherent you’ll get better rates from a bigger company, its simple econ. But the problem with bigger companies is that there is less chance to build a personal relationship, as your more likely to speaking to someone different every single time you call/visit.

23

Make sure you’re not paying for all the bullshit add-ons. Rental car, towing, glass (debatable) etc… They usually tack on a few bucks a month each, but it all adds up. I fucking hate paying car insurance. Usually when you pay for something, a good or service is received. How many other things do you fork out money for ‘piece of mind’. To get a good return on your investment probably means you’ll be paralyzed from the penis down. I might as well pay Miss Cleo while I’m at it.

/rant - I need to stop posting before I’ve had coffee.

24

[quote]Vegita wrote:

[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Some little lizard dude with a funny accent tried to sell me car insurance once.
I didn’t trust him… you know, him being a relative of snakes and shit. [/quote]

GEICO is bullshit. They don’t run your MVR or clue or credit, they also offer you the lowest policy limits that are legal in any given state unless you ask for specific limits. So they give you an artificially low price over the phone, then they run all your information after you commit to the policy.

If you have a ticket, it goes up, if your credit is bad, it goes up, if you have accidents, it goes up. And unless you are a little saavy and know all the coverages you need and ask for them, you will get a shit policy to boot.

V[/quote]

Back when Geico was Government Employee Insurance Co., it was hard as hell to get a policy with them, they were ultra-picky about who they insured. They’ve come a long way since, the money grubbing mofos that they are.

BG

25

[quote]beachguy498 wrote:

[quote]Vegita wrote:

[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Some little lizard dude with a funny accent tried to sell me car insurance once.
I didn’t trust him… you know, him being a relative of snakes and shit. [/quote]

GEICO is bullshit. They don’t run your MVR or clue or credit, they also offer you the lowest policy limits that are legal in any given state unless you ask for specific limits. So they give you an artificially low price over the phone, then they run all your information after you commit to the policy.

If you have a ticket, it goes up, if your credit is bad, it goes up, if you have accidents, it goes up. And unless you are a little saavy and know all the coverages you need and ask for them, you will get a shit policy to boot.

V[/quote]

Back when Geico was Government Employee Insurance Co., it was hard as hell to get a policy with them, they were ultra-picky about who they insured. They’ve come a long way since, the money grubbing mofos that they are.

BG
[/quote]

Yeah, that’s regulation for you. But, Geico makes me money so I’m not complaining.

26

[quote]biglifter wrote:
Make sure you’re not paying for all the bullshit add-ons. Rental car, towing, glass (debatable) etc… They usually tack on a few bucks a month each, but it all adds up. I fucking hate paying car insurance. Usually when you pay for something, a good or service is received. How many other things do you fork out money for ‘piece of mind’. To get a good return on your investment probably means you’ll be paralyzed from the penis down. I might as well pay Miss Cleo while I’m at it.

/rant - I need to stop posting before I’ve had coffee.[/quote]

The Glass coverage saved my ass on a few occasions. Some prick broke into my car but bashed in 3 of my windows in the process just to get my fucking iPod (stupid me for leaving it out). I didn’t pay a dime.

In regards to insurance, I jumped onto Progressive. I doubt it’s a very good policy but I am just riding it out until my DUI comes off my record in November. I did make sure my bike has proper coverage though in case it gets stolen or something.

27

Couple quick things, First if anyone lives in NY state and wants me to take at look at thier info, I can do everything remotely. I work a lot through e-mail, so don’t be afraid, I’m both big enough to have a good spread of companies, and small enough where you are going to talk to a handful of people including me or the owners if you call the office.

Glass is VERY good coverage. 50% of our claims or more are glass claims. It generally costs a few bucks more pre policy period, we don’t even ask people if they want it, they get it unless they ask not to have it. See we are kinda like the ANTI GEICO, My job is to make sure when life comes and bites you in the ass, and it will, you will only have a headache because of it, not financial ruin.

When people come to me and say something like, I need the minimum amount of coverage so that I can legally do this or that, I tell them they would be better off at another agency. (or I try to tell them the benefits of insuring thenselves properly).

Also Most people are surprised to learn that carrying extra coverage is not as expensive as they think. Some companies actually SURCHARGE the lower limits because they know the type of people who go that route. They target more responsible people so the rates are lower if you have higher limits.

Short story, I just quoted my buddy out of GEICO. He had bare bones coverage for his personal auto policy. I quoted him with all my companies at those low limits just to show him something. I was higher in price by a couple hundred dollars per year, not a big deal but it’s the same coverage so why switch right?

Then I bumped some of his limits of liability and added some that he didn’t even have. Price went up about 20 bucks per year. Then I bumped up his liability limits again, added some more coverages which I explained were very good to have. Price went down 5 bucks from the previous limit change.

Hmmmm, Then I said watch this. I quoted him a renters policy because he rents an apartment, the policy covers 35K for his personal property 100K for liability and 14K to rent a place if the one he is in burns down. His auto price dropped $220 and his Tenant policy was only $81 per year. So in the end he still payed a higher premium by like $150, but he now has vastly superior coverage.

Having an insurance professional who actually cares about what they are doing is a valuable service. The industry is too crooked to just go in bare assed. Talk to someone who knows what is going on and protect yourself.

V

28

Are you at an insurance brokerage? I went through one after I got my DUI and State Farm kicked me off my policy.

This agency SUCKED! Not very helpful and left me high and dry a few times when dealing with DMV issues…

29

[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
Are you at an insurance brokerage? I went through one after I got my DUI and State Farm kicked me off my policy.

This agency SUCKED! Not very helpful and left me high and dry a few times when dealing with DMV issues…[/quote]

We are an agency, not a brokerage, though we do act as a brokerage if the need arises (i.e. we don’t have a company but we know someone who does). I try my hardest not to suck and I am usually very good at pre-empting things so people don’t have problems, however, when the shit is hitting the fan so to speak, sometimes there is litle an agent can do to alleviate things. The best thing I can do for someone is properly prepare them for when the shit hits the fan.

V

30

[quote]Vegita wrote:

[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
Are you at an insurance brokerage? I went through one after I got my DUI and State Farm kicked me off my policy.

This agency SUCKED! Not very helpful and left me high and dry a few times when dealing with DMV issues…[/quote]

We are an agency, not a brokerage, though we do act as a brokerage if the need arises (i.e. we don’t have a company but we know someone who does). I try my hardest not to suck and I am usually very good at pre-empting things so people don’t have problems, however, when the shit is hitting the fan so to speak, sometimes there is litle an agent can do to alleviate things. The best thing I can do for someone is properly prepare them for when the shit hits the fan.

V[/quote]

Well it was actually DMV issues caused by the complacency of the agency

31

[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:

[quote]Vegita wrote:

[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
Are you at an insurance brokerage? I went through one after I got my DUI and State Farm kicked me off my policy.

This agency SUCKED! Not very helpful and left me high and dry a few times when dealing with DMV issues…[/quote]

We are an agency, not a brokerage, though we do act as a brokerage if the need arises (i.e. we don’t have a company but we know someone who does). I try my hardest not to suck and I am usually very good at pre-empting things so people don’t have problems, however, when the shit is hitting the fan so to speak, sometimes there is litle an agent can do to alleviate things. The best thing I can do for someone is properly prepare them for when the shit hits the fan.

V[/quote]

Well it was actually DMV issues caused by the complacency of the agency[/quote]

Yea, thats a bitch. Our general Operating Procedure is if you suffer as a result of our fucking something up, we will try to take care of it to the best of our ability, like in a financial sense. Luckily we hardly ever fuck someone up. but mistakes do happen just gotta man up and take care of them.

V

32

So I bought a new car (2010 cobalt) and have pretty much a perfect driving history as far as tickets and accidents. I am also 24 btw. Erie Insurance upped my premium to 1500 per year and said it was mostly the result of a new car. I talked to several companies Geico included. Geico quoted me around 900 for the make and model… another agent that ran all my histories etc and quoted around 1300. Obviously theres a large difference in prices here, but i still dont trust Geico that much. Is this a normal rate that I am paying since its a new car? Im insured through sept and paid in full so im not in a hurry to switch.

33

[quote]666Rich wrote:
So I bought a new car (2010 cobalt) and have pretty much a perfect driving history as far as tickets and accidents. I am also 24 btw. Erie Insurance upped my premium to 1500 per year and said it was mostly the result of a new car. I talked to several companies Geico included. Geico quoted me around 900 for the make and model… another agent that ran all my histories etc and quoted around 1300. Obviously theres a large difference in prices here, but i still dont trust Geico that much. Is this a normal rate that I am paying since its a new car? Im insured through sept and paid in full so im not in a hurry to switch. [/quote]

Yea, like I said before a new car is going to rape your insurance due to the value being insured vs a car which is just 3 years older. Also do not go to GEICO unless you have verified that they have run your credit, your MVR, your CLUE, and have matched your current coverages exactly. If you did all that and they are $900 vs $1,300, then yes go with them. Thats too big of a difference to not take advantage of. Have them give you a quote in writing and then take it to your agent, they will line item it to make sure the coverages are a match. Though i’ll bet you money that GEICO won’t give you shit in writing.

V

34

Let me start this post off by saying that I don’t have a car because I live in the city, and that I don’t really know much about car insurance. I truly have no idea how you all pay so little for insurance, though. I know that my family technically doesn’t need all of it, but my dad has an Eastern European mentality when it comes to being prepared, so he gets as much covered as possible. I don’t know much about it, but it has something to do with someone possibly suing us to the extent that would cause us to lose our apartment building (I think?).

It costs us 12k/year for 2 cars, neither of which are that nice. One is a 2010 Scion TC that belongs to my 23-year-old sister, and the other is like an '05 Honda Pilot, which belongs to my dad. I’m listed as a partial driver for both cars. My cousin also pays exactly 12k/year for full coverage, but again, this could have to do with the whole losing-real-estate thing that I mentioned before. He’d never been in an accident (He just recently got into one that wasn’t his fault but his insurance didn’t go up), and only had 1 speeding ticket on his record, which was doing 90mph in a construction zone while he only had his junior license.

He still had the same rates 4 years later. It’s a shame that he had to pay for such a stupid “mistake” for so long, as it wasn’t really a big deal at all (It was a construction zone on a highway in Pennsylvania with little to no traffic around due to driving at an obscure time). Not only that, but our rates went up once because of an “accident” that wasn’t even my sister’s fault. While stuck in literal bumper-to-bumper traffic, a commercial truck was slowly pulling out of a spot and took out my sister’s side-view mirror. I was actually in the car during that one. She was literally not even moving. The guy admitted that it was his fault and everything. Insurance companies are a ripoff.

To replace a mirror costs like 500 bucks, and yet they’ll raise your insurance for it, despite the fact that they didn’t need to pay and despite the fact that you’re paying them to cover such things anyway. Vegita, if we’re ever looking for new insurance, I’ll talk to you since you want the business.

So yeah, complaining about paying 500 extra bucks a year is just a bit ridiculous, especially when you’re paying less than 2,000/year to begin with.

35

[quote]FlameofOsiris wrote:

It costs us 12k/year for 2 cars, neither of which are that nice. [/quote]

Holy shit! I hope the roadside service is provided by the Coppertone bikini bus. That is one hell of a premium.

36

[quote]biglifter wrote:

[quote]FlameofOsiris wrote:

It costs us 12k/year for 2 cars, neither of which are that nice. [/quote]

Holy shit! I hope the roadside service is provided by the Coppertone bikini bus. That is one hell of a premium.[/quote]

I’m not sure. Maybe I should ask for roadside assistance one of these days.

37

I think increasing deductibles is a great idea, and so is dropping collision and comprehensive if your car is close to 8-10 years old. Keep liability high so that incase you do get involved in an (at-fault) accident with a shiny new Bimmer, you can cover it up with your liability insurance.

Shop for better car insurance rates, but hereâ??s a word of caution, look at companies that have a good claim handling background (GEICO, Progressive, The Hartford) else youâ??re doomed incase you ever need to claim.

38

[quote]FlameofOsiris wrote:
Let me start this post off by saying that I don’t have a car because I live in the city, and that I don’t really know much about car insurance. I truly have no idea how you all pay so little for insurance, though. I know that my family technically doesn’t need all of it, but my dad has an Eastern European mentality when it comes to being prepared, so he gets as much covered as possible. I don’t know much about it, but it has something to do with someone possibly suing us to the extent that would cause us to lose our apartment building (I think?).

It costs us 12k/year for 2 cars, neither of which are that nice. One is a 2010 Scion TC that belongs to my 23-year-old sister, and the other is like an '05 Honda Pilot, which belongs to my dad. I’m listed as a partial driver for both cars. My cousin also pays exactly 12k/year for full coverage, but again, this could have to do with the whole losing-real-estate thing that I mentioned before. He’d never been in an accident (He just recently got into one that wasn’t his fault but his insurance didn’t go up), and only had 1 speeding ticket on his record, which was doing 90mph in a construction zone while he only had his junior license.

He still had the same rates 4 years later. It’s a shame that he had to pay for such a stupid “mistake” for so long, as it wasn’t really a big deal at all (It was a construction zone on a highway in Pennsylvania with little to no traffic around due to driving at an obscure time). Not only that, but our rates went up once because of an “accident” that wasn’t even my sister’s fault. While stuck in literal bumper-to-bumper traffic, a commercial truck was slowly pulling out of a spot and took out my sister’s side-view mirror. I was actually in the car during that one. She was literally not even moving. The guy admitted that it was his fault and everything. Insurance companies are a ripoff.

To replace a mirror costs like 500 bucks, and yet they’ll raise your insurance for it, despite the fact that they didn’t need to pay and despite the fact that you’re paying them to cover such things anyway. Vegita, if we’re ever looking for new insurance, I’ll talk to you since you want the business.

So yeah, complaining about paying 500 extra bucks a year is just a bit ridiculous, especially when you’re paying less than 2,000/year to begin with. [/quote]

I’m assuming you live in NYC? while 12k per year IS very high, it has to do with a couple things. City inflation and higher risk due to traffic conditions. Let me put it this way. If you drove from one end of NYC to the other, you would come close to more vehicles in that stretch than I would come close to in 3 months. Here is a good example. I can still get a beer for a dollar per can up here at Legion, a typical bar sells $2 cans. What is a beer down in a city bar? $5 $8? Higher? So straight off the bat, if I had a policy here that was 1-2 K per year which is normal up here with a new car and full coverage, I would expect the same vehicle and driver in NYC to automatically be 3K-6K or more.

Regardless I would love to give your family a quote. I’ll PM you my work e-mail so we can do business a little more formally. As long as your family is good with e-mail, we can do everything remotely very easily.

V

39

There is a lot of good advice here… I just want to add a couple of things-
Opening a new credit card may not improve your credit score immediately. It shortens the age of your credit history (it is average age), and the inquiry when you apply will cost 20-3o points. It is good for the long run, but not immediately. If you want to boost it NOW, borrow money from a friend and pay up the bills. That will instantly boost your score significantly.

Most defensive driving courses do not actually do much for your insurance. It depends on the company - check with the insurance company before you blow your money on the course.

How old are you? If you are under 25, turn 25 :slight_smile:
If you have a short driving history, GEICO offers you good rates, but they suck. Sit with GEICO till you are 25 or have been continuously insured for 1.5-2 years, and move. That will significantly improve your rates.

I noticed that agents can get you much better rates than online quotes or calling the 800 number of the same company.

Get your driving history, its generally 5$ or so. If any of your tickets are out of state minor violations and your state doesnt record them (ex:- PA does not record minor out of state violations), you do not have to tell your insurance co. about them. If they run the history with DMV and CLUE and not find anything, you are safe. Go to an agent, they will just ask you for your DL and SSN and get the reports etc by themselves- that way you are not withholding any information on your side (legally speaking).
If you mention a ticket and they dont find it on the history, I think they will quietly add that to your rate because you told them about it.

Which state are you in? How old is your car?
And I second Vegita on this - increasing your liability from state minimum to 100k will probably add 15-25$/6 months and uninsured/under-insured coverages cost only 20 odd $ for six months. No reason to not get them. After all, insurance is for the rainy day to make sure you don’t get butt raped.

And a few tricks - Driving a car for pleasure costs less than driving it to work daily according to the insurance companies.
Moving to a safer neighborhood will lower rates. Adding a active (like an extra lock for the steering or fuel injector cut off) or even better, a passive immobilizer/theft prevention device or even just having VIN numbers etched will lower your premium EVEN if you do not have comprehensive coverage.

Maybe Vegita can comment on how accurate this information is,most of it is what I gathered from personal experiences and a little from internet anecdotes.

40

I agree with most of what has been said on here, I had a local company 4 or 5 years ago and shopped around and found that with the same policy for 3 vehicles I could say about $300 every 6 months with Progressive. I was a little hesitant about not having an agent like some have said that you deal with and know personally for when an issue arises but for the savings I couldnt pass it up. I’ve had one claim since I switched to them which was hail damage and had no problems with them getting it taken care of and was completely happy with the results, and my rates stayed the same after the claim.

As far as the deal with rates going up with new vehicles that was not the case with me, we had a Lincoln LS which was about 4 years old, (pos by the way) and got rid of it and went to a new GMC Acadia dropped deductable which was $1000 on the Lincoln to $500 on the new GMC and my rate actually dropped like $50 every 6 months. So I guess it depends on what type of vehicle as well I know parts for the Lincoln was high so maybe that was the reasoning behind the drop when going to the GMC.

Another thing I like about Prog. is my rate the past time it renewed dropped another $100 without me even contacting them, I am guessing it was from turning a certain age but I didnt even have to call to get the better rate. So for a big company that I was skeptical with at first I am glad I switched a few years back, and from what I’ve gathered just from talking with people is that those companies like Prog. and a Geico have a certain stigma about them from their cheesy commercials but if you look past that they may actually be able to say you some $$.