Simple Ways To Lower Auto Insurance Rates In Georgia
Reader question:
I get so mixed up with my auto insurance. I have so many bills to pay each month and I just don’t have time to figure out how to lower my premium. What can I do?
Jack in Atlanta Georgia
Thank you for asking, Jack.
You know, there is actually a way that you can kill two bird with one stone, and lower the stress of multiple bills while also lowering your auto insurance premium. This is pretty simple to do, and might take a few minutes of your time, but it will be extremely valuable in your future.
The key to a cheap, stress less, Atlanta Georgia auto insurance rate is to
- Combine, combine, combine!
The first thing you need to do, Jack, if look at each of the insurance companies that you are with, not just your auto insurance company. What kind of insurance do they offer? Many companies will offer life, home owner’s, and auto insurance, while some will only offer one kind of insurance. If you have the latter type holding your policies, then you need to ditch them and find a company that offers more.
Once you have decided on a good auto insurance company that also offers other types of insurance, you should buy all of your insurance policies through them. Not only will you essentially consolidate your insurance bills, making them easier to keep track of, but you will also lower your premium through the multiple policy discount that most companies offer.
- Join, join, join!
You don’t have to go it alone on your insurance premium if you have another choice. If you have a fiancée, why not combine your policies into one insurance policy? Same with a wife, or a roommate, or even a good friend. By adding someone else to your policy, you can save a lot of money on your auto insurance premium, especially if that person is lower risk than you are.
Raise your deductible amount to $1,000. If you are a safe driver and have not had any accidents or claims in the last 5 years raising your deductible could be a super easy way to lower your annual premium. Remember, you only pay the deductible amount when you file a claim with your insurance company and they pay that claim.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
Are Your Georgia Auto Insurance Rates Rising?
Reader question:
What’s the point of a stupid renewal discount if my Georgia auto insurance rate stays the same or is higher every time I renew?!
Beth
Great question, Beth.
It’s frustrating, isn’t it? I’ve been getting my auto insurance coverage with the same company here in Georgia for a couple of years, and while I have been tracking what effect other discounts have on my auto insurance premium, the so called renewal discount has been pretty elusive. My auto insurance rate goes up every time, never down unless I apply a new discount to it or get a safer car; all things staying the same, my insurance quote will rise.
There are several reasons for this that neither we nor the car insurance company can control, such as:
- Cost of vehicles. As each year passes, it costs more to buy a car. A more expensive car will have a higher auto insurance rates.
- Cost of repairs. As vehicles become more expensive, so do their parts. The higher the cost to repair a car is, the higher the quote will be.
- Cost of health care. I went to the emergency room once and was given some aspirin and told to go home. A month later, I got a bill in the mail for five hundred dollars. I think you can see for yourself how that would affect your rate.
- Lawsuits. The number of lawsuits has stayed the same even as crashes with injuries have decreased, and the amount of money awarded is phenomenal.
On the bright side, while your auto insurance rate has a good chance of increasing each time you renew it, premiums as a whole are increasing less and less every year. The last year that the estimates were on record for, 2004, nationwide premiums only went up 3.4%, part of a trend of lower and lower increases that should be even better this year and in 2008, if the trend follows through.
People aren’t filing as many claims as they used to, and this is part of the factors that temper the rise of your insurance rate. Another thing that helps out is that cars are made more safely with features that both prevent accidents and make them less damaging when they do happen.
However, since even with the lower number of claims, car insurance companies are spending more on each individual claim, you will likely only see your rate rise for years to come, although we could have an actual decrease in our future.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
How Can I Lower My Georgia Auto Insurance Rate?
Usually there is some kind of catch to lowering your Georgia auto insurance rate, and you don’t simply get a discount or a better rate for free. If you want to pay less on car insurance, then you have to drive less, or make better grades, or do some other thing that might not be hard but is ore than nothing, and lowers your risk.
High deductible auto insurance is one of the prime examples of these catches, and many people avoid it because, they say, they are buying auto insurance to cover them. Why do they have insurance at all if they have to cover themselves?
Let me rewind. The deductible, first of all, is what you pay towards injuries and repairs and the like whenever you make a claim before your car insurance coverage kicks in. So, if I were to get into an accident and the damages to my car amounted to three thousand dollars, and I had a thousand dollar deductible (which I do), then I would pay that amount and the car insurance company would pay the other two thousand in repairs. The amount of the deductible never changes, even if the damages are only about five hundred dollars or fifty thousand. Deductibles are only paid when you are found to be at fault for the accident.
Raising your deductible from the bottom $250 can lower your auto insurance rate significantly, because it allows the car insurance company to pay less. Instead of avoiding this, raise it and start saving money for whenever you do get into an accident and have to pay a deductible. Most people only file a car insurance claim once every five years, so it’s likely that you won’t need your deductible much and you’ll probably save up way more than that amount by the time you have to pay it out if you just save the difference between your auto insurance rate with a low deductible and your auto insurance rate with a high deductible.
You can save a lot of money this way, and not just on your auto insurance rate. A couple of years ago, when I first raised my deductible, I started putting the money I was saving on my auto insurance rate into a high interest savings account, and now let’s just say that it’s a lot bigger. So why wait? If you’re a safe driver and the likelihood of you getting into an at fault accident any time soon is pretty low, start saving money as soon as possible.
How To Lower Atlanta Car Insurance Rates
I found this video on YouTube earlier today. The man in here is talking about discounts for driving less, and this is definitely a good example of a Atlanta car insurance discounts. Most companies, and I could probably say all companies without risk, offer the low mileage discount, although not all companies consider ‘low’ to be the same thing. While some Atlanta car insurance companies will require five thousand miles a year or less for you to be able to qualify for the discount, others only require that you drive fewer than forty miles each day. I know that second sort wouldn’t be hard for me to live up to, but I suppose it depends on what part of Atlanta you live in, whether you’re closer in or further out.
Still, for many people those thresholds are extremely low, and they couldn’t imagine driving so little each year, especially when they work every day. If you try hard enough, however, most people can do it, and even if you can’t get low enough for the Atlanta car insurance discount for low mileage, driving fewer miles will still lower your rates.
- Car pooling.
Probably the cheapest way to cut your driving is to carpool to work instead of driving your own car every day. If you take turns with different friends and co workers, then you can also avoid chipping in on gas, so long as everybody is contributing the same amount in regards to driving.
- MARTA.
Okay, nobody likes it, but MARTA, Atlanta’s bus system, is also an option. Even if you have to drive to a park and ride to go into town, you’ll still save a lot of gas and thus some money on your Atlanta car insurance premium. The downside is that it takes a long time, and doesn’t go everywhere you need it to go. You could end up doing a lot of walking, but hey, that’s good for your health.
- Riding your bike.
This isn’t an option for all jobs, but it is for many. If you have to wear a suit to work, for example, then you might feel a little silly pedaling down the road. It also only works if your job is close enough. If you’re a little out of shape, then this is both a good way to lose weight and save a little on your Atlanta GA car insurance.
- Become a hermit.
The absolute best way to save money on your Atlanta car insurance premium through the low mileage discount is to stop driving. Not period when necessary, but whenever you don’t need to. Limit your outings, walk more. If you need to do errands, do them all on one trip and plan out your schedule so that you spend the fewest miles.
RAISE Your deductible amount, that is the easiest way for you to save a considerable amount of money in the long term on insurance premiums.
Auto Insurance Tips For Cheaper Georgia Rates
Georgia Auto Insurance
In Georgia, like in any other state, accidents happen, fenders get bent, people get hurt. So when disaster strikes, auto insurance is there for you to protect you.
Why should you purchase an insurance?
1. Car insurance protects you from any financial risk with any injuries and property damage that are caused by accidents. This may also include any acts of nature, theft and vandalism.
2. It is mandatory in Georgia that all motorist should have the minimum liability coverage. Other types of coverage may be optional or required depending on the regulation of the state.
3. If you have an outstanding car loan, you will be required by the car lender to have a minimum liability coverage of car insurance.
If you are having a hard time paying your high premiums on your car insurance, it is best to know what are the factors that affects your insurance premiums. Your age, the state where you live, where your car is garaged, the model of your car, and your driving record are just some of the factors that determine your insurance rate.
Here are some of the things that may help you lower your insurance rate:
1. increase your insurance deductibles
2. ask for any available discounts
3. avoid purchasing a vehicle that is prone to theft or vandalism
4. Keep your car safe in the garage
5. eliminate optional coverage
6. maintain a good driving record by driving safely
MariCAR
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