Auto Insurance in Pocatello, ID – 5 Discounts Drivers are Forgetting

I can’t think of anyone who looks forward to paying for auto insurance, especially knowing the cost is too high. Many car insurance companies vie for your hard-earned dollar, so it’s not easy to compare every company to find the absolute best rate

How to Compare Pocatello Auto Insurance Costs

Getting a lower price on insurance can be surprisingly simple. Just take time comparing rate quotes online with multiple companies. This can be accomplished using a couple different methods.

• The best way to get quotes for comparison is an all-inclusive rate comparison click to view form in new window. This form prevents you from having to do separate quotation requests for each company you want a rate for. One form compares rates .
• A harder way to analyze rates requires visiting each company website to request a price quote. For examples sake, we’ll pretend you want rates from Farmers, Progressive and State Farm. To get rate quotes you would need to spend time on each company’s site and enter your information, which is why most consumers use the first method. For a list of links to insurance companies in Pocatello, click here.

It doesn’t matter which method you choose, just make sure you use exactly the same deductibles and coverage limits with every price quote. If you enter different limits and deductibles on each one it will be next to impossible to determine the lowest rate in Pocatello.

Are you getting all your discounts?

Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but you may find discounts that can drop the cost substantially. Certain discounts will be applied at quote time, but some may not be applied and must be specially asked for prior to receiving the credit. If you aren’t receiving every discount you deserve, you are throwing money away.

• Auto/Home Discount – If you insure your home and vehicles with the same insurance company you may earn approximately 10% to 15%.
• Employee of Federal Government – Being employed by or retired from a federal job could cut as much as 10% off with select insurance companies.
• Homeowners Discount – Owning a home in Pocatello can save you money due to the fact that maintaining a home requires personal responsibility.
• Early Signing – A few companies offer discounts for signing up prior to your current policy expiration. This can save 10% or more.
• Life Insurance Discount – Select insurance companies reward you with lower rates if you buy auto and life insurance together.

A little note about advertised discounts, most of the big mark downs will not be given to the entire cost. A few only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. So even though they make it sound like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, companies wouldn’t make money that way. But any discount will reduce your overall premium however.

To see a list of companies who offer auto insurance discounts in Pocatello, click here to view.

Tailor your coverage to you

When it comes to buying adequate coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is no best way to insure your cars. Every insured’s situation is different and your policy should reflect that. For example, these questions might help in determining whether your personal situation might need professional guidance.

• Will I be non-renewed for getting a DUI or other conviction?
• Who is covered when they drive my vehicle?
• Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
• Do I have coverage if my license is suspended?
• How can I get high-risk coverage after a DUI?
• Why is insurance for a teen driver so high in Pocatello?
• How do I file an SR-22 for a DUI in Idaho?
• Do I need rental car coverage?
• Am I covered when driving someone else’s vehicle?
• When does my teenage driver need to be added to my policy?

If you don’t know the answers to these questions, you may need to chat with an insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, simply complete this short form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It is quick, free and may give you better protection.

Additional information is located on the website for the Idaho Department of Insurance through this link. Idaho drivers can discover disciplinary actions, file complaints about a company, and read industry bulletins.

Auto insurance ads bend the truth

Idaho consumers constantly see and hear ads that promise big savings from the likes of GEICO, State Farm and Progressive. They all make an identical promise about savings if you switch your coverage to them.

How do they all make almost identical claims? This is how they do it.

Different companies have a certain “appetite” for the right customer they prefer to insure. A good example of a profitable customer could be over the age of 50, has no driving citations, and has great credit. Any new insured who matches those parameters gets the lowest rates and as a result will probably save a lot of money.

Potential customers who don’t measure up to the requirements must pay higher rates and this can result in the customer not buying. The ad wording is “drivers who switch” but not “drivers who get quotes” save that kind of money. This is how companies can truthfully state the savings.<img class="alignright" style="padding-top:15px;" src="https://www.findnewcarinsurance.com/wp-content/uploads/ci175-92.jpg" alt="Pocatello Idaho car insurance quote”/>

This illustrates why drivers should compare many company’s rates. It’s just too difficult to predict the company that will provide you with the cheapest rates.

Information about specific coverages

Knowing the specifics of auto insurance can help you determine which coverages you need at the best deductibles and correct limits. Policy terminology can be ambiguous and nobody wants to actually read their policy. These are typical coverages found on the average auto insurance policy.

Comprehensive (Other than Collision)

Comprehensive insurance covers damage that is not covered by collision coverage. A deductible will apply then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive coverage protects against claims like a broken windshield, damage from a tornado or hurricane, falling objects, hail damage and damage from flooding. The maximum payout a auto insurance company will pay at claim time is the ACV or actual cash value, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.

Liability coverages

Liability coverage can cover damage that occurs to a person or their property that is your fault. Coverage consists of three different limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. You might see policy limits of 25/50/25 that means you have a limit of $25,000 per injured person, a per accident bodily injury limit of $50,000, and a limit of $25,000 paid for damaged property. Alternatively, you may have a combined limit which provides one coverage limit rather than limiting it on a per person basis.

Liability coverage pays for things like bail bonds, medical services, structural damage, legal defense fees and attorney fees. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is up to you, but buy as large an amount as possible. Idaho requires minimum liability limits of 20,000/50,000/15,000 but you should consider buying more liability than the minimum.

Medical expense insurance

Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage kick in for expenses such as doctor visits, chiropractic care and X-ray expenses. They are often utilized in addition to your health insurance program or if you are not covered by health insurance. It covers both the driver and occupants in addition to being hit by a car walking across the street. PIP coverage is not an option in every state and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay

Collision coverage protection

Collision insurance pays for damage to your vehicle resulting from colliding with another car or object. You have to pay a deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision coverage protects against things like crashing into a building, scraping a guard rail and damaging your car on a curb. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to raise the deductible in order to get cheaper collision rates.

Protection from uninsured/underinsured drivers

Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage gives you protection when other motorists are uninsured or don’t have enough coverage. This coverage pays for medical payments for you and your occupants and damage to your vehicle.

Since many Idaho drivers only purchase the least amount of liability that is required (which is 20/50/15), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. So UM/UIM coverage is very important. Usually these coverages are similar to your liability insurance amounts.

Do the work, save more money

As you prepare to switch companies, don’t be tempted to buy poor coverage just to save money. Too many times, someone sacrificed full coverage only to regret that they should have had better coverage. The aim is to get the best coverage possible at the best price while still protecting your assets.

We’ve covered some good ideas how you can reduce auto insurance prices online. The most important thing to understand is the more companies you get rates for, the higher your chance of finding lower rates. Consumers could even find that the lowest rates come from a small local company. Some small companies often have lower prices on specific markets compared to the large companies like Allstate or State Farm.

Cheaper auto insurance can be found online as well as from independent agents in Pocatello, and you should be comparing both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some auto insurance companies don’t offer online quoting and many times these small insurance companies only sell through independent insurance agents.