Car Insurance in Waukegan Illinois – 7 Discounts You May be Losing Out On
Finding lower rates for Waukegan car insurance can seem to be challenging for consumers not familiar with buying insurance online. People have so many options available that it can turn into a ton of work to compare prices in Waukegan.
If you have a current car insurance policy or are looking for a new policy, you can use these techniques to shop for the lowest rates and still get good coverage. Shopping for affordable coverage in Waukegan is easy if you know what you’re doing. Illinois vehicle owners only need an understanding of the most efficient way to find the lowest price online.
These seven discounts can slash car insurance rates
Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but you may find discounts that you may not know about. Certain discounts will be triggered automatically at quote time, but lesser-known reductions have to be inquired about prior to getting the savings. If you don’t get every credit available, you are throwing money away.
- Payment Method – By paying your policy upfront instead of making monthly payments you may reduce your total bill.
- Drivers Education – Require your teen driver to successfully complete driver’s ed class if offered at their school.
- Memberships – Being a member of a qualifying organization may earn a discount when shopping for car insurance.
- Fewer Miles Equal More Savings – Keeping the miles down can qualify you for better rates on cars that stay parked.
- Safety Course Discount – Completing a course teaching defensive driving skills could save 5% or more depending on where you live.
- Paperwork-free – A handful of insurance companies may give you up to $50 for buying your policy digitally online.
- More Vehicles More Savings – Buying insurance for multiple cars or trucks on one policy could earn a price break for each car.
It’s important to understand that most discount credits are not given the the whole policy. Most only reduce individual premiums such as comp or med pay. So when it seems like adding up those discounts means a free policy, car insurance companies aren’t that generous. Any amount of discount will help reduce the cost of coverage.
To see a list of insurers with discount car insurance rates in Illinois, click here to view.
Finding Car Insurance in Waukegan, IL
Cutting your Waukegan car insurance rates can be surprisingly simple. The only requirement is to take a couple of minutes comparing price quotes from different insurance companies. This can be done using a couple different methods.
- The best way to get the best comparison quotes would be an industry-wide quote request form (click to open form in new window). This form saves time by eliminating separate quotes to each individual car insurance company. A single form will return quotes instantly. This is perfect if you don’t have a lot of time.
- A less efficient way to get comparison quotes requires you to visit the website for every company you want to comare to complete their respective quote request forms. For sake of this example, we’ll pretend you want to compare rates from Auto-Owners, GEICO and State Farm. To find out each rate you need to visit each site to input your insurance information, and that’s why the first method is more popular. To view a list of companies in Waukegan, click here.
- The hardest way of getting rate comparisons is driving to insurance agents’ offices. Shopping for car insurance online has reduced the need for local agents unless you require the personal advice that only a license agent can provide. Drivers can compare the best prices online and get advice from an agent in your area and you’ll learn how to do that later.
It doesn’t matter which method you choose, just double check that you are using identical coverage information for each comparison quote. If you compare different limits and deductibles on each one it will be impossible to determine the best price in Waukegan.
Quote online but work with a neighborhood agent
Some consumers would prefer to talk to a local agent and that is just fine! Educated insurance agents can answer important questions and help file insurance claims. The biggest benefit of price shopping on the web is you can get lower rates and still choose a local agent. And providing support for local businesses is important especially in Waukegan.
By using this simple form, your insurance data is sent to local insurance agents in Waukegan who will battle for your coverage. You never need to visit any agencies as quotes are delivered directly to your email.
The different types of insurance agents
When researching a good insurance agency, there are a couple of types of insurance agents to choose from. Agencies in Waukegan are either captive or independent (non-captive). Either one can do a good job, but it’s good to learn how they differ because it can influence your agent selection.
Independent Agencies or Brokers
Independent agencies are not employed by any specific company so they can insure your vehicles amongst many companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. To transfer your coverage to a different company, the business is moved internally without you having to go to a different agency.
When shopping rates, you should always include at least one independent agent to have the most options to choose from. Many write coverage with lesser-known insurance companies which can save you money.
The following are Waukegan independent insurance agencies who may be able to give you price quotes.
- Salegio Insurance – 1702 Washington St # 201 – Waukegan, IL 60085 – (847) 625-4001
- North Shore/Kaiser Insurance – 1400 Sunset Ave – Waukegan, IL 60087 – (847) 662-0461
Captive Agents
These agents can only write with one company like Farmers Insurance or State Farm. These agents are unable to place coverage with different providers so keep that in mind. Captive agents are usually quite knowledgeable in insurance sales which helps them compete with independent agents. Consumers often buy from captive agents mainly due to loyalty to the company and strong financial ratings.
Below are Waukegan captive agencies who can help you get price quote information.
- Farmers Insurance Group – 1780 Sunset Ave – Waukegan, IL 60087 – (847) 249-4610
- American Family Insurance – 1811 W Yorkhouse Rd – Waukegan, IL 60087 – (847) 336-5787
- State Farm Insurance – 3203 Sunset Ave – Waukegan, IL 60087 – (847) 336-2019
- Allstate Insurance – 2835 Belvidere Rd # 206 – Waukegan, IL 60085 – (847) 360-9100
For a full directory of captive agencies in Waukegan, click here to link.
Deciding on a car insurance agent shouldn’t rely on just a cheap price. These questions are important to ask:<img class="alignright" style="padding-top:15px" src="https://www.findnewcarinsurance.com/wp-content/uploads/ci175-119.jpg" alt="Illinois insurance quotes” />
- How long have they worked with personal auto insurance coverage?
- Do they have adequate Errors and Ommissions coverage? This protects you if they make a mistake.
- Are claims handled at the agent’s location?
- If they are an independent agency, which companies do they recommend?
- Does the agency support the community they serve?
- Did they already check your driving record and credit reports?
- Will you be dealing directly with the agent or with a Custom Service Representative (CSR)?
- Are they able to influence company decisions when a claim is filed?
Once you have received good answers to any questions you have and a low price estimate, it’s possible that you found an auto insurance agent that is a good match to provide car insurance coverage. But remember, consumers can cancel coverage at any time so don’t assume you’re contractually obligated to a policy for the full term.
Is there deception in advertising?
Illinois drivers constantly see and hear ads for the lowest price auto insurance by companies like Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. They all say the same thing that you can save if you switch to them.
But how can every company say the same thing?
All companies can use profiling for the right customer that is profitable for them. For instance, a profitable customer might be over the age of 40, a clean driving record, and has great credit. A driver that hits that “sweet spot” will get very good rates and as a result will probably pay quite a bit less when switching companies.
Potential insureds who fall outside these standards will have to pay more money and ends up with the driver buying from a lower-cost company. The ads state “customers that switch” not “people who quote” save money. That’s why companies can truthfully advertise the savings.
Because of the profiling, you should get a wide range of price quotes. It’s not possible to predict which company will give you the biggest savings.
What car insurance coverages do you need?
Understanding the coverages of your car insurance policy helps when choosing appropriate coverage and proper limits and deductibles. Policy terminology can be difficult to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring.
Collision protection
Collision insurance pays to fix your vehicle from damage resulting from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.
Collision can pay for claims such as sideswiping another vehicle, scraping a guard rail and colliding with another moving vehicle. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so you might think about dropping it from older vehicles. It’s also possible to bump up the deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.
Comprehensive coverage
This will pay to fix damage that is not covered by collision coverage. You first must pay your deductible then your comprehensive coverage will pay.
Comprehensive coverage protects against claims such as falling objects, damage from a tornado or hurricane, hitting a deer and a tree branch falling on your vehicle. The most your car insurance company will pay is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle is not worth much consider removing comprehensive coverage.
Liability coverages
This can cover damage that occurs to people or other property in an accident. It consists of three limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. You commonly see liability limits of 50/100/50 that translate to a $50,000 limit per person for injuries, a per accident bodily injury limit of $100,000, and a total limit of $50,000 for damage to vehicles and property. Alternatively, you may have a combined limit which provides one coverage limit with no separate limits for injury or property damage.
Liability coverage pays for things like medical expenses, emergency aid, attorney fees, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and pain and suffering. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is up to you, but consider buying higher limits if possible. Illinois state minimum liability requirements are 20,000/40,000/15,000 but drivers should carry more coverage.
Medical payments coverage and PIP
Med pay and PIP coverage kick in for bills like prosthetic devices, hospital visits, pain medications, nursing services and surgery. They can be used to fill the gap from your health insurance plan or if you do not have health coverage. They cover not only the driver but also the vehicle occupants and will also cover if you are hit as a while walking down the street. PIP coverage is only offered in select states and may carry a deductible
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage
This protects you and your vehicle’s occupants when the “other guys” do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered claims include medical payments for you and your occupants as well as damage to your vehicle.
Because many people only carry the minimum required liability limits (20/40/15 in Illinois), it doesn’t take a major accident to exceed their coverage limits. So UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Frequently the UM/UIM limits are set the same as your liablity limits.
Summing up your car insurance search
Discount car insurance can be found online and also from your neighborhood Waukegan agents, so compare prices from both to get a complete price analysis. Some insurance companies may not provide you the ability to get quotes online and many times these small insurance companies only sell through independent insurance agents.
Throughout this article, we presented a lot of tips how to lower your car insurance rates. It’s most important to understand that the more you quote, the better chance you’ll have of finding lower rates. You may even find the biggest savings come from some of the smallest insurance companies.
As you prepare to switch companies, make sure you don’t buy lower coverage limits just to save a few bucks. There are too many instances where an insured dropped physical damage coverage only to discover later that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. The ultimate goal is to find the BEST coverage at a price you can afford, not the least amount of coverage.
Additional Illinois car insurance resources
More information can be read on the Illinois Department of Insurance website found here. Illinois consumers can download brochures, learn about insurance regulations, and find a variety of consumer forms.
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